Herbal/Fruit Tea - refreshingly classic or pointlessly dud?

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I'm off caffeine again, so I've embarked on a herbal tea drinking adventure.

I'm enjoying them all, especially the Camomile and the fruit ones.

Do these teas win fans here?

― rumpie, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:22 (nineteen years ago)

i have some kind of weird obsession with the celestial seasonings "sleepytime" tea.

― the schef (adam schefter ha ha), Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:23 (nineteen years ago)

'Sleepytime' is good. I drink tisane a lot. Verveine is a favorite and i like tilleul but my all time favorite, is sticking a bundle of dried thyme collected from the hillsides of the Alpes-Maritimes into a bowl of boiling water.

― Michael White, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:27 (nineteen years ago)

I have engaged on a gigantic BARLEY CUP kick!! what in the world is happening to me, it's like I'm my own mom. Barley Cup is basically POSTUM.

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:28 (nineteen years ago)

MW did you get into verveine in france or something? that's the lovely Emma B's favorite. i can never remember the difference between "tisane" and that other word that i thnk means herbal tea.

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:35 (nineteen years ago)

I wouldn't say they were refreshing, more like gently calming.

Except for the peppermint, that's rather a pickmeup.

The others all make me sleepytime. Which is a good thing. Anything with chamomile in it, calm city, lovely, yes.

― Masonic Boom, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:36 (nineteen years ago)

Twinings Lemon & Ginger has a lovely zing to it - I'm tending towards this, peppermint and fennel in the mornings, and the fruits and camomile in the afternoon.

(My desk drawer is bursting with teas)

― rumpie, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:40 (nineteen years ago)

I have loads of teas in my desk draw, too, but they're mostly Green Tea because I'm desperate for the caffeine. Jasmine tea, mmmm, num.

― Masonic Boom, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:41 (nineteen years ago)

I dislike water so I don't get enough during the day, and I like something to sip at with a cigarette, so if booze is out of the question I basically drink herbal tea from the time I get home until I go to bed. Favorites are any mint, Celestial "Tension Tamer" and "Peach Passion", and any chammomile. Non-commercial dried herbs from the co-op stuffed into a tea ball would prob be better (and customizeable) but I'm not that organized yet.

― Laurel, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:41 (nineteen years ago)

I can't stand chamomile. I actually can't stand herbal tea, it makes my mouth feel dry and weird.

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:43 (nineteen years ago)

Twinings Lemon & Ginger has a lovely zing to it

I refuse to drink Twinings tea because of those stupid ads with Stephen Fry in them.

― accentmonkey, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:43 (nineteen years ago)

The different kinds of tea that cats like

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:44 (nineteen years ago)

Tension Tamer sounds like the kind of tea I need.

The ads are shit Trish, but Stephen is dreamy... (prepares to be scorned)

― rumpie, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:45 (nineteen years ago)

No, I love the Stephen Fry adverts. "Lapdog shoesnog?!?!?"

― Masonic Boom, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:46 (nineteen years ago)

Could be the tainin, Tracer? Some teas are higher in tanin than others; iirc, peppermint is quite high, chammomile is probably lower as are lots of others.

― Laurel, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:46 (nineteen years ago)

i'm very fond of peppermint tea, but that's about it in terms of herbals. chamomile disgusts me. i've been drinking a lot of green tea lately, especially gen ma chai (roasted brown rice).

― lauren, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:52 (nineteen years ago)

The ads are shit Trish, but Stephen is dreamy... (prepares to be scorned)

Don't get me wrong, I love Stephen Fry and everything he stands for, which is part of the reason I hate them so much. If it was anyone else saying "I've succumbed and got a personal trainer" while some pretty girl wanders around the kitchen (hi there! SO GAY!) putting his shopping away, I wouldn't mind, but on him it just looks all wrong. Plus the ads are on heavy rotation on the programmes I actually watch, so I have to see them too many times.

― accentmonkey, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:54 (nineteen years ago)

Oh, I've not seen those ones. Just the ones where he hangs around the Twinings office asking them why it took so long for them to make a Breakfast Tea. Ah well, I've not got a telly.

