(Part 3) Best products from r/tea

Sorry, generic tea copypasta coming though here.

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New to Tea? New to loose leaf? Let me help.

Hello, new friend. So you've stumbled your way into /r/tea, you probably though this was a subreddit for the Mr. T, but no worries you're here and you're in good hands. We're all tea fiends and we're all eager to share our fifteen minutes of meditation, our hobby and our little slice of heaven. So why should you consider switching from Lipton to something crazy like leaves some Chinese person picked off a tea bush?

• Loose Leaf tea is often higher quality than your traditional tea bags.
  
  
• Less preservatives or additives.
  
  
• A greater variety of teas that are too delicate for tea bags or can't be effectively brewed that way.
  
  
• Greater access to fine teas, you can't find good premium teas in tea bags.
  
  
• It's more cost effective. You can pick up Twinning's Irish Breakfast tea (20 tea bags) for $2.99 at your local supermarket and that'll make you 20 cups of tea. With loose leaf tea you can buy 125 grams of Irish Breakfast from Upton Tea for $5.60, which will make you 100-150 cups of tea. You can re-brew the same tea leaves two or three times when it comes to loose leaf, but with a tea bag all the water penetrates the "tea dust" the first go.
  
  
• It tastes better. That's 100-150 cups of far better tea than Twinnings. Not to say you can't get good tea out of a tea bag, but you'll get better tea with more control/flexibility when it come to loose leaf.
  
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  So, Where To Start??
  
  ^^buy ^^theses ^^teas ^^first!!!!!!!!!!!!
  
  Where | Why?
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  GoodLife Tea's $7 for 7 Sampler | Free Shipping! Robb has a fantastic variety of tasty high quality tea important for building up your tea pallet.
  Verdant's Five Teas for $5 | Free Shipping! Again, Verdant sells some premium quality tea. Think of their sampler as a crash course into the rich people's side of tea. But the catch with tea is that it's a lot more affordable than wine could ever hope to be. The sampler is great for building up your tea preferences and giving you a kickstart in the right direction.
  Upton Tea | My personal favorite store, they send a nice little paperback catalog every quater. They sell a huge variety of teas, from traditional English Breakfast to Tie-Guan-Yin. Not only that but they sell their teas in different grades meaning you can dabble in what is traditionally an expensive tea by trying a lower quality (but still delicious and tasty) grade of tea. You can find the grade and variety of tea that matches your wallet and taste. They also sell cheap samplers, if you wish you can take $20 and order around 15 samples and see where your cuppa takes you.
  Adagio | A personal favorite of /r/tea if you can find a store nearby! But don't fret, most of us buy our tea online so no worries if you're in Kodiak, Alaska and can't get down to an Adagio. They sell nice quality tea, their stores people are incredibly informed and helpful (unlike a certain Starbucks owned tea store). They also have Adagio XL which sells tea in bulk.
  Harney & Sons | Amazon Prime Shipping. I love my Amazon account, that's usually by go to place online shopping and being able to two-day ship a simple tin of Harney & Sons tea without the shipping cost is fantastic. They sell lots of teas and they're all very good. Maybe not the premium tea you'll see Chinese diplomats drinking but they in my opinion sell tea that all tastes great.
  Coffee Bean Direct | Who knew a place called Coffee Bean Direct* sold tea too? Again, with Amazon Prime Shipping this seems to be the place to buy tea in bulk. They're well reviewed and their tea seems to be good. If you're like me and cold brew ice tea frequently then this might be the best place to pick up some bulkier tea to last you the season.
  Crimson Lotus | Owned by a frequenter of /r/tea, Puerh_Lover stocks a great store with lots of neat little stuff. Be warned, he caters to pu'er which is a type of fermented tea pressed into bricks or pellets. In other words this is a special variety of tea that needs special equipment and special knowledge to brew. Don't fret if you're not walking out of /r/tea after a day brewing in a gaiwan.
  White2Tea | More lovely pu'er.
  Yunnan Sourcing | Again, more pu'er, but also lots of green and white teas too. They sell teaware for good prices too so if you're looking to pick up a traditional china teacup or gaiwan this is a good place to get that.
  What-Cha | Another beloved store on /r/tea, but they're pretty pricey at times. But you can always expect good quality tea and a looser wallet from here.
  
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  Just How Do You Make Tea?
  
  Traditional Western | Gongfu | Cold Brew
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  The way you're probably familiar with when it comes to brewing tea, all it requires is a teapot like this one (I highly recommend this teapot). Western or Traditional works well with every kind of tea. It's the universal method of making tea and the best place to start. | This kind of brewing is very specific as it only works with Chinese type teas like pu'er. This method of making tea is hands down the best way to make a Chinese styled tea and does wonders to enhance and bring out the best in the leaves. But this method wont work for a cuppa English Breakfast or Japanese Sencha. To brew Gongfu style you use a gaiwan which is fancy talk for a tiny cup with a lid. The idea behind Gongfu is more leaves, less water and time. You use micro-infusions instead of waiting minutes like Western or hours like Cold Brewing. | Cold Brewing is for those of us who just love iced tea. It's simple to cold brew, a vessel like this will brew a mean pitcher of ice tea. All you have to do is leave the leaves in the filter and wait 5-12 hours for the tea to brew, perfect for leaving overnight. Fair Warning: tea can go bad, the kind of stuff you'd buy at the store has a massive amount of preservatives in it. Keep your cold brewing tea out of the sunlight and don't let it sit for more than 48 hours.
  
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  On Kettles
  
  So you're going to need a way to keep your water hot. A stovetop kettle is probably the most accessible and the biggest no brainer out of everything here. A microwave heats water inconsistently, can leave an odd taste if your microwave isn't properly clean, and you really don't have a good way of knowing how hot the water is. Temperature is important. Brewing a cuppa green tea in boiling water will result in a pretty shitty cup of tea, and brewing some black tea in the water appropriate for green tea will result in a disappointing cuppa.
  
