How do you take your tea?

[senorchipotle]

in my various travels to and fro, here and there, i've seen some cultural similarities but many more differences. but of the constants, i've found that just about all of them drink tea, and they all do it differently. tea has been the subject of folklore and myth. multiple wars have been fought over tea, and one even started by throwing tea off a ship. so my question to you is, how do you like yours? what kind(s) do you like?


i like mine two different ways, the traditional southern way, cold sweet tea. and a style of tea i picked up in argentina called yerba matte, drunk out of a gourd.

[zeg]

Mostly hot black tea with milk. Usual is Earl Grey, at least if I'm in a hurry and using a tea bag. If I'm doing loose-leaf tea I usually experiment with more interesting stuff from the tea shop. Ceylon is good, though very touchy about how it's prepared. Darjeeling is also a common one.

[senorchipotle]

Mostly hot black tea with milk. Usual is Earl Grey, at least if I'm in a hurry and using a tea bag. If I'm doing loose-leaf tea I usually experiment with more interesting stuff from the tea shop. Ceylon is good, though very touchy about how it's prepared. Darjeeling is also a common one.

yeah, i like loose leaf tea. i had some coconut chai a while back that was fantastic. sadly though, i didn't have any steamed milk.

[Chilli Dipper]

Rooibos herbal tea, straight.

[Aceboympk]

Hot in the Winter and cold in the Summer.

[jamo]

Cold, sweetened, with lemon or a little key lime juice.

[Boyder]

Cold - Unsweet - lemon, and I like it on the strong side.

[Dub]

Brewed fairly strong, cold, sweetened with Splenda and over ice.

Lemon and mint leaves are great if available.

[senorchipotle]

Cold, sweetened, with lemon or a little key lime juice.

didn't know you guys drank sweet tea up north. i've never seen it in any eating establishments up there.

[kfowler]

Sweet. An by sweet I don't mean simply adding sugar to ice tea. That's tea and sugar not sweet tea. Sweet tea is when you boil it and add sugar until it reaches super saturation. Yum Yum. I also like it with a splash of pineapple juice.

[Wet Doggg]

Tea is all I drink essentially. About a gallon a day. I like it brewed strong...add one Sweet 'N' Low per glass and lots of lemon juice. I go through at least 40 ounces of lemon juice a week. Yum yum yum...

[Chipper]

I love sweet tea. As far as casually drinking hot tea or just coffee I'll just take it black.

[jamo]

didn't know you guys drank sweet tea up north. i've never seen it in any eating establishments up there.

We don't have any places specifically for tea, but it comes it tea bags so it isn't too hard to make.

[danieldrieberg]

Cold - Unsweet - lemon, and I like it on the strong side.

+1 on this tasty beverage

[Ben]

Hot ocha (green tea), or cold mugicha (barley tea). Haven't had any mugicha in a while though. I should buy some.

[Shindig]

Mixed with lemonade, in the proper ratio, of course!

If I'm not mixing it with lemonade, but I'm having iced tea, I go with barley tea or sweet tea, although for the latter, I'm mostly limited to Ralph's brand or making my own. Sometimes I'll go with Thai iced tea. If I'm at a restaurant, I'll go for the "normal" iced tea, whatever that is. And, although I'm not sure if it counts as iced tea, I'll drink plenty of the 42oz Arizonas at school. I always keep at least one in my lab fridge.

For hot tea, I go for all kinds, although I rarely put sugar in it (unless it's mint or Thai tea), and it's even more rare for me to add milk to it, although I'll do that sometimes. The absolute best is Good Earth's original. It makes good iced tea, too, and is caffeine free, making it OK for the golf course. You know what? I'm going to have to make a batch for use on the golf course in the near future.

[senorchipotle]

i'm surprised no brits have weighed in. after all, it was they who traversed the world in boats for a decade trying to find a quicker way to bring this precious cargo into port.

[microcrayfish]

I drink tea in all varieties. I mostly drink Chinese loose leaf tees, whites, greens and oolongs are my favourites, though I have a couple of pu-erh and Indian black teas in the pantry that I quite like. My favourite is white Silver Needles, definitely one to check out if you're a fan of lighter, fragrant teas; it's quite expensive but a little goes a long way.

Even though good quality loose leaf teas are always better I'll still drop a tea bag of English Breakfast in a cup and have it with milk and sugar quite regularly, mostly in the morning or at work when I can't be bothered making a pot properly. Plus hailing from a Commonwealth country I've been brought up on the stuff.

I also drink a lot of iced tea, lemon and peach stuff from bottles usually. I prefer it to juices and carbonated drinks. Been meaning to try making my own for ages so if anybody has a good recipe floating around let me know!