The Noble Pagan Forums - All things Tea!

OK, so I'm a coffee drinker. I know, I know, but hear me out.

I've tried chamomile tea, rasberry tea, yadda yadda yadda. I just haven't been able to find something with the "oomph" that coffee does.

So I've been researching and have found some herbal mixes and wanted to throw some ideas around.

First, what type of tea do you drink and why? Hot or cold? Sugar? Splenda? Cream? Herbal or the other stuff from the grocery store (Netea or Lipton or whatever?)? For health benefits or just cuz it got da yummy?

I ask because I found some stuff at my local Elemental store and was thinking about trying it out. They sell Dandelion root and something called chickweed--both can be strained into a tea concoction of sorts.

Since we've already covered that I'm not a "tea person", I wanted to hear from all you tea tollers and get some ideas/thoughts on the best types of tea and why you think so.

I welcome any and everybody to join in...this is something that I'd like to give a whirl if I can gather enough info....

Spice Chai - with a touch of cream ... like pumpkin pie heaven in a glass ...

To further my questions, do you drink it strictly for taste or is there a health benefit in there.

See, like my post above said, I looked at some of these herbs and found they have some pretty cool health side effects. Some of those were a bit scary (I mean, if they talk about "intestinal cleansing" then that means.....uh.....no thanks) but the others didn't seem so bad.

I'm worried about buying some of these and then they taste like dog spit. I don't know the correct way to make tea anyway (do I have to get one of those strainer thingys or do you just pour the stuff in hot water?).

I'm a tea virgin. Help me.

It all depends on the herb you are infusing.

Most times you can simply get away with infusing the tea in the water and then spooning most of it out. I would not suggest this with things like calendula or Chamomile as the small leaves of the flowers will likely be swallowed along with the tea. Whether to use a strainer or not is entirely based on a) your personal feelings on swallowing minute amounts of the plant materials and b) the plant in question. True tea leaves from the tea trees you can just pour, steep and drink. Herbals you should understand the herb you are steeping to determine if you require a strainer, and how long to steep the tea.

Almost all herbal teas have a slight bitterness to them, this is easily adjusted using abit of honey in the cup.

Research the herbs you are considering imbibing before doing it, as you stated before, some are very very strong diuretics and will have you on the shitter for hours if yer not careful, while others can flat out kill you.

I drink tea mainly because I enjoy the taste and the calming effects of the mixes I brew. As I stated above, Spiced Chai with a touch of heavy cream and some honey is my absolute orgasmic heaven when it comes to tea (you can get this one commercially at any decent coffeshop). There are some mixes that I use for healing or meditational purposes (I do not recommend doing this for meditational without knowing and understanding the plant you are imbibing very very very well). I can share the healing mixes if you would like, but due to the potential for harm from careless use, I will not share my meditational mixes.

The dandelion root is a diuretic and has a bitter tinge to it. I would not suggest this one for normal day to day, only for times when you are a little ... backed up?

Chickweed on the other hand I personally use for poultices and the like for dry skin and minor wounds. The plant is a wholesome edible, and can be steeped, but I usually only use it for skin repairs. It is said that it makes a good herb for ulcer complaints when steeped and imbibed, although I have not tried this.

Weeeelllll...

for the "OOmpph-coffee thing" as you called it (I liked that sentence btw! I had the exact picture in mind that you thought about *hehe*) I take it with Jean-Luc Picard: "Earl Grey - hot"
English Breakfast tea serves the very same purpose! I have both with milk or sweetened milk. That's just for waking up or the taste really - same whenever I have a cuppa in the afternoon. Somehow living in Ireland has brought that to me...there was the "Whatever happens or goes wrong - first have a cup of tea"-philosophy, so a cuppa char really is relaxing in the afternoon.

But I do drink tea for health-reasons as well. I've got several rooibos-teas in all different tastes and styles. Some only because of taste - some mixed with herbs for a purpose. One of my fave rooibos ones for wintertime has cinnamon, orange peel and such things.
For health-stuff I usually have herbal mixtures - or Chinese Oolong tea, which strenghtens the immune system. I either buy mixtures or have them mixed at a pharmacy for me. All depending on the effect I want - basically you can google some herbs to find out a good mix for you.

And don't worry - they won't taste like dog spit Yet I do use honey as a sweetener for most herbal teas.