  You also have electric kettles like the Cuisinart CPK-17 which is going to cost as much as a decent coffee machine but if tea is your caffeine fix then it might be worth it. The Cuisinart is a variable temperature kettle meaning you just have to press a button and it makes the water the appropriate temperature for whatever kind of tea you're drinking.
  
  
  Tea | Temperature
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  Black | 212
  Green | 175
  White | 190
  Oolong | 185
  Pu'er | 212
  Herbal | 212
  
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  Where To Buy Tea Equipment? What Equipment Might You Want To Buy?
  
  Umi Tea Sets sells lots of cute tea sets. They also sell pretty much any kind of vessel you can brew tea in, from Yixing to Japanese tea sets.
  
  Mr. Coffee Tea Kettle A simple, $10 stovetop kettle to boil some water. It seems to have a little hole in it for a thermometer to go in if you need to measure your water temperature.
  
  Glass Whistling Kettle I have one of these, you can tell water temperature from the bubbles if you learn to read them well. It’s pretty handy but if I could I would exchange it for the Mr. Coffee.
  
  CPK-17 Electronic Kettle probably the device that makes most of /r/tea’s mouths water (that might just be the tea). This is pretty much the best electronic kettle you can buy, cheaper than a K-Cup Coffee machine. It has temperatures for making all kinds of tea labeled nicely. I have one and I love it.
  
  OTHER
  
  Want to find the right kind of tea for you? Here’s a tea discovery wheel! Try it out here.

No worries at all, I'm more than happy to help as much as I can. I'm super passionate about tea and love seeing new people want to try it out, especially gongfu!

Because you've expressed interest in having a full gongfu set up, below I'm going to give you a couple examples of starter-packs consisting of a tea table, gaiwan, pitcher, strainer, and tea cups (and a tea pet if you're really feeling like going all out).

Nearly everything I'm going to list below is from Yunnan Sourcing's US-based website, because that way you won't have to wait for China shipping. Although, don't get used to US shipping. The deeper you get into this hobby, the more you're going to be ordering from vendors who ship directly from China, which generally takes anywhere from 10-15 business days. It's best to accept that fact up front and just get used to it--honestly, now I don't even notice. It shows up when it shows up.

Okay, without further ado, here's the full gongfu package that I'd recommend for one person just getting into gongfu.

Tea Table: ~$45.00USD (US Shipping)
https://www.amazon.com/Tasteful-Bamboo-Gongfu-Table-Serving/dp/B00M3Y8LNY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503637708&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=gongfu+tea+tray&psc=1

Gaiwan + Teacup: $10.00USD (US Shipping)
http://www.yunnansourcing.us/store/index.php?id_product=1074&controller=product

Cha Hai (Glass Pitcher): $6.50USD (US Shipping)
http://www.yunnansourcing.us/store/index.php?id_product=86&controller=product

Strainer: $3.20USD (US Shipping)
http://www.yunnansourcing.us/store/index.php?id_product=89&controller=product

^That will have all the brewing utensils that you'd need to get started with gongfu (though some would argue you don't need the tea table, just use a cloth or a dish or something, but since you seem interested in the full package, that's what I'd go with...that's actually the table I use now!)

Now...when it comes to tea...

I'd first highly recommend picking up a scale (this one from Amazon is only $9.00USD and works really well: https://www.amazon.com/American-Weigh-Scales-AWS-600-BLK-Nutrition/dp/B000O37TDO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503639369&sr=8-1&keywords=American+weigh+scale

As for strong sweet flavor that doesn't need sugar, I'd recommend starting with oolongs, which are typically very smooth, sweet, floral, and somewhat creamy.

Here are a couple of my personal favorites that are extremely budget-friendly, ship super fast, and are all from Eco-Cha.

Four Seasons Spring Oolong: https://eco-cha.com/collections/all-tea/products/four-seasons-spring-oolong-tea-1

Dong Ding Oolong: https://eco-cha.com/collections/all-tea/products/dong-ding-oolong-tea

Alishan High Mountain Oolong: https://eco-cha.com/collections/all-tea/products/alishan-high-mountain-oolong-tea

If you're feeling adventurous, then I'd definitely pick up some puerh as well. The Basics Puer Tea Sample Set from White2Tea is
one of the best introductions you can ask for. It's $39.99USD for 400g of solid tea (4x100g cakes of Spring, Autumn, Huangpian [large leaf], and 10-year-old tea), and it always comes with a free puerh pick, and ships anywhere in the world for free, which is super nice.


If you purchase everything I listed, you'd spend ~$130.00USD, which would set you up with a tea-set you would grow into, and enough tea to last you roughly 2 months, and that's assuming you drink 10g of tea every day, which is highly unlikely.

If you're on a super tight budget, then I'd recommend ditching the tea table and just getting the gaiwan+teacup, the scale, and the teas. Everything else isn't nearly as important, though if you have the money, it's certainly nice to have the full setup.

In terms of general knowledge of tea, I've found these books immensely helpful.

The Story of Tea This is the official textbook of the Tea Association of Canada's Tea Sommelier certificate program (of which I'm taking) and is probably the best tea book out there right now, in terms of amount of content and quality of content. At least of the ones I - and everybody I talk to in the community - have come across. Comes in paper and in e-book form.

Tea I've had the chance to talk to Kevin, one of the authors of this book. He, not to mention his co-authors, are immensely knowledgeable. He and the three others are taster-importers, and have been in the business for twenty years. This book has beautiful pictures, and is a great general resource on tea. I used to manage a tea shop owned by a taster-importer, and once I started, he held up the book and asked "Have you read this book? Yes? Good. Because it'd be the first thing you do on this job if you hadn't." What I'm trying to say is that it's a good book. Not on e-book, to my knowledge, but it's a great thing to have on hand.

The Tea Companion This was the first book I picked up on tea, and after a fair amount of time, it's stayed among the books I'd recommend to people. It's an incredible, gentle introduction to the world of tea.

