Loose Tea and Herb Blends

[Melas Zomos]

Lately I have been playing with loose tea blends with great results. I always drank tea, as I am not particularly fond of coffee other than coffee ice cream. However till recently I relied on pre-bagged tea. The problem I had with bags, and I tried a lot of different ones, was taste, quality, and consistency. After playing with some blends I came to the conclusion that their really is no comparison between loose tea and bag tea.

With loose tea I can add herbs to fit my needs too. Recently I started adding in a pinch of rosemary for focus and have played with oat grass and the like. The price is a little more in some instances, but I feel it it worth it.

Let me know what you have tried
and particularly what HERBS you like to add and why. I want to start taking more of an herbal approach to my need and learning which ones work and what does not.

[Melas Zomos]

One blend I am fond of is an Oolong Tea which is promoted as a weight loss tea. Though it does not have the kick of a black tea it does provide amazing appetite suppression and the taste is phenomenal. Often I add some black tea in to give it a little more caffeine and rosemary to improve my focus.

This is the best I have come across yet, of course I went to re-order and they were out of stock:
Maharaja Chai Oolong Tea
Description
Rich spices intertwine with a delicious Oolong for a tea that the Maharaja himself would love. This is the famed 'Spice Route' in your cup: cinnamon, ginger, pepper, cloves, cardamom and nutmeg fuse together to create a robust and celebrated chai tea.

http://www.teavana.com/The-Teas/Oolong-Teas/Maharaja-Chai-Oolong-Tea.axd

I have yet to try another oolong style tea and see if it offers similar appetite suppression, will let you know.

[Cookie]

Had looked at Oolong tea before but appetite suppression is not something I need right now

This is a bit of a blast from the past as they used to deliver round our way from the back of a van when I was a kid http://www.ringtons.co.uk/

Going to wade through their selections to see what they have. I did see a green tea variety that was billed as low caffeine but high in antioxidants. Should shoot them an email to see what they define as low caffeine.

[Melas Zomos]

Had looked at Oolong tea before but appetite suppression is not something I need right now

I would still try it, I liked the taste of this the best. I may have phrased that badly, by appetite suppression I meant it did not give me a full or bloated feeling that stopped me from eating, but several times, not all times, I just forgot to eat at the time I normally did.

This is a bit of a blast from the past as they used to deliver round our way from the back of a van when I was a kid http://www.ringtons.co.uk/

Ha! you remember it because they deliver cookies too, no pun intended. You just want an excuse to by those five star triple chocolate cookies

Going to wade through their selections to see what they have. I did see a green tea variety that was billed as low caffeine but high in antioxidants. Should shoot them an email to see what they define as low caffeine.

How can you not try a tea that is called Organic china green gunpowder?

Generally,
White teas have hardly any caffeine, I would say 5%???? that of a cup of coffee, some less.
Green teas are about 10% that of a cup of coffee, some less.
Oolong are about 15%
Black tea 20%

Of course these figures can be increased by adding more than the recommended amount.

[Cookie]

I would still try it, I liked the taste of this the best. I may have phrased that badly, by appetite suppression I meant it did not give me a full or bloated feeling that stopped me from eating, but several times, not all times, I just forgot to eat at the time I normally did.

Might give it a go because I do find green tea upsets my stomach if drink first thing on a morning or on an empty stomach.

Ha! you remember it because they deliver cookies too, no pun intended. You just want an excuse to by those five star triple chocolate cookies

Too right

I had some of their chocolate`s over Christmas & they were spot on

How can you not try a tea that is called Organic china green gunpowder?

That one caught my eye too and it was labelled as low caffeine.

Generally,
White teas have hardly any caffeine, I would say 5%???? that of a cup of coffee, some less.
Green teas are about 10% that of a cup of coffee, some less.
Oolong are about 15%
Black tea 20%

Of course these figures can be increased by adding more than the recommended amount.

I do like white tea but only had the teabag variety so would have to try & work out which type was in the bags.

Green tea I do love but when you search internet for info on caffeine content your fed all manner of numbers The energy "lift" from GT is not as rapid as coffee & easier to handle without getting jittery.

[Cookie]

One of my favourite varieties of Yerba Mate. Not as bitter as some of the other varieties I have used.

[Melas Zomos]

One of my favourite varieties of Yerba Mate. Not as bitter as some of the other varieties I have used.

love the gourd and the bombilla Never seen that before.

[Cookie]

love the gourd and the bombilla Never seen that before.

Been after an "authentic" one for ages.

I noticed in the preparation link that they recommended 1 level spoon full when making it in a cup. I`d been using 4

Was intrigued by their statement that even though it did stimulate the CNS it acted more of as a tonic in bringing balance back to the CNS. So if sluggish it raised it, if overstimulated it helped bring it down. Quite interesting if its 100% true.

[Melas Zomos]

love the gourd and the bombilla Never seen that before.

Been after an "authentic" one for ages.

I noticed in the preparation link that they recommended 1 level spoon full when making it in a cup. I`d been using 4

Was intrigued by their statement that even though it did stimulate the CNS it acted more of as a tonic in bringing balance back to the CNS. So if sluggish it raised it, if overstimulated it helped bring it down. Quite interesting if its 100% true.

If true, then yeah that would be quite handy and worthy of having on hand. I will have to look into it a little more. I just got turned off of it because of the taste of the particular brand I bought the first go around.

[Cookie]

If true, then yeah that would be quite handy and worthy of having on hand. I will have to look into it a little more. I just got turned off of it because of the taste of the particular brand I bought the first go around.

I was similar when I first tried it. The stuff was recommended as a "caffeine" alternative that wasn`t as high in caffeine but with benefits of the "supposed" minerals within the tea. So after the first lot I did consider getting a flavoured variety to get away from the bitterness but came across an organic variety called Krauswhich tasted completely differently.

Then you have varieties with or without stems which alter the flavour as well.

This was nice.

Cruz De Malta

[Cookie]

Another tea I like is Rooibos & its very nice with a hint of vanilla.

[Melas Zomos]

Another tea I like is Rooibos & its very nice with a hint of vanilla.

Picked up a few variations of Rooibos, love the taste and smell, but it just does not have the "kick" I need. It is certainly one of the healthier teas to drink and I will have to play with a rooibos/black mixture to find the right combo of taste and kick.