How to make it? Well - black tea takes 2-3 minutes ro have a coffee-like "awake"effect -- if you leave it on 3-6 it will be making you tired and taste rather bitter.
Most rooibos and herbal ones take 6-10 minutes until you have a proper flavour.

Do you need a strainer-thingy? Depends what you mean by it?! most black tea comes in prepared tea-bags already. For herbal ones you will certainly need one thing or the other. Feel free to put the tea into your pot, add boiling water and use a small sieve [is that the right word for it??] when pouring it into your glass/cup. In that case you might want to add some more hot water after some time, since the tea is gonna get really strong after a while.
Personally I use such "paper"-things...like a small paper-coffee-filter (is that a strainer then??) where the tea goes in to. Those metal-things are not really good - they give a metallic touch to your tea in my opinion.

So how much do you need?
If you have loose tea you can say that there should be a teaspoon of tea for each cup. That brings you to about 6-8 teaspoons for a 1l-teapot.
For herbal teas (or others that are "big-cut") you should count about 2ts/cup.

Give it a try - and let us know

__________________
I heard the adjective left the noun because it had a tendency to be possessive.

You guys are the best.

CR, I'm totally on board with gettin' my "book learn" on regarding the herbs and such before trying it. The last thing I need is to be stoned for 3 days (college, anyone?) or winding up in the hospital after a rather unpleasant intestinal incident.

I would be interested in your healing teas (and fully understand about the meditation teas).

Moondancer, you've given me a lot to think about--I'm just now in the early stages of figuring out what/how/why to make.

I know it's not exactly rocket science or anything, I'm just on a bandwagon right now bouncing around between the "mainstream" teas and the more exotic stuff (what CR and I were talking about).

I'm still open if anybody'd like to jump in and add to this.

Greentea with Jasmine
Lady Gray
Lavender Dreams (lavender and tea)
Chai Tea
Pumpkin and Chai

NOM

There is a store here called the Dancing moon that has a tea room (and I would live in it if I could). They have 4 shelves floor to ceiling of teas and one of them is called Lemon Poundcake. It smells and taste like lemon poundcake.

Also look up the Teavana-- good place

Just for you Deb dear:



Unfortunately, unlike those novelty pens that showcase a naked women when you turn them upside down, you don't get to see any privates. Which is actually fine with me CAUSE I DON'T WANT NO MAN'S JUNK IN MY TEA ANYWAYS. Except you, Earl Grey.

Super sexy tea bags

Attached Thumbnails

 

Awful sweet of you to think of me, but I'm not sure I could handle a bunch of nekkid people in my cup.

Then again.....

I have question.....

Is infusing water/herbs (making an herbal drink) that same as making a "good/great cup of tea"?

"Good/Great cup of tea" as in fresh, semi-dried or dried teas leaves with an infuser with extremely hot pot of tea (for a specific time frame depending on the specific type of tea) vs. semi-hot (not extremely hot) with a papered/mass-produced tea bag. (Paper teas bags can make the tea bitter and/or the tea can be old or moldy, which then can make the tea tasty moldy. I am sensitive to molds with my super uber sensitive nose/sinuses.)


I drink coffee, a lot of coffee each day. I prefer tea, but to make a good cup of tea, I need more time in the morning. I drink teas for the energy in the morning, but coffee a lot of time is just that more convenient. I like stronger (more bold) flavors and/or crispier taste for certain things like teas, wines and a good cup of coffee.

I like teas, when I am under the weather. It seems to help open up my sinuses, help me breathe a little better, and/or help said sinus drain. (this is when I need to make it scalding (5 minutes in the microwave...then I steep tea and will spend another 10-15 minutes or so breathing the steam, while it cools enough to drink.

I have used chamomile several times to help fall asleep. Spice intense flavor to help opening up the senses (so I can breathe the steam of the tea and sit still for more than 10 minutes) while helping sinus pressure and sinus related issues. I love Earl Gray in the morning to get caffeine, wake up slowly to a good cup of tea...semi-mediating if you will, calming effect.

As a lot of things, my love of good cup of tea as took a back seat to my job/responsibilities, trying to "do what's right financially speaking", trying to see how much money I can make (more like making management and upper management richer and make "themselves" look better)....BUT NO MORE!!!