Finally - and this may be a little audacious of me - but I'm currently writing a tea book. I'm in the rough draft stage currently, but I'm uploading all of my content for free on a blog I run. When the time comes to publish, I think I'll set up a pay-what-you-want for the e-book format. I've gotten the thumbs up from one of the co-founders of the Tea Guild of Canada, and like to think the information is pretty good and relevant. It's not done yet; not even halfway done, but if you want an opportunity for a bunch of free content on tea, which will eventually become a book, here's my blog.

Hope you can find some use! (and by the way, if you guys have a problem of me promoting my to-be book, I will totally take down the last link. I don't monetize it, I don't have a shop, and truly just want to share my knowledge of the lovely camellia sinensis plant, but just let me know and it'll be gone!)

Going to a tea shop with a helpful and patient representative is the best answer - tea is not something to rush into so if you could locate a shop that sells tea nearby, that would be your best bet. Avoid Teavanna, they're dicks. Use Yelp, steepster.com, or teachat.com to find a local tea shop. Make sure you don't end up going into a shop that sells boba drinks - totally different thing.

If you're like me and there are no local shops nearby, then do a lot of research on tea. I bought this book and it helped me appreciate and brew tea. Otherwise you can read the Tea faq included here or any of the previous websites I mentioned. There is also an Alton Brown's Good Eats episode where he discusses tea. I don't agree with some of the things he says(the teapot strainer in the pot being one) but it still has useful information.

There is a correct way to brew tea(temperature, steep time, measuring) so it's a lot like cooking - you don't just crack an egg on the frying pan and expect it to be delicious, there are things you can do to improve the taste and quality of it.

Also, as a totally subjective viewpoint : Blended tea & anything that requires the addition of sugar(like the ones you have) sucks(and are for sissy girls). Most of them. They may taste good but being able to enjoy tea in its pure essence is a more enjoyable experience. Also, they last a lot longer since you can brew the same leaves 2-3 times.

The tea you bought probably NEEDS rock sugar to taste good - I don't think that should be true with good tea. Think of tea as a steak. You want to taste the steak itself and not any sauce that has been slathered over the meat. Blended tea is like a steak with sauce on it. Tea like this is a quality steak without any sauces.

I recommend purchasing non-blended tea in the green, oolong, or black section. http://www.adagio.com is a good start.

Great idea!

ElectroThermo Pot: no personal experience with this model. However, over the past several years, I've used Zojirushi's (basically the ETPot) Adagio's UtiliTEA and the Breville Variable Temp Water Kettle.

I actually prefer the two smaller options. The Breville is best for long sessions, since it's enough water to get you through 45 minutes to an hour or so of gongfu.. it's basically at the upper limits of size that is still safe to lift and pour. The Zojirushi (similar to what you're thinking of) is great in that it can keep your water at the temp you need all day, but if you're not really going through that much water? I wouldn't necessarily recommend it. Seems best suited to teahouse or places where tea is being served constantly. That way, the water doesn't sit all day (becoming more "flat" over time and reacting with the inner-casing). Also- for gongfu, it's not easy to "pour" from these. You must first dispense into a vessel, then pour from that vessel into your pot or gaiwan (or risk dispensing directly into your small brew vessel and over filling and burning yourself). The UtiliTEA is easy to use and pour from, but it is the smallest option. It basically makes one big pot of tea before it needs to be refilled.


Verdant Tea of the Month Club: Go for it! The pairings are always really cool, and the tea is the best you can get. They would be in good hands. It's also a great deal, since the TotM Club isn't limited to just the less expensive teas (as you might expect). When David says he's using his best teas, he's not kidding around (then again, they are all his best teas.. he wouldn't sell them otherwise). For example, last January we got Jingshan Green (fresh sparkling to bring in the new year) and also the Xingyang '98 (normally almost $30 an ounce!) to help reflect on the year past. Usually the teas are a grouping of two or three teas, plus sometimes an extra alchemy blend.. just depends on the month and the theme. They also come with tasting note cards and a write-up about the month's theme, tasting tips, suggested tasting orders, etc.

Quick start? Buy this which works great in mugs as well as many medium to larger teapots, and then find a company that you can order samples from and start exploring.

What company I'd recommend starting with would depend on your tastes.

If you want to get into single-estate black teas, one company that really got me into tea was Upton Tea Imports. They have small (and inexpensive) samples of virtually all their teas. They have some strengths (black teas, esp. from India, inexpensive black and green teas from China, inexpensive oolongs of surprisingly good quality, herbal teas) and weaknesses (especially avoiding getting Pu-erh from them, their Japanese teas aren't great IMHO).

Harney & Sons is another company I love that also is great for sampling and offers small sample sizes of nearly all their teas. I find them more well-rounded than Upton, i.e. they're more consistently good but don't offer quite as amazing bargains as in Upton's areas of strength.

If you live near a Wegmans, that's a great option, because they sell the tea in a bulk section and you can measure it out in small sample sizes...it's actually cheaper than ordering samples from virtually any company because you have to do the work of measuring it all out. Maybe not quite as good in quality as Wegmans, many natural foods stores stock Frontier Coop and/or Mountain Rose Herbs, sometimes other tea companies, with self-service stations. If the stock is fresh (big if) these can be a great inexpensive way to get started with sampling, again saving a ton of money because you're doing the labor of measuring out all the small quantities.

When you're getting started, I recommend avoiding any company that insists on selling 2 ounce / 50g sizes as the smallest size...it doesn't seem like much tea, but it's a lot of tea if you don't like it, and it limits the amount you can buy. Buying 1 ounce or better 0.5 ounce or 15 gram packets, you can sample a lot more and you can learn much more about tea in a short period of time. And you'll be much more likely to discover all-time favorites that way. That's how I got started...

Then once you get going, and you have an idea of what you like, it can be worth ordering stuff from companies with 50 or 100g, or 2/4 oz minimum sizes.

Local specialty shops are typically the best places to buy tea, in my opinion. High-end rare tea is not something that's easy to buy on the internet, and in fact you will often find it is MORE expensive on the internet than in a shop, as the shops can buy it directly from the estate in higher volume in order to get a decent price.

