Tea. Changing Tastes

Monday, March 05, 2018

I had a rather concerning thought the other day. I was drinking a mug of ordinary tea, with milk, which is how I'd taken my tea for as long as I can remember (I gave up taking sugar when I was 8 and saw ants in the sugar bowl at Brownie camp). Anyway, my thought was 'I don't really like tea anymore'.

I know, right?!

To clarify, I mean I don't like tea like that anymore. Bog standard tea with a splash of cow's milk simply doesn't float my boat these days.

It occurred to me that my tea tastes have broadened somewhat over the past few years. I used to have just one box of teabags in my cupboard - PG Tips pyramid bags - and I'd drink several cups a day.

I gave up dairy for a while a last year and couldn't face black tea without milk so I started to experiment with different types of tea, and as a consequence I developed a taste for a bit of variety in my daily drinking.


My first drink of the day is usually a glass of water, but after that, it's tea until bedtime.

I have no routine, I simply open the cupboard and see what takes my fancy. For ages Twinings Bakewell Green Tea has been a favourite, along with a strangely moreish turmeric tea, I can't put my finger on why I like it, but I do.

Often after supper I'll have mint tea, and in the run up to Christmas I was feeling festive and sipping chai tea lattes.

I was introduced to Teapigs via a Twitter competition and found I really enjoyed their Yerba Mate, and Tung Ting Oolong tea temples. I'm not the biggest fan of fruit teas as the aroma promises so much but the taste always fails to deliver.

Earl Grey makes a regular appearance in my mug, as does jasmine tea.

If I do have a 'normal' tea these days it's without milk and very weak - I mean dip the bag, just once, and remove it, no lingering. I usually only drink this when there's no alternative. I've taken to carrying my own teabags around in my bag, which people are starting to get used to, they barely raise an eyebrow these days. My Dad has taken to keeping a box of the bakewell green tea in his cupboard just for me.

Recently I've discovered to another tea company. Adagio Teas got in touch and asked if I'd like to try some of their loose leaf teas, no one will be surprised to discover that I said a very enthusiastic 'yes please!', with my love of tea, and the first half of this post sitting in my drafts folder, it was a no-brainer.


I wasn't expecting the motherload of teas to turn up on my doorstep a few days later. Honestly, it made my day. There are so many! Luckily they all have a long shelf life, because it's going to take me a while to get through them all.

My biggest problem was which one to try first? They had all my favourites covered - oolong teas, jasmine teas, earl grey - and many more besides. I've been sent sample packs containing different varieties of each. Honestly, I had no idea there were so many different varieties and blends.

In the end I settled on trying one of the chai varieties (chocolate) and made myself a chai latte with rice milk. It was perfect for a snowy day, with a storm raging outside. It was spicy and warming, with a smooth chocolately after taste. It really perked me up.


The following morning I opted for the intriguing Lemon Meringue Green Tea, this time using one of their convenient paper filters, which make using loose leaf tea a cinch (not that using a tea strainer is all that difficult). It has a lovely subtle flavour, with a nice zing to the after taste. I had two cups in quick succession.

Then, despite my usual dislike of fruity teas, I tried the Berry Creme Compote. Just look at the pretty blend of rose hips, hibiscus flowers, apple pieces, blue cornflowers, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries.

This was actually quite nice, it wasn't over the top fruity and had a nice smooth flavour. It's probably not one I'd buy for myself but one that I would happily drink on occasion. I'm obviously more of an actual tea drinker, herbals teas just aren't my thing. But tastes change and you have to try things again every once in a while, don't you think?

I have some fruity oolongs, and green rooiboos to try, among others, which I think will be more to my tea taste. I feel rather spoilt for choice.

I've been sharing a few I've tried on Instagram, with more to come, giving mini reviews of each if you fancy finding out a little more. With the amount of blends to try my Insta feed will soon be full of tea!

How do you take yours?



Thanks to Adagio Teas for sending me these teas to try, all opinions are my own.

