#teasource

Mugshot Monday - “Don’t even THINK of putting coffee in here!” glass mug by TeaSource with their Earl Grey House Blend

Check out these awesome glass tea mugs! Love that sass.

I took today off of work to get some things done around town. One of my stops was TeaSource in Highland Park to stock up on my favorite teas:

Earl Grey White Tip

Evening In Missoula

Ginger Root

Montana Gold

Chai Spice Blend

I drink way more coffee than I do tea, but ever since I tried going without caffeine for 4 weeks I’ve really enjoyed the TeaSource herbal blends. I was intrigued by their “Chocolate Stout” tea online and wondered if I could get a sample size to brew at home before I bought a bag.

As fate would have it, the Chocolate Stout was their special of the day! Mary the barista poured me a sample and it was delicious. It’s very sweet, but has such a different vibe from the other herbal teas.

I opted to sit down and enjoy a pot of their Earl Grey house blend for my mugshot. The White Tip Earl Grey is one of my favorites, but I must say that this house blend may be even better. I’ll have to go back and buy some next time.

You can buy one of these mugs on TeaSource's website or they have them at their store.

Cheers!

Assam, 2nd Flush. Loose Leaf. TeaSource. $13.97/4 oz.

(They no long longer have it listed on their website, so no picture. )

I picked this up last time I was at TeaSource out of the discount bin, in a sealed bag, so it was a bit of a gamble. It was a second flush Assam, so I figured it would be a good tea at a discounted price.

I love second flush Assam teas. My reviews of other teas probably reflect my bias towards this variety. I’d never had one that was any worse than ‘good’. Until this.

This one is just flat. It lacks the maltiness of others. The taste is boring. no overtones of other flavors. It has a degree of earthiness to it, but it’s missing a well-developed flavor. It you didn’t tell me it was an Assam, I’d assume I was drinking a weak dark tea.

    Most of us have had herbal teas before- sitting down in the evening to a hot cup of chamomile tea or drinking some lemon ginger tea to calm your stomach- it's usually an herbal tea. We all have an idea of what an herbal tea is, looks like, tastes like, etc., but what actually defines the tea as an "herbal" tea?

      Herbal teas can usually be defined as any tea that does not have tea leaves in it. This can be anything from teas made with literal herbs, (sage, lavender, chamomile, etc.) teas made with fruits, flowers, or even some specific plants, like Mate (a plant from Argentina) and Rooibos (which literally means red bush). I'll talk about Mate and Rooibos in a later post.

      If you're looking for benefits and remedy without any caffeine or the "tea" flavor, (which can easily be masked by fruits and herbs, but I digress...) herbal teas are what you should be looking for. The right cup of tea can cure an upset stomach, a headache, muscle pain, menstrual pain (be it bloating or cramps), or even restlessness. If you need something to make a symptom manageable, there's usually a tea to help with that.

      So, for those of you that are interested, here's a list of my favorite fruits, herbs, and flowers (with benefits!) that are not only delicious, but rather helpful as well:

anise seed- coughing, colds, sore throat, digestion, cramps, nausea. Tastes like licorice.

chamomile- sleep, fevers, colds, nausea. Disgusting plain. Goes well with lemon, ginger, and honey.

cinnamon- digestion, pain killer, nausea, colds.* elderflower- colds, sinus, respiratory, constipation. It's a laxative. Be careful.

ginger- nausea, bloating, heartburn, flatulence, colds, sore throat, liver health.* grapefruit- vitamin C, potassium, colds, asthma, heart health. Adds most citrus flavor. May not pair well with some medications.

hibiscus- appetite, colds, heart health, nausea, constipation. Another laxative, and please don't consume hibiscus while pregnant.* lavender- sleep, de-stress, headaches. My favorite smell. Can cause headaches, increased appetite, and should be avoided if you're pregnant or pre-pubescent. Take in very small doses.* lemon- vitamin C, immune boost, weight loss, colds, fatigue. Can help deter scurvy if you're in college and think Mt. Dew and pizza is a balanced diet.

lemon balm- de-stress, menstrual cramps, flatulence, nausea, headaches, fever, colds. Smells amazing.* mango- weight loss, cholesterol, constipation. My absolute favorite fruit.

orange- vitamin C, eye health, immune boost, colds, concentration.

peppermint (click here for my post about peppermint)- focus, headaches, nausea, bloating. Wonderful to mask other flavors, and pairs well with chamomile. Also good for mojitos.

raspberry- menstrual cramps, weight loss, hair health.

rose hip- vitamin C, constipation. Usually used for color and the high vitamin C content. Don't steep in a metal pot.

rosemary- memory, focus, muscle pain. Usually tastes a bit strange in tea.

sage- coughs, colds, sore throat, menstrual bleeding, digestion, constipation, focus. Mixes well with citrus.

spearmint- colds, nausea, headaches, heart burn. It's a lot like peppermint.

strawberry- vitamin C, heart health, indigestion, laxative. I mostly use it for flavor.* thyme- coughs, mood boost, muscle pain, menstrual cramps. Another strange one.

Please feel free to message me if you find some of this information is wrong.