Also, the proprietors of these joints usually love tea to an insane degree. Bear in mind, I'm not talking about Teavana (which garners a fair amount of hate in these parts). I'm talking about locally owned small shops.

If you don't have the luxury of being anywhere near one of these, you have some other options...you can always try the local markets. Even Whole Foods carries a halfway decent variety of loose leaf. You won't find any of the rare teas or anything all that amazing, but for a typical daily brew, you can get by.

The internet is full of places to get good tea. r/tea has a lot of love for Adagio, and in my own experience it is well-deserved. They have a wide variety of both blended and estate teas that will keep you busy for a long time.

You can make a 'strong' tea out of most black teas, you just use more leaves. Probably the best varieties for you to try would be the Yunnan teas, particularly a good Pu-erh. Pu-erh is produced in a manner that makes it very easy to brew strong without also turning out a bitter astringency that many teas suffer from when they are brewed in such a manner. Also, quality Pu-erh will re-brew very well. If you're sensitive to caffeine, be advised...Pu-erh brews will have a heavier dose than other teas.

As far as wares go, you don't need anything fantastically complicated. You can get by with a simple basket and a typical ceramic mug, in fact. Baskets are very easy to come by on Amazon..

If you're looking for a way to make more tea, there are a few options. Some people like to use a French Press, but I've found that a press means you need something to put your tea into after steeping it. Not many teas will keep from turning bitter if you just let them sit in the water.

My personal favorite is the Bodum New Kenya Tea Press. The press mechanism actually has a seal in it that effectively keeps the leaves separated from the water. It has a few drawbacks...being glass, it doesn't keep the tea hot as well as I'd like. But, I drink it pretty fast so it's never been of particular bother to me.

!!

Getting started with matcha is so awesome! I've been drinking it in the morning with breakfast for almost a full year now, and knock on my fake-wood desk, I haven't gotten sick at all (except for that one sinus infection when I stopped drinking it for two weeks...whoops).

I think you are selling yourself short if taste isn't as important to you. I feel high quality matcha is better for you, but maybe I'm just overthinking things. I would give this one a shot since it claims to be ceremonial grade, it's 4oz, AND it's barely over $20. That sounds like a steal.

I have matcha every morning. Tea ceremony purists would probably faint over my routine, but it's pretty quick for me and it still tastes lovely.

Tools:

• A little sifter/strainer/whathaveyou
  
  
• Chasen whisk and chashaku scoop (I prefer to use the chashaku scoop over the little spoon because I find it's easier to scoop out of my matcha tins.)
  
  
• Big ol' soup mug - You don't need a fancy schmancy special bowl. My mug is some weird soup mug from the 70s with Garfield on it.
  
  
• Matcha powder! (This one is my favorite, but it might be too much money if you're just getting started)
  
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1. Take your clunky soup cup and fill it with hot water. I use hot tap water. Let it sit in the sink.
   
   
2. Put the kettle on to boil. When it has reached a boil, pour the water into a one-cup liquid measuring cup and let it sit.
   
   
3. While the hot water is sitting, remove your cup from the sink, dry the inside with a paper towel.
   
   
4. Place your strainer atop your tea cup. Take out your matcha tea and scoop as much as you'd like onto the strainer. Here I use the chashaku scoop to press it against the strainer. This is what breaks up the clumps, leaving me with very fine, powdery matcha.
   
   
5. By the time you've finished adding the powder to your cup, the hot water in the measuring cup should be ready. Keep in mind you want the water to be between 155-180F in temperature.
   
   
6. Pour in the hot water and whisk it to death until it's lovely and frothy.
   
   
7. While waiting for it to cool (if you're like me and are a wuss), eat your breakfast!

I did a lot of comparison shopping, and I believe that hands-down Zojirushi (Japanese houseware/kitchen gadget company) makes the best tea kettles in the world. The downside, of course, is that they are really expensive.

Instead I opted for one of these Rosewill brand kettles, which is basically a complete knock-off of a similar Zojirushi model that costs about 3x as much.

I've had it for two years of near-daily usage and it has been rock solid. Never had a problem or complaint about it. Solidly built and reliable, does exactly what is says it should. It is much quieter than any other kettle I've seen and because it is a vacuum kettle it holds heat for literally days on end without needing to ramp up and reheat the water. I refill it with 4L of water once or twice a week and that is the only time it ever turns on and still maintains constant temp 24/7. It only needs to reboil if I haven't used for at least a few days, in comparison the Cusinart perfectemp only has a 30-min keep warm function--it has slightly more precise temp controls but it doesn't hold a consistent temp nearly as well by a large margin.


I've been extremely happy with it, and I think the design is far far superior to the Hamilton Beach and Cuisinart models that others are recommending--less fuss and holds consistent temp longer. I really love the electric pump style dispenser instead of the old-school pitcher design. It is easier to use and less messy and can easily fit underneath or on a shelf.

My only quibble (and it is a minor one) is that there are not enough temperature pre-sets. It only has 140F (60C), 175F (80C), and 208F (98C). Those are adequate for 95% of my demands, but I'd like a little bit more precise control in the 160F-190F range for a variety of different teas. Unfortunately, anything with more precise controls costs more than twice as much.

I've got a Hamilton Beach one and it just collects dust on a shelf since I got the Rosewill. The Hamilton Beach is loud and doesn't hold a consistent temp for very long and I seen to spill a lot more water with it.

My favorite by far is from Discover Teas, and $7.75 for 2 oz is pretty reasonable. Very nice strong bergamot flavor. They have a great Cream Earl Grey too, if you're in to that sort of thing. On the cheaper end of the spectrum is Davidson's, at around $15/lb. on Amazon, and it's pretty tasty too. I drink this at work a lot because I don't want to leave the good stuff sitting around where someone could take it or throw it out. I also hear Harney & Sons has a pretty good one although I haven't tried theirs.

Get a tea pot.

http://www.amazon.com/FORLIFE-Stump-18-Ounce-Teapot-Infuser/dp/B000FLG8XC

This is a good one, it holds about 16 oz of tea and comes with an infuser.