― Masonic Boom, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:56 (nineteen years ago)

In any case, this is not a thread about telly, much as I would like it if every thread were about telly. I don't drink herbal or fruit teas. I've tried, but they just taste all wrong. I think I don't like hot fruit drinks. I'm not even big on Lem Sips.

― accentmonkey, Thursday, 1 March 2007 17:59 (nineteen years ago)

MW did you get into verveine in france or something?

Yes. I knew Celestial Seasons as a kid but didn't really drink herbal teas till France. Is infusion the word you were looking for?

― Michael White, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:01 (nineteen years ago)

Twinings Lemon & Ginger has a lovely zing to it

have you tried the Dalgety one? it hits the spot without Stephen Fry.

Dalgety’s Lemon & Ginger blend is specially formulated for lovers of a stronger ginger taste. The tea is rich in Ginger with a twinkle Lemon kick-back.

― Jack Half-a-Prayer, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:03 (nineteen years ago)

Sounds great. Don't think I've seen their teas yet. I'm off to google....

― rumpie, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:05 (nineteen years ago)

i have so many teas. i think fruity ones in general have 'tanin' or whatever but generally make my mouth dry afterwards too - like chalky, ek. so for non-awake-making teas, i stick to decaf earl grey, chai and even rooibos (which is decaf anyway obv). i have looked for verveine but can't seem to find it! will have to look harder.

best though, lately: cut up fresh ginger, put in pot, boil water for a while, let sit on low, drink. must like ginger tho.

i am intrigued by like boiling up some herbs and roots and twigs. concoction time. like: anise, cinnamon, poison. joking about the poison.

― rrrobyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:06 (nineteen years ago)

yes!! infusion. what is la difference between "un infusion" and "une tisane"?

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:07 (nineteen years ago)

i like tazo and stash teas...celestial seasonings taste not as fresh or something, though i like some of their varieties.

― JuliaA, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:07 (nineteen years ago)

Dear Arbyn,

Please be joking about the anise, too.

Love me, love my weird food ways,
Laurel

― Laurel, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:07 (nineteen years ago)

you can find them with the organic miscellany in sainsbury's. a squeeze of fresh lemon juice into the hot tea makes it even nicer.

― Jack Half-a-Prayer, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:08 (nineteen years ago)

Ummm yum.

Does anybody have any faith in the 'Cleanse' and 'Detoxify' ones?

― rumpie, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:10 (nineteen years ago)

re: tea/tisane - all i know is that on menus here (montreal), the former is traditional black of whatever sort, and the latter is herbal. infusion is when you put some herbs in boiling water and drink it while submerged in vast underground pool of heavy water. it's expensive though.

― rrrobyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:10 (nineteen years ago)

Celestial Seas. mint is DEFINITELY not the best, but it's the best available at the grocery store on Vanderbilt Avenue and I haven't worked my way around to going somewhere inconvenient and specialized and possib expensive for herbal teas yet. I know I should grow & make my own, but I'd go through SO MUCH spearmint it's not even funny. Maybe this summer.

― Laurel, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:11 (nineteen years ago)

well the upkeep of the vast underground pool, for starters!!

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:11 (nineteen years ago)

xpost

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:11 (nineteen years ago)

cleanse and detoxify teas are basically diuretics

laurelx - i love anything black licorice flavoured!

― rrrobyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:12 (nineteen years ago)

getting some actual mint leaves and brewing that for a while is f*cking lovely

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:12 (nineteen years ago)

http://www.goodnessdirect.co.uk/detail/373974b.jpg

Tension tamer has a LADY and a DRAGON. That's the whole reason I bought it. It's pretty yum.

I just bought a licorice & mint tea which is godly.

― Abbott, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:13 (nineteen years ago)

eh. I used to like 'em just fine but I've basically stopped drinking anything but oolong.

― bernard snowy, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:14 (nineteen years ago)

"Anethole, the principal component of anise oil is a precursor that can eventually produce 2,5-dimethoxybenzaldehyde which is used in the clandestine synthesis of psychedelic drugs such as 2C-B, 2C-I and DOB.[1] Anise is also the main flavor of Absinthe as well as being used as a flavoring for pastis, ouzo, rakı, and other liqueurs."

whoa. how do i shot clandestine synthesis?

― rrrobyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:14 (nineteen years ago)

we had a bunch of dying fresh mint in the fridge from cooking recently, and put the pathetic wilty stuff in with our tea. it perked up and went green again and tasted great.

but yeah, keeping mint around just for tea seems like it would be excessive.

― JuliaA, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:14 (nineteen years ago)

I'm having gen mai cha today as well.

I like rooibos tea (esp from Mariage Freres) as well as licorice spice tea (from stash, and Tazo Refresh (peppermint + spearmint).. Where do you get peppermint fennel tea? I'd like to try that

― daria-g, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:14 (nineteen years ago)

i don't really think that the odd cup of cleansing/detoxifying/slimming tea is going to do anythinig. the girls in an office i used to work in were obsessed with hippie teas that had various purported health properties and had them all lined up on a shelf in the kitchen above the kettle. my coworker absentmindedly went for the wrong box (they were all the same brand - dr. whatsit's -with similar boxes) one day and accidentally drank 3 cups of the laxative kind. no effect.

― lauren, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:15 (nineteen years ago)

i love the covers of those teas - with women in bathing suits, smiling and holding a tea cup!

― rrrobyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:18 (nineteen years ago)

and by covers i probably mean pictures on the boxes of tea

― rrrobyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:18 (nineteen years ago)

I love the Tension Tamer dragon princess, too! See how calm she is? It's the tea. God I drank so much of that stuff in college, it still tastes like chatting on #sinister in the newspaper office until 2am to me.

Julia, I keep fresh mint for tea and salads, and for flavoring simple syrups in the summer. It's really lovely. I'm out now, though, waiting for spring when the green markets will carry half-grown herb shoots again.

― Laurel, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:21 (nineteen years ago)

getting some actual mint leaves and brewing that for a while is f*cking lovely

I also like getting regular black tea and chucking some mint in with it. Yum.

Oh, and karkadeh (I don't know how to spell it), that hibsicus tea is also lovely.

― accentmonkey, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:23 (nineteen years ago)

mmmm. boiling dried red hibiscus/sorrel, mixing it with some honey, and serving it over ice is perfect in the summer. it makes a great based for mixed drinks, as well.

― lauren, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:26 (nineteen years ago)

I drank loads of that in Egypt, accentmonkey. Good stuff.

― Michael White, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:27 (nineteen years ago)

Yeah, that's where I got it too. We got some dried hibiscus in a spice shop in Dahab which lasted us about three years and cost nuppence nuppenny. I wish people would stop blowing up Egypt. I want to go there on holidays again.

― accentmonkey, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:47 (nineteen years ago)

For anyone that likes licorice flavored tea, you have to try Yogi Tea brand Egyptian Licorice Tea. I sarted drinking it after I read a review in the Guardian a couple of years ago and it's the most amazing tea ever. Seriously. I always buy multiple boxes because it sells out really quickly. Do yourself a favor and try it. It's wonderful.

― ENBB, Thursday, 1 March 2007 20:39 (nineteen years ago)

that's my favorite, it's between that and stash licorice spice. it's really good, but expensive! I don't know why they don't sell loose tea

― daria-g, Thursday, 1 March 2007 20:53 (nineteen years ago)

Search: ginger tea made from real ginger root - packs a wallop

― o. nate, Thursday, 1 March 2007 20:57 (nineteen years ago)

twinings decaffeinated earl grey is my favourite tea for the last few months...

― Ronan, Thursday, 1 March 2007 23:59 (nineteen years ago)

I sometimes shred some fresh ginger and finely slice a chilli, then infuse them in water for five minutes, strain it into the cup and add some honey. A burny, but rather pleasant experience.

― Dalzinho, Friday, 2 March 2007 16:22 (nineteen years ago)

eight years pass...

http://www.traditionalmedicinals.com/products/chamomile-lavender/

this stuff is saving my life. the Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime Extra (with valerian) knocks me right out, in a good way. what are some other relaxing teas/herbs I should try?

― welltris (crüt), Sunday, 13 December 2015 23:27 (ten years ago)

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