Treat Yourselves To A Quality Blend Of Tea.

[Minstrel SE]

I love a cup of tea but I only go back to an English Breakfast Tea as a last resort. Probably based on Kenyan it tastes too strong and is not as refreshing as better teas. I know there are various mixes

My favourites are now Chai and Empress Grey....lovely! I will be starting to crook my little finger with a china cup soon :) At £1.75 a box I can try them out at M&S before spending more.

Ive tried Assam, Darjeeling and Red Bush. I dont like Redbush and found the other two nothing to write home about. I still have Ceylon to try from this range.

I do like a bit of milk in tea but no sugar. I dont think a tea can be properly enjoyed with any sugar in it

I also have green tea and lemon and ginger tea which I drink without milk

Theres a whole world of tea tasting and exotic teas out there. Did I say I love a cup of tea :) My Christmas present is reminding you all not to miss out

What are your favourite blends? Im expecting a load of replies about PG tips that you can stand a spoon up in :)

Best Wishes
Martin

[hifi_dave]

I don't drink tea or coffee much anymore but when I do it's a good quality green tea - without milk or sugar, of course. That or Jasmine Pearls.

[Sherwood]

if you are serious it has to be leaf tea. I can strongly recommend the following https://www.wearetea.com/

The Earl Grey Supreme is amazing and best made with one of these

http://www.hartsofstur.com/acatalog/Bodum-Assam-Tea-Press-With-Glass-Handle-0.5-Litre-Black-182301.html?gclid=CjwKCAiAmvjRBRBlEiwAWFc1mAO2XLJJ CYhzeSDYE70LVfa56xVDmftj0eFvPga18jYMUHfA9X_GfhoC0v IQAvD_BwE


Geoff

[Lerxst]

Am also looking for a better brew.

Fed with the PG Tips and all the rest - even considering going back to a pot. Will never forget when tea bags became popular my Grandmother saying: "They're just selling you the floor-sweepings now."

Like you I have only milk. Some teas are not meant to be drunk with milk, eg Red Bush (Rooiebos in Dutch). No milk = no good in my book.

English breakfast tea from Twinings is best I can find at the moment in a regular supermarket for a reasonable price. I have not ventured into the really expensive ones yet however. Tried Assam, dahjeeling, green, all that stuff, much like you - and, like you, unimpressed. The supermarkets do have a more expensive selections, but may need that pot first.

I have one fresh coffee in the morning with sugar and milk.

Any tips welcome. A good tea for me has got body and taste (not too sharp) without being strong. I am just a normal bloke, not a posho.

[Minstrel SE]

if you are serious it has to be leaf tea. I can strongly recommend the following https://www.wearetea.com/

The Earl Grey Supreme is amazing and best made with one of these

http://www.hartsofstur.com/acatalog/Bodum-Assam-Tea-Press-With-Glass-Handle-0.5-Litre-Black-182301.html?gclid=CjwKCAiAmvjRBRBlEiwAWFc1mAO2XLJJ CYhzeSDYE70LVfa56xVDmftj0eFvPga18jYMUHfA9X_GfhoC0v IQAvD_BwE


Geoff

Yes at the moment Im semi serious on the scale of things. I have a Bodum glass pot ready to try some leaf teas. I will have a look at the links.

Now Im finding some teas I like, I can now look for the best brew available. Cheers

[Lerxst]

if you are serious it has to be leaf tea. I can strongly recommend the following https://www.wearetea.com/

The Earl Grey Supreme is amazing and best made with one of these

http://www.hartsofstur.com/acatalog/Bodum-Assam-Tea-Press-With-Glass-Handle-0.5-Litre-Black-182301.html?gclid=CjwKCAiAmvjRBRBlEiwAWFc1mAO2XLJJ CYhzeSDYE70LVfa56xVDmftj0eFvPga18jYMUHfA9X_GfhoC0v IQAvD_BwE


Geoff

You can get this in Morrisons. I noticed it today actually. Can you drink Earl grey with milk. Isn't it a bit "lemony"?

The "WeAre" name put me off. Gives the impression of "we are a trendy young new company run by a cool group of cocky tw*ts with business degrees. Our name appeals to young up and coming professionals and we are happily ripping you off"

[Minstrel SE]

Am also looking for a better brew.

Fed with the PG Tips and all the rest - even considering going back to a pot. Will never forget when tea bags became popular my Grandmother saying: "They're just selling you the floor-sweepings now."

Like you I have only milk. Some teas are not meant to be drunk with milk, eg Red Bush (Rooiebos in Dutch). No milk = no good in my book.

English breakfast tea from Twinings is best I can find at the moment in a regular supermarket for a reasonable price. I have not ventured into the really expensive ones yet however. Tried Assam, dahjeeling, green, all that stuff, much like you - and, like you, unimpressed. The supermarkets do have a more expensive selections, but may need that pot first.