You'll also need tea, which you can find from nearly anywhere. I like ordering from Adagio, their tea is good. Get loose leaf if that's what you're wanting to do. I recommend starting with a black, green, white, and oolong tea. If you like flavors, great, I prefer just the pure tea. I would start with just pure tea to get a baseline for what they're like.

You can take the hobby as deep as you'd like. I would really recommend you get an electric kettle as well because you can easily heat water at an exact temperature, they're very useful because each type of tea steeps at a different temp and time.

I'm not in the UK, but these are kettles that I've used and have been awesome without having any problems. Both of these kettles are great for any types of tea you might want to brew. I really like the precision pour that you get with the gooseneck kettle, and also it is a favorite kettle if you like to brew coffee too.

BonaVita Variable Temperature Gooseneck

And

Breville Variable Temperature Kettle

I CAN BE SO USEFUL TODAY!!!

The Libre Tea Mug has the exact same design as the mug you describe, but has glass on the inside, and plastic on the outside. Here's a video. There's a 10 oz version and a 14 oz version, and a 9.5 oz handled version.

However, I bought one of these and decided it's not the best thing in the universe. There were plenty of good things about it, but it had some flaws:

1. It won't keep drinks hot for very long, because plastic & glass apparently don't keep things as warm as stainless steel (not sure if this is totally accurate), but you also have to remove the lid every time you drink, and it's all the way open, as opposed to a sippy lid or other designs that have small holes or whatever, and lots of heat escapes. It also means that you get a face full of steam every time you try to drink.
   
   
2. When brewing black tea, you stick the leaves in between the two top lids (see video) and brew upside down. However, when you turn it upside down, the surface tension of the water actually retains the ENTIRE volume of water that was in the lid. Seriously. I don't know what the deal is. This happens even with zero tea leaves. This means that when you remove the two lids to drink (you need to remove both lids simultaneously if it's black tea, since the leaves are between the two lids), there's still lots of boiling hot water in the lid, and if you tap it, or bump it, or angle it, all that water falls out. You really have to tap the lid to dump this excess water before you drink; if you don't, you run the risk of spilling lots of hot water all over yourself. Someday you'll forget, and probably burn yourself.
   
   Aesthetic problems:
   
   
3. You can hear the plastic creaking against the glass, and it makes it seem cheap. Purely psychological, but it probably could be fixed.
   
   
4. The larger size and the handled mug version have the company's website printed address on the side of the lid. Pretty ugly in my opinion.
   
   
5. The lid has a picture, but it's a physical object (a tiny carving or something) and it actually moves. It's somehow not secured in place, and it moves off center and looks awkward and cheap. Plus, I can see a couple parts of it bent the wrong way.
   
   I can't really recommend it, but if you've used the Activitea and found it usable, you might be happy with the Libre. The design looks pretty much the same from the photos, as far as I can tell. But I have continued searching for the perfect tea mug.
   
   Contenders thus far:
   
   
6. JoeMoXL: Entirely stainless steel, with a removable infuser basket, a push-button seal, 360 degree drinking, sipping that doesn't require removing the entire lid and draining heat away, leak proof, etc etc. Good stuff.
   
   
7. Timolino infuser mug: Theoretically similar to the JoeMoXL, but no push-button seal, and the infuser basket has some plastic. Oh well though. Adds a hidden compartment in the very top lid where you can store sugar. Smaller than most travel mugs (12 oz instead of the usual 16), so I think it's more practical to fill up, drink, then fill again and get a 2nd steeping out of the tea, as opposed to 16 oz over the course of the day and then getting home or whatever and not making use of the leaves until the next day maybe. There's also a carabiner version. Note that Timolino makes 2 tea mugs; this one, plus another that is ONLY good for green tea, with the leaves steeping inside the main chamber, with no removable infuser basket.
   
   I've been shopping around for quite some time. These are the two winners as far as I am concerned, though they skip out on being see-through and hiding the tea in the lid, but I can't see any well-designed options out there with those traits (although this Thermos mug has the infuser in the lid, but I wasn't so excited about it), so I'm giving my seal of approval to these. There are other contenders I think, but these are equal or better compared to anything I can find. I might also just go with a Contigo and brew in a teapot and just deal with the fact that the mug has no internal tea infuser.
   
   OCD FTW!

I love sencha (and I often add a slice or two of fresh ginger-- which also helps with nausea, by the way, if she will be undergoing chemo) and jasmine pearls. They're best in looseleaf form so I would also gift her a small pot with a steeper, something like this.

I like these teas for their soothing aroma and taste-- they don't have any magical, cure-all benefits.

The way of Tea -which is more going into Taoist philosophy of tea but it does have some history.

Steeped in history, The art of tea -That book has the history of tea in every area plus great images.

The Tea Enthusiast's Handbook -Quick guide to tea from every region and how to steep. Plus some great pictures on the color of a hand full of teas.

Tea, A global History

The book of tea -A lot of people seem to like this book but I personally find it a bit preachy in the sense of West vs. East and those evil Westerners.

A Cup of Tea -I personally just like this book. It's not tea information but instead tea quotes and some recipes. Each page has a cute little tea cup with a quote.

These are just the ones I have read but there are many more out there. Check your library to see if they have any books on tea.

If you are looking for a simple yet effective at-work tea infuser, normally I'd recommend a press-button infuser like the Piao I. The downside though is that it really takes a good rinse under running water to clean the filter, so it may not be for you. The upside is that it's easy to serve curious co-workers, and convert them to the dark side of quality tea.

The one I often use when traveling to my home office is the Finum Hot Glass System. It has an extremely eye-catching appearance, the filter is the best on the market, cleans easily, and it's super-easy to use. I typically fill a thermos with hot water and refill the glass throughout the day at my desk.

1. This is all you really need to brew tea anywhere.
   http://imgur.com/a/xqFqH
   
   You might look like the eccentric dude in the office lunch room, but, who cares.
   
