The Tea Basics

First off, let's begin with the basic types of tea. Tea is made from a plant, the actual tea leaves that are dried and rehydrated when you add it to hot water. After water, tea is the most consumed drink in the entire world. As I type this, I'm drinking tea myself! It's great for hydration because it's water that has had tea leaves soaking in it and has many health benefits such as antioxidants. Overall though, I drink tea because it tastes good.

I'll begin with black tea, since it is the Western world's favorite, whereas the Eastern hemisphere mostly consumes green tea. Black tea is known for its strong taste, frequently people add milk and sugar to bring out the flavor of the tea. In England and other countries in the United Kingdom, English breakfast, a type of black tea, typically a blend of Kenyan, Ceylon and Assam in varying quantities is consumed in large amounts. There, it is the coffee of the old world. I can compare it to coffee because it has a bitter taste like coffee. If you're someone who doesn't add sugar to coffee, you might like black tea. It's less acidic than coffee so it's easier on your tummy. There are several types of black tea. I've already mentioned English Breakfast, Kenyan, Ceylon and Assam. There's also Darjeeling, Lapsang souchong, Earl Grey and many more.

Green tea is a lighter tasting tea that is known for its health benefits. However, be careful because no health benefits are actually 100% proven. However, there's one thing that green tea is proven to have and it's antioxidants as well hydrating properties. This tea has roots as far back as 4000 years ago, the oldest herbal tea that we've discovered that humans drunk. If you've had tea in a Chinese restaurant, chances are it was green tea; either Oolong or Jasmine, both very light and refreshing blends.

Finally, we will end with herbal tea. This kind of tea is made up from flowers, fruit, plants and herbs steeped in hot water. This is the tea I drink the most. Ever had Chamomile tea? That's herbal tea that you were probably given to you if you had Tonsillitis and it soothed your throat. Why is herbal tea my favorite? Because with herbal tea you can have several kinds of dried fruit that mix together with a terrific bouquet of flavor in a drink. It has no calories and has a magnificent taste that hydrates you more than soda or juice. Herbal tea is the oldest tea in history, it goes back to the Roman empire. Like the previous teas discussed, it has antioxidant properties. My favorite herbal tea has rose petals, apples, gooseberries and spearmint in it. What I love about herbal tea is that it is very relaxing. I do love coffee but I have one cup of coffee a day and the rest of the day I use herbal tea to relax.

There are multiple ways to make tea, but not all ways are equal. If you're a beginner, you may want to go with tea bags. Depending if you want black, green or herbal tea, there are a few brands I can suggest. If you're in the United States, I would recommend Celestial Seasonings Fruit Tea Sampler if you're looking for some tasty herbal tea. For black tea, please don't get Lipton tea bags. They're just not good. It's less than mediocre and not worth your time. I would suggest, for black tea bags, that you try Stash Tea or Twinings. Finally, for green tea I would go with Bigelow.

Want to try really quality stuff? You can get loose leaf tea from Teavanna, which is found at many shopping centres, as well as David's tea. Additionally you can get them online at Adagio or the previously mentioned stores found in malls. You don't need to purchase a tea pot, just buy a tea ball that you can hook onto your mug and steep your tea in. The tea's tin or box will tell you how long to steep your tea. You can add some sugar to the black and herbal, but I don't suggest any sugar for the green tea. Additionally, milk is only for the black tea.

My next post I will be reviewing Teavanna's blend called Strawberry Lemonade. If you have any questions at all, feel free to tweet me @Hummingbird2194 or email me: leahknadeau  @gmail.com

Thanks,

Leah