Tea, honey, and Brita...

Phepheronca said:Oh, great info! Just one more thing—are that Himalayan Ganesh and the jasmine, ginger, and cranberry blends strong teas? Like green tea? I really hope they aren't bitter... 😲 I was reading about sage the other day and apparently it's so potent you shouldn't drink much of it, maybe just use it as a mouthwash. Anyway, gotta be careful with that stuff. By the way, do you strain your tea through a sieve or just use one of those metal infuser balls?

Personally, I find the ginger and jasmine blend super smooth. It’s healthy, boosts circulation, and feels really refreshing. Ganesh is definitely a stronger tea, but the flavor is great... though I might not be the best judge since I'll happily sip any green tea. As for the cranberry, it's pretty mild, so you should be able to drink it without any issues.
As for sage, nobody actually drinks it, and honestly, I can't even stand using it as a mouthwash... it makes me feel a bit nauseous.😁
I use a metal infuser ball.😍 You should grab one too; it saves you all the hassle of straining. They aren't expensive, probably won't cost you more than a couple of bucks at a place like Target. 👍

I totally agree with what Terry Hernandez6 said about Twings teas. I actually stumbled upon that exact collection she mentioned recently at a local cafe and they are wonderful.
Someone asked if there's a pure jasmine tea... I don't think so, it's usually based on green or black tea. In my opinion, the green tea base is much better and lighter—it has a really natural jasmine scent, whereas the black tea base kind of overpowers it and makes it heavy.

this is an excellent green tea. It’s basically a blend of all the different greens from Twings—really solid stuff. I drink it at the office since it comes in filters...

Phepheronca, do you have any particular trick for cleaning those coils?

Phepheronca said:😲 Well, what green tea isn't bitter?

They aren't if you don't leave them steeping too long. At least, that's how it works for me. 😁

So, I’m at the grocery store right now and found this green tea from Lipton. They didn't have any Twins in stock, but whatever—I'll just grab those at that specialty shop later.. this one is Lipton Tea Mint.. basically an flavored green tea with mint.. 😕 Might as well give it a shot.. I also picked up some cranberry tea; oh man, it smells amazing and has such a pretty reddish color. There wasn't much variety to choose from, but hey, you gotta try new things sometimes..

I probably steep this green tea way too long, definitely more than two minutes.. I never really check the clock, I just kind of wing it.. lately, I've been making sure not to pour boiling water directly on it, letting it sit for a bit first. I haven't used honey for a couple of days now; honestly, it's easy enough to get used to.. but I'm still a little hesitant to try that green tea again—I still haven't forgotten that bitter aftertaste, ugh..

Does anyone know how to clean out these tea infusers? At work, I just use the regular tap water to make my tea, and at home, I use the sink water, and yeah, limescale has already started building up after just a day or two of use. It's gross.. that's actually why I was planning on getting a Brita, because looking at this buildup is just nasty. 😢

P.S. Totally forgot to buy that metal tea ball, oops.. oh well, I'll get it tomorrow. Besides, I don't even have loose leaf tea right now anyway, everything I have is just in bags.. or whatever the term is these days..

It honestly isn't bitter at all if you just let it steep for two or three minutes. You don't even need to add sugar, honey, or anything else. 😁

Just try to put your past experiences out of your mind. 😁

Feferonka 😬 you're probably going to 🙂 me, but I've heard that metal can actually mess with the flavor of the tea
maybe try using bamboo strainers instead
man, who would have thought people got this worked up over tea!
😁

I use a kettle with built-in micro-perforations for filtration—it just makes things simpler for me...

And why aren't you using tea filters? If you do that, you can actually reuse the same leaves for another brew, whereas you can't do that when you're steeping directly in metal.

Do you have a bamboo strainer at home for your green tea? I usually just give mine a quick rinse under cold water and let it air dry. For fruit teas—like cranberry or rosehip—it’s actually better to let them steep for about ten minutes or so...👍

Man, who can even keep track of all this stuff... 🤔 I’m sitting here sipping this Lipton right now and honestly, I am converted! It isn't bitter at all—I swear, I timed it down to the second! You get this huge hit of mint, almost like there’s fresh lemon squeezed in there too. The thing is, the box doesn't say anything about how long you should steep the bags.. 🤔 Whatever, I'll just stick to two minutes for all the green teas. Why would anyone let these sit longer? Oh, wait! Also, how long does an open box of tea actually stay good? I just opened a whole bunch of them, and I'm assuming they just dry out, right? They aren't airtight in that plastic wrap around the box, are they? 🤔

P.S. I'm looking now, and their website doesn't mention that bamboo set. Do you happen to remember roughly how much it costs? Don't want to get blindsided by the price, haha..