   You can also just use T sac filterbags, $7 for 100 on Amazon.
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B010RV810W/
   
   
2. Temperature and time and leaf-water ratio matters, for C sinensis tea. You don't want to be over 180F for a green or under say 200F for a black/red, usually. Oolong can be more forgiving, but most people develop brewing parameters for what they like. If all you have is boiling water, you get a feel for how long it takes to cool to Green brewing temp. Also pouring from one vessel to an unheated one loses 10F or so.
   
   And Tie Gwan Yin / Tieguanyin (Iron Goddess of Mercy) is a type of Chinese Oolong. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tieguanyin?wprov=sfla1
   
   The Townsends in Eugene OR had an excellent Tieguanyin, which surprised me.
   
   I usually don't expect much from brick and mortar teahouses in the US.
   
   Yunnan Sourcing US warehouse is in Portland. When I lived in the PNW, their deliveries would arrive next business day or so.
   
   http://yunnansourcing.us

The Story of Tea is, from my readings, one of the most thorough and well-researched books on the subject. While it places a heavy emphasis on history and cultivation, it delves deep into specific growing regions, the teas they produce, and the tea cultures of those regions. My only gripe is that they didn't mention samovars in their brief section on Russian tea culture, but a) it's forgivable, and b) now you know.

For similar breadth but (slightly) less thoroughness, Tea is an excellent choice. In fact, this is the book that I would recommend to anyone starting their tea journey. Of course, you can always read both. ;)

Happy reading!

I am tired of waiting so I'll make a budget matcha set for you:

[Rice Bowl $7.6] (http://www.amazon.com/Smiling-Blue-Porcelain-Rice-Bowl/dp/B0042J0R7Q/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1412653136&sr=8-2&keywords=rice+bowl) you can find this cheaper, but I'll post this for convience. while a proper chawan has a wider base that is better for whisking the matcha, this type of bowl could work. Generally chawans are $20 and up.

[Bamboo whisk$11.88] (http://www.amazon.com/1x-BambooMN-Brand-Chashaku-preparing/dp/B003VSEG7Q/ref=sr_1_3?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1412653207&sr=1-3&keywords=matcha+bowl) (+ Chashaku & spoon) you can find cheaper whisks for around $5 or more expensive ones from Japan that generally are of a better quality. Some people use milk frothers or normal cooking whisks, both can be used, but won't be as effective.

Right now we are at $19.48, the cheapest matcha at o-cha is the [Uji Organic Matcha] (http://www.o-cha.com/uji-organic-matcha.html) for $10.56, slightly more expensive and in my oponion a more friendly matcha is the [Uji Matcha Kiri No Mori] (http://www.o-cha.com/uji-matcha-kiri.html) at $12.74. If this is your first time making matcha, I wouldn't recommending purchasing anything over $15 there.


Bonus accessories that are useful, but not necessary is the [Matcha Sifter for $14.56] (http://www.o-cha.com/matcha-furui.html) and the [bamboo whisk stand] (http://www.o-cha.com/matcha-whisk-keeper.html) for $4.73.

Also if you want to practice your whisking skills I reccomend getting a powdered green tea [like Teavivre's] (http://www.teavivre.com/organic-green-tea-powder/).

All the people I know who've owned glass tumblers have had them break. I'm usually very careful with my stuff, so I bought one too, but it broke within 6 months. It looked nice while it lasted, but what a waste of $25.

This one from Zojirushi is the best one on the market and a great example of Japanese engineering. They ripped off the design from Nissan, which at the time had the most well-designed tumbler on the market, but they made several modifications that made it even better. The older model maxes out at 16 oz, but the newer model comes in 20 oz. The newer model also has a high quality non-stick lining that should prevent any odors. Also, it's small enough to fit in a BMW cup holder.

They're a little expensive (around $32), but they last forever. My parents have used the older model daily for 3 years, and the mugs still look brand new.

I'm really a tea beginner, so if someone with more experience and knowledge comes along feel free to ignore me, but I just found an affordable earl grey on amazon.com for $15/lb. It's called Davidson's and I personally find it wonderful. The bergamot is much stronger than in other Earl greys I've had, which I really love!
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000SATIBO?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_pd_t1

It's similar to coffee in that it's brewed using hot water to extract flavor from plant material.

It tastes mostly quite different, however. Personally, I enjoy good coffee, but good coffee is much more expensive and time-consuming to make than good tea.

You can get tea quite cheaply, although high-end varieties command exorbitant prices. Here for example is what appears to be a decent Earl Grey (I haven't had it myself) for less than $1/ounce (keep in mind that an ounce is enough to make 14 cups of tea, assuming you use 2g per cup).

Tea is as easy to make as you want it to be. All varieties come from the tea plant, Camellia sinensis. Black tea is usually steeped once, as are flavored teas and herbal tisanes, so all you need to do is put the leaves in your pot or infuser, boil some water and pour it in.

Oolong and green teas can be more involved, since the high-quality ones can be steeped many times. Still, it's not all that much effort.

Mate and guayusa are rather different. They come from two different types of holly bushes - Ilex paraguariensis and Ilex guayusa respectively. They're even cheaper than tea, but you use a tablespoon or more per cup. They also have much higher levels of caffeine, generally speaking. Mate is traditionally prepared using a gourd, and drunk through a metal straw called a bombilla that has a strainer in it.

Yeah your calculations are correct, the only problem is I use 2 teaspoons per cup of tea instead of 1 teaspoon because it produces a stronger tea that stands up to milk. So it'll cost me significantly more. On top of that, if I need 1.5 times that for cold brew, It'll cost even more.

I'm using Arbor Teas Organic Earl Grey which is at about 30 dollars for 1 pound, but I can also try Davidson's Organic Earl Grey off Amazon for about 15 dollars a pound. https://www.amazon.com/Davidsons-Tea-Bulk-Earl-16-Ounce/dp/B000SATIBO?th=1

But yeah, I think if I advertise just the tea as organic, I would be able to sell more, or charge a higher price.