     There are so many herbs and fruits and flowers out there that I haven't listed, but make wonderful additions to teas, infusions, or even splendid teas on their own, and each will have its own unique list of benefits! Please make sure to research whatever you are about to eat, drink, burn, touch, whatever, because it may not mix well with a medication, your pregnancy, or it could outright kill you if you prepare it incorrectly or take too much. Safety first, friends!

    Let me know if you have any questions or post requests by sending me an ask!

    You can find all of my previous Teasource posts here

     And anything I reblog or post about tea will be here

     Check out my tea blog too :)

    If you're here, you're probably a bit curious about tea. You see this title and think "I know what tea is! It's ___," filling in the blank with whatever culture you grew up in. A lot of people from the South here in the U.S. probably think of Southern Sweet Tea when they hear "tea." People from New England and other chilly parts of the U.S. probably think of hot, unsweetened black tea. People from the U.K. most likely think of a cuppa made with cream and sugar. We all have our ideas of what tea is, and what makes a good cup of tea, but do you really know what tea is? Do you know what plant the tea leaves come from, and what makes up the differences between the types of teas? That's what I'm here to teach you.     Unless you're sitting down with an herbal cup of tea, every cup of tea you drink is going to start with one plant: Camellia Sinensis (CM). That's right- it doesn't matter if you are starting your day off with a highly-caffeinated Black tea, trying to soothe your stomach with some Oolong tea, or trying to rehydrate with some White tea, it's all the same plant. Fun fact: Camellia Sinensis is actually a small evergreen shrub, and is often referred to as "tea shrub" and "tea tree"- but not like the oil. The Tea Tree in that sense is Melaluca Altemifolia.     In most teas, when CM reaches the correct stage, the leaves and buds are harvested (usually two harvest each year) and the processed to make tea. Processing varies widely, but in general, white tea is processed the least and black tea is processed the most, which usually determines the caffeine and catechin (antioxidant) levels. When processing CM for most white teas, the tea leaves are harvested and then dried, not allowing the teas to oxidize. Because they don't oxidize (ferment), they retain high catechin levels and don't have time to acquire much caffeine. All tea leaves have some amount of caffeine in them- anywhere from 1-40 milligrams of caffeine per 8 fl oz- but white teas are usually at "decaf" levels since they only have between 1 and 15 mg of caffeine per 8 oz. That's less than a cup of decaf coffee! White tea is very sensitive to heat, so try to make sure you steep it in water that is around 175F (80C) for only 2 minutes.     Next in line is green teas. Green teas are processed slightly more than white teas, and higher grade green teas even get special growing processes. A lot of imperial grade green teas and the leaves that get ground into matcha, fine green tea powder, get shade grown the last 2-4 weeks (sometimes more!) before the harvest. In shade growing, the tea is covered with a  tarp, allowing for more chlorophyll (what makes the leaves bright green) to remain in the leaf, giving the tea a rich green color. The extra chlorophyll in the leaf gives it a grassy, sometimes oceanic, flavor. After the harvest, the leaves are taken to processing, where they are heated, rolled, and dried. The heating process can leave some green teas with a slightly toasted, smoky flavor. Green teas usually have a bit more caffeine than white teas, most ranging between 15 and 30 mg per 8 oz of tea. You'll find yourself getting bitter teas if you put green tea in boiling water, so make sure your water is between 175F and 185F (80-85C) for about 2 minutes.     Processing for Oolong teas is a lot like green teas, in that they are heated before they are rolled and dried. Oolong teas don't get to be shade grown like green teas, but they are shaken and bruised during processing. This just means that the people processing the tea are taking scoops of the tea leaves and shaking them around in a bamboo tray. This speeds up the oxidization process, and gives the tea full body, floral aroma, and a smooth finish. Oolong will be about the same on the caffeine scale as green teas, and you'll often find them served in Chinese restaurants. Another sensitive tea, Oolong should be steeped between 185F and 195F (85-90C) for 3-4 minutes.     Finally, black teas are processed the most, typically have the most caffeine, and lowest catechin levels. Black teas go through just about everything in processing, and are taken, shaken, rolled, and given a lot of time to oxidize before they are fired and the oxidization process is stopped. Because they are given so much time to oxidize, they will typically have incredibly high levels of caffeine compared to most teas, and will have a very bold, earthy flavor and rich brown color. Black teas will usually have between 16 and 40+ mg caffeine per 8 fl oz of tea. Fun fact: the idea (so to speak) of black tea is mostly thanks to the British. When tea was being imported from China, there were insane taxes on the imported goods, so people would try and find ways to smuggle it in. Tobacco wasn't taxed nearly as much as tea was, so tea makers found a way to process the tea so much that it had similar color to the tobacco and thus, black tea was born. After that, it grew in popularity and is now a staple beverage for those in the U.K., and many others around the world. When brewing your cup of black tea, make sure you keep your water somewhere around 195F (90C) and don't steep it for more than 3 or 4 minutes. If you find your cup of tea is a bit weak, add a little more tea, not time. 

If you're interested in a more in-depth description of processing, check out The Vintage Tea Company.

Here's Teavana's Tea 101, a brief overview of tea and processing.

Until I get my Tea master post together, you can find all of my original tea posts here

All of the posts I reblog involving tea will be here

Check out my tea blog!