Honestly, props to you guys for being tea connoisseurs. I just grab whatever’s lying around—right now it’s the vanilla Rooibos from Kraft Heinz, which actually isn't bad.
I only really got into tea because I need to stay hydrated, and the tap water around here is driving me insane. So, I started using my Brita and switched to tea instead. It's been a total game changer.

hm... I think fruit infusions should steep longer since it takes more time for all those nutrients to actually release compared to herbal teas (it makes sense to me—steeping something like cranberry seeds would take way longer than just a green tea leaf). Generally speaking, when you're working with plants, roots and fruits need hotter water and more time, while flowers and leaves work better in slightly cooler water for a shorter steep...☕

Wait, then why does the label on that Ocean Spray cranberry juice say it only needs to steep for five minutes?

Phepheronca said:Man, who is supposed to remember all this? 🤔 Right now, I'm sipping this Lipton and I'm actually a convert. It isn't bitter at all—honestly, I timed it to the second!

I was just about to tell you it definitely wouldn't be bitter, but I see you've already given it a go 🙂 When I first tried green tea, it was absolutely revolting... I thought "never again"... then somehow I ended up trying "real" green tea—not those little tea bags—and I was hooked 🙂 Now I've "discovered" Twings, though I only brew them when I can't be bothered with all the straining... and generally, the more expensive it is, the better (that's a rule of thumb, anyway; from what I've noticed, teas in NYC are twice the price compared to my local grocery store)
By the way, Lipton Indian Spice black tea is quite nice 🙂 It's not like the other black teas since it's flavored 🙂 And Twinings flavored black teas are great too, though I wouldn't recommend them to you because they are rather bitter (given your taste 😉 ).
I saw someone replied regarding jasmine... I know there's definitely pure stuff out there; Twinings has some in tins, but I haven't been able to find it for sale around here 😢 That's why I'm asking... I have the jasmine green tea... and the Jade Pearls 😍

Daniel Lopez said:then why does that BioFarm cranberry blend say it only needs five minutes?

Regarding that—honestly, I think it's best to just steep it for as long as you personally feel like... rather than following the box blindly. You shouldn't really be using water hotter than about 160 degrees for green tea, otherwise you risk losing some of those benefits—though, naturally, not every brand specifies that; some even suggest boiling water at 212 degrees.😲

Eric Brown3 said:I noticed someone replied about jasmine tea.. honestly, I know there’s definitely pure stuff out there—like what you get from Twings in those little boxes—but I haven't been able to find any available here locally😢 so that's why I'm asking... I already have green tea with jasmine... and Jade Pearls😍

There is pure jasmine out there too,😍 so now I really need to go hunt some down.🙂 I've only ever stumbled upon blends until now, which is why I figured pure jasmine was impossible to find... oh man.. time to start my search!👋

Phepheronca said:I was reading about sage the other day—apparently, it’s too potent to drink much of, or even better, just used as a mouthwash...

Well, that needs a correction—that’s just not true regarding sage. It’s incredibly medicinal, but sure, maybe don't overdo it for long stretches. It is bitter and strong, I'll give you that. But if you mix it with milk—half a teaspoon of sage to half a cup of milk—and sweeten it with honey, it’s actually excellent...
You can find more details here:

Look, when you're shopping for a water heater, you're better off picking one without an exposed heating element. Go for the ones where the heating element is integrated into the base—usually just a flat metal bottom.
As for cleaning it, you could head over to a place like Walmart and grab some specialized descaling sachets specifically made for kettles. Alternatively, you can just use citric acid; just toss two or three teaspoons into about two cups of water, boil that mixture inside, and then give everything a good rinse with plain water.
After that, things should be looking pretty clean, unless the buildup has gotten really bad.

Feferonka, here’s one little tip for getting used to green tea 🙂

I mean, it smells so much like actual apples that you might just forget all about buying those apple & cinnamon filter bags ever again 😍

Anyway, I'm sipping on it right now 🎉