Is this the Earl Grey Creme you are talking about? https://www.teasource.com/products/earl-grey-creme-black-tea?variant=7636916338724

I can buy a sample and see if it goes well with milk :)

Hario Chacha Kyusu Maru Tea Pot, 700ml - $15

Teaology Luna Double Wall Borosilicate Tea Cup - $3.95

I'm very much still learning, but I love this cheap little setup and it's been working especially well with my Oolongs and Greens. I picked up a sample of Pu erh Pearls from Adagio (pictured), and it works just fine for that as well if you're okay with western brewing techniques.

I hate bags, but one of the better bagged greens from a grocery store I've had is Costco's Kirkland Green tea with sencha and matcha. It is by Ito En, which is a good tea seller that does matcha/greens pretty good. FYI, this has matcha so the caffeine will be high.

If you don't have a costco, you can buy online. https://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Matcha-Blend-Japanese-Tea-100/dp/B000WB1YSE

If you can find Harney & Sons in store, they have good teas too and come in bagged form.

edit: since you are new. Refer to the side bar for temperatures. Green tea needs to be done at a lower temperature or it'll be a bitter mess.

Sorry this is a bit late!

Honestly that bottle seems like a pain to clean and not worth the effort (it looks to be like a vinegar bottle?). Even with a decent brush, the neck of that bottle is so small that it seems unlikely that the brush can be fully utilized.

If I may, I would suggest this instead. I actually have it and have found it to be AMAZING for cold brew. There's plenty of space for the leaves to expand and the spout is sharp enough that there's almost never any drippage. It's not too large either and can be tucked away into the side shelf of a refrigerator.

Matcha is super easy to make. You just need a wide teacup and a whisk. Amazon has a pretty good set here.

I got a fancy and expensive Breville variable temperature kettle and you guys, I absolutely LOVE it! I am drinking more tea now because of it and it's just the best. I am looking forward to drinking so much more tea this year!

For reference, the kettle!

This is the one I have and like I said, the white plastic mouthpiece pops out for cleaning and the sillicon stopper can be pulled off to clean as well. Cleaning is very easy with this and I really like it.

A book that I found extremely helpful when starting out in the tea business was The Tea Enthusiast's Handbook. It'll cover all the bases regarding the different classes of teas, manufacture, terroir, how to store and age them, the history of tea, and a bunch of other useful information. Everyone at the tea shop I work at owns a copy, haha. It's like our tea bible.

I use this for heating my water, it's a great value. I love it. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00V9LJF78/ref=psdcmw_289753_t1_B00BFLKVX4

I got these on amazon and really liked them.

Teaology Luna Double Wall Borosilicate Tea/Espresso Cup https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AOA1T56/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_2q1QwbQJGA4FF

I haven't seen any small double wall glass cups with handles. The smallest I saw on Amazon after a quick look was 8oz. Good luck!

I have these. When I'm holding them, even if there's scalding hot tea in them, I don't feel it at all. They're a little under 3 ounces so it's not quite as big as you want, but they're a good size for me. I honestly don't like the insulation of them that much. I find I miss the warmth of other cups when I'm using them.

So I went over to a neighbor's for tea and she had the Breville One-Touch Tea Maker...and the teas she brewed came out exceptional.

I was wondering if people feel that I should invest in this particular piece, or instead go for the slightly cheaper Breville BKE820XL, which also has tea-specific temperature controls.

Either would be a massive upgrade from what I'm currently using and wonder if I need the timing and flavor profile-specific settings if I use an old-fashioned timer since I'd be baby-sitting the tea.

Thoughts? Thanks everyone! ♥ May your day be filled with the perfect-temperature cup!

A tray is handy but if you just have anything to hold/collect the water it should be fine. I found my exact tray on amazon

Honestly I’d just start with a gaiwan and a cup. If you’re making it for yourself you shouldn’t need a sharing pitcher, and if small bits of tea dust isn’t an issue then you could almost do without the filter.

I think Yunnan Sourcing has $5-$10 porcelain gaiwans that are affordable (being 60 or 100 ml)

So there was already a comment about a Zojirushi water boiler and warmer. But I'm here to advocate for the Zojirushi thermos! When at work I go down to the cafeteria and fill it with hot water (and no, I have not needed to preheat it). Keeps my water hot for 4 hours. And it is super easy to clean too.

http://www.amazon.com/Zojirushi-SM-KHE48AG-Stainless-Steel-16-Ounce/dp/B005PO9T44/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426531572&sr=8-1&keywords=zojirushi+thermos

I bought the Chefman cordless glass kettle and love it, but before that I had the stainless steel and love that one too (it is 1/2 the price).
http://www.amazon.com/Chefman-Cordless-Electric-1-7-Liter-Stainless-Steel/dp/B00J8NJEW0/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1454274741&sr=8-2&keywords=chefman+tea+kettle

http://www.amazon.com/Chefman-RJ11-17-GP-Precision-Electric-Kettle/dp/B00V9LJF78/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454274831&sr=8-1&keywords=chefman+tea+kettle

The Story of Tea is a great book. Tons of information and really beautiful.

OK, that's it. I'm going to order one, as well. Perhaps a smaller 450ml size, though.

Just the other day I got a Hario cold brew pitcher and I'm well pleased with it. This one here.

why drink tea if you can't stand it? i like coffee a lot, i just prefer ice cold tea.

while others may post exotic tea ideas, i'll stick with the tried and true just to get you started;

black;

http://www.amazon.com/Yorkshire-Gold-tea-bags-box-bags/dp/B0001LQZOI

green;

http://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Signature-Matcha-Japanese-Leaves/dp/B000WB1YSE

it's ok to garnish your tea with citrus juice or milk, sweeten with sugars or honey.

variety packs are fun to sample, just keep in mind they may not be different teas,

just various fruits|spices used to flavor them, kinda like flavored coffee creamers.

The Story of Tea is a really great book that I've been enjoying.

Welcome! I've never used paper towel, but it could work. I fear it may tear after 1 or 2 infusions.