I have one fresh coffee in the morning with sugar and milk.

Any tips welcome. A good tea for me has got body and taste (not too sharp) without being strong. I am just a normal bloke, not a posho.

Yes as Ive said to Geoff, I am at the amateur end of tea tasting but enjoying it. I have a Bodum pot ready for the next stage.

Ive probably been drinking Red Bush wrong then with a dash of milk but its the one I like the least along with Kenyan.

I realise there will be better and fresher leaf brews but this gives me an idea what I prefer. The M&S range is priced well below Twinings etc as I find what I like.

I love the orange and lemon zest in Empress Grey. I prefer it to Earl Grey That hint of orange is like tea an oranges at half time in a very refreshing drink. It offsets the bergamot in a pleasing way

I love the spices in Chai tea " a carefully balanced blend of spices with black tea inspired by the street stall recipies of India"

You should try those. I dont know how to recommend a tea with good body and taste. Kenyan has body but I do not find it refreshing like other teas. I like these lighter teas with a blend of extra ingredients I find going back to a cheap standard tea is like drinking stodge and its just not refreshing.

[Sherwood]

The Earl Grey I mentioned tastes so fresh it would be a shame to spoil it with milk. The tea has little purple petals and the aroma alone is superb

I used to drink Rooibos frequently when I was living in Namibia. Of course, it is a South African herb rather than a tea and again should not be taken with milk. Problem is that most of the easily available brands in the UK are tea bags and frankly not very good. I think it may have something to do with freshness but a good rooibos can be fantastic. I was given some of this recently and it was very good. https://www.charteas.com/rooibos?gclid=CjwKCAiAmvjRBRBlEiwAWFc1mH-_zvur_hef-3zcPGJCtZNgrY3g4GISLkHf_NU2utYc9oNOGqTJ5xoCc9oQAvD _BwE

Geoff

[Shadowbox81]

Leaf tea can seem expensive but as you can reuse the leaves for multiple brewings, it's not too bad. I normally tend towards the lighter brew with my favourite normally a Darjeeling like a first flush Margerets Hope but I really also like Jasmine Dragon Pearls.

I tend to find that brewing temperature and time makes a huge difference to flavour.

[Primalsea]

I find loose leaf tea rediculously expensive in the UK. When I used to travel to North Africa alot you could by real high quality tea for less than half the price you can in the UK, The good stuff too. My favourite is green tea that you brew in a heated teapot for around 20 minutes.

[Ninanina]

I normally drink coffee but I like tea once in a while and have ordered some lovely loose tea from the Tea Makers of London.. http://www.theteamakers.co.uk

I love Lapsang Souchong, nice and smoky tasting :)

[Ninanina]

I use a Teeli infuser with my loose tea like this one

http://i.imgur.com/eUUirdE.jpg (https://imgur.com/eUUirdE)

http://www.teeli.com/permanent-filters/teeli-best-m.html

[Sherwood]

I find loose leaf tea rediculously expensive in the UK. When I used to travel to North Africa alot you could by real high quality tea for less than half the price you can in the UK, The good stuff too. My favourite is green tea that you brew in a heated teapot for around 20 minutes.

The truth is you get what you pay for. Most tea bag teas are pretty poor but pretty cheap at a few pence per bag. The best loose leaf teas are more expensive, but probably no more than 15p per serving and often around 10p. As to reusing leaf tea, that conjures up images of post war rationing. Compared to what people routinely pay for those awful coffee pods loose leaf tea is an absolute bargain.

Geoff

[Lerxst]

As to reusing leaf tea, that conjures up images of post war rationing. Geoff

Reminded me of Blythe (Donald Pleasance) in The Great Escapae. lol. "Er, Verner, that's a focal length shutter" Brilliant film.

[Blackdog]

Interesting topic for me being a Canadian. I'm primarily a coffee drinker, but when I do drink tea (usually after shoveling snow☺) It's Ridgeways Earl Grey. My wife prefers Ridgeways Organic Black. No sugar added.

Compared to what people routinely pay for those awful coffee pods loose leaf tea is an absolute bargain.
Agreed on both counts. Good leaf is hard to get here. As for those environmental disaster coffee pods - never.

[Tim]

Fresh ground coffee most of the time, but I love Green Tea, in fact I got a present for Christmas from an old work colleague in China, Taiwan High-mountain, it's delicious and one of things I miss about China - tea ceremonies are wonderful experiences.

Jasmine tea, Earl Grey are favourites too and if I'm slumming it with a full English, it's Yorkshire tea. Specialist teas always with nothing added, Yorkshire might have a dash of milk but again, mostly black without. I rarely have milk in the house.