You Might Also Like

13 comments

  1. What a wonderful gift, you lucky girl!!
    I have two mugs of "normal" tea a day and the rest of the time it's Pukka, I love all their blends. I even take them to India!
    Have you tried Twining's Chai Latte? I occasionally find it in Home Bargains. If you don't do dairy it'd be just as good with soya milk. xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aren't I?!
      The tumeric tea I have is by Pukka, I can normally find it in Holland & Barrett on offer, so i stock up when I do.
      I'm intrigued by the Twinings chai latte, I'll see if I can find some - thanks!
      x

      Delete
  2. Unlike the UK, Belgium isn't a nation of tea drinkers, coffee being the preferred drink, and I was only introduced to tea while on a school trip to Austria when I was 11. I thought it tasted disgusting and didn't drink tea again for years. But over the years, more and more kinds of tea and infusion were coming into the shops, and I developed a liking for rosehip tea. Now, I drink more tea than coffee, which I usually only drink during the weekend. On weekdays, I currently start the day with a cup of ginseng tea and end it with a cup of chamomile tea. During the day, I sometimes have a cup of fennel tea to aid with digestion, otherwise it's Earl Grey, although I do like jasmine tea as well, as it's got such a heavenly scent! xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The different varieties can taste so different from each other. I can't imagine drinking the same thing cup after cup anymore.
      I've never tried ginseng, so that's one for the list. I like fennel tea too. The options are never ending!
      xx

      Delete
  3. OMG what a cool thing to receive. I love tea too so some of these sound amazing especially the chocolate chai. Looking forward to hearing more about what you think of all the different varieties. Happy tea drinking

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The chocolate chai is nice. I made my friends a cup and they both really enjoyed it.
      It's going to take a while to sample all the tea, but I'm enjoying the challenge so far!

      Delete
  4. This is so cool! I wish someone would send me some tea ;-)

    I do like a cup of "normal" tea, although I drink others as well. There are so many varieties of black tea though. In Dijon we went to a "salon de thé" that had about 50 varieties of just plain black tea on the menu, before even getting to Early Grey and all the black tea + something else (fruit, etc.) blends! My everyday tea is Tetley's English Breakfast Tea purely because it's the only one I can get in supermarkets here that comes in packs of more than 20, but I also have a loose Darjeeling blend that someone gave me as a gift once.

    Pukka has the prettiest boxes, but they're sooo expensive! I do currently have pukka three ginger tea (although it technically isn't tea at all since it only contains spices and no actual tea!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I really wasn't expecting so much to turn up on my doorstep. I'm surprised by all the different blends, and they all do have their own taste, I thought that black teas would all taste very similar for example but they all have a different taste. I can't believe I drank the same tea everyday for years!
      Pukka do have lovely boxes, and they are pricier than others but their turmeric tea id the best! I always seem to be able to find it on offer, so i stock up when I can!

      Delete
  5. Newfoundlanders go straight from the breast to a mug of tea! We are AVID tea drinkers. However, about 20 years ago, when I began to go all organic and earth mother on myself, I discovered that the tannic acid in tea really bothers my tummy. I sometimes drink herbal tea, love chai lattes and will occasionally have a coffee. But I will try an Earl Grey without milk as you suggested. Perhaps it will be something I can occasionally drink. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My brother and I had tea in our Tommy Tippy cups from a very young age.
      Earl Grey is nice with or without milk, but yes it's worth a try without. Sorry to hear tannic acid doens't agree with you, I can't imagine life without a good cuppa everyday!
      Thanks for stopping by and commenting, it's always nice to hear from new people :)

      Delete
  6. What a treat! I love trying different kinds of tea. One of the best I've tried was a plum oolong, and another is called Vert Provence by French company Mariage Freres. It has lavender and rose and is just delicious.

    Gosh, I've just realized I could almost write an essay about my feelings about tea! No wonder I moved to England, ha!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Plum oolong! That sounds like something I need to try. And the Vert Provence. My goodness they sound good!

      You moved to the right place for a tea addiction :)
      xx

      Delete
  7. I loved reading about your tea habits, and how they have changed! There are so many different types of tea out there, once I started to learn more I quickly noticed my morning tea routine changing, too. :)

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to comment x

Copyright

All content © Hazel's World of Joy except where noted

Disclaimer

All products that are featured on Hazel’s World of Joy have been purchased by me unless otherwise stated. Any PR samples, items that have been sent to me for review or similar will be declared as such at the end of the post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.