I've used this infuser and its worked well for me. It's a bit pricey @ $19 though.
http://www.amazon.com/FORLIFE-Stainless-Folding-Infuser-Carrying/dp/B00FOMKNSI/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1457753210&sr=8-9&keywords=for+life+tea+infuser

You could also invest in a gaiwan. Half the price at $8.
http://www.amazon.com/Purple-Clay-Tea-Pot-Gaiwan/dp/B00H98UGCS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1457753354&sr=8-1&keywords=gaiwan

This video helped me understand brewing process. It's a bit long, but hope it helps!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puldqGnW9P0

I would keep it as whole as possible just because that's the logic I use for tea, if its not strong enough grinding may make it stronger but may introduce off tastes like bitter or grassy. This may not be a problem for you with your specific taste, but I would give it a try whole if only because its easier and then experiment with a finer grind.

I like these for bags

https://www.amazon.com/T-Sac-Filter-Bags-Disposable-Infuser/dp/B010RV810W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493325561&sr=8-1&keywords=loose+leaf+tea+bags

(Look at the sizes and get one that meets your needs as they go from small cup to pitcher) but often just use a stainless steel strainer which can be found n amazon for a similar price.

I use a Supentown 5L, which works extremely well and is sufficient for two tea addicts. Other than that, Rosewill is another good brand (at least for tech stuff).

Panasonic, Aroma, and Tiger are also reliable brands.

You could try thrift shops near Asian communities and colleges if you feel lucky.

I would suggest this:
http://www.amazon.com/Highwave-JOEmoXL-Stainless-Steel-Travel/dp/B00115WFX8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1377879603&sr=8-1&keywords=joemo+xl

I have one and it works great in 2 ways: 1. put tea into the cup and replace filter for drink-and-steep; 2. put tea into infuser basket for steep-and-drink.

I don't actually use the infuser though, because I use a stainless steel over-the-cup type; which is much sturdier; one that looks like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Frieling-Medium-Infuser-3-5-inch-Stainless/dp/B003O6A3AY/ref=sr_1_5?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1377879909&sr=1-5&keywords=stainless+steel+tea+infuser

I just got a Forlife Stump 16-Ounce that I've been pretty happy with. It's probably a bit smaller than what you're looking for though.

I gotcha. If time is an absolute crunch in the morning, then there are a few things you can do to shorten the time spent on tea. Here's something that I do whenever I'm on the move. I use one of these, and keep a premeasured dose of tea in it, ready to be watered. When you happen to move toward the kitchen, turn on your kettle to the appropriate temperature, and walk away. When you're ready to steep, just do it and set a timer. Put pants on, or whatever takes ~3 minutes. Remove the leaves/strainer, close your cup and you're ready to go!

I haven't found a do-everything-automatically fix that doesn't have a major flaw. As far as I can tell, the quickest option is to take time beforehand to streamline the brewing process, so you don't have to think about it when it matters.

TL;DR: Setup everything the night before, and push buttons as you fly through the house in the morning.

I actually got it on Amazon (here's the link... if it doesn't take you to the model I pictured, just click the little options boxes on that page.)

However, this is a really popular model and you can find it sold elsewhere, sometimes for less. For example, here it is on Dragon Tea House for a few dollars less (also free shipping).

I think I have seen this one on AliExpress before too.

I cannot speak highly enough for the travel mug by Teas Etc, I've had mine for over two years and plan to get another as a backup. I bought a little thermos sling for it to carry around with me, which more or less keeps it hot the entire day. But even without the sling, it still keeps hot for quite awhile. I really fell in love with it due to the design though. It being see through whenever I'm out with it people comment on it, either they want one or more likely they have never seen loose leaf tea before, so I usually point them in the right direction.

The trick to keeping it from over-steeping is to use less leaf and cooler water. For anyone thinking this is blasphemy, keep in mind that a good majority of green tea drunk daily in China is just thrown into a glass cup with water added to the same leaves as needed throughout the day.

One of these
https://www.amazon.com/Tasteful-Bamboo-Gongfu-Table-Serving/dp/B00M3Y8LNY/ref=sr_1_7?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1494108554&sr=1-7&keywords=tea+tray

They have removable water trays and are pretty nice looking / build quality isn't terrible. when i was looking, ones cheaper than this didn't seem high quality/would have issues. I looked around quite a lot and that is the cheapest price for those that I found.

I'm probably not as much of a tea expert as the rest of the guys and gals here but I have this green matcha tea I bought from costco and it tastes good enough to me.

Comes in a huge package of 100 and isn't too expensive at about ~$0.20/bag.


This is tea with matcha however. I'm not sure if that is the same as just matcha.

I have a Chefman electric kettle and it holds at 175F perfectly (my tea's recommended brewing temp). Moves in 5 degree increments like most others.

Only complaint is that you have to press on, then the program button to set it to a specific temperature. It does remember the previous temperature as long as it stays plugged in. If you just press on, it boils the water and I've sleepily made this mistake more than once.

For everyday, convenient "I-need-some-tea-in-me-stat" drinking I quite enjoy Costco's house brand green tea bags. It's actually Ito En tea, sold under the Kirkland name. 100 bags to a box, and if I recall it's about $15. Looks like this (Amazon link; though Costco is cheaper).

I just started using this one today: http://amzn.com/B003FGW71G

It works perfectly and I like it so far! It's going to take a bit of experimenting to get the brew just right though, my first batch was quite bitter. The packaging recommends less tea & cooler water, since the tea sits in the water the whole time.

I was gifted this one for Christmas: http://www.amazon.com/Chefman-RJ11-17-GP-Precision-Electric-Kettle/dp/B00V9LJF78/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1453571338&sr=8-1&keywords=chefman+kettle

The steeper is fantastic IMO, but there is a drawback of having to make at least ~1 liter of tea in order for the steeper to reach the water. That being said, you can also remove the steeper and use it like a regular kettle

I got it from Amazon There are a few different sizes. I really like it and I would highly recommend it. It's the same one the guys at TeaDB use.

Yep! Actually got it on Amazon :)

I've had this one for a few months and I absolutely love it.
http://www.amazon.com/Breville-BKE820XL-Variable-Temperature-1-8-Liter-Kettle/dp/B001DYERBK

There's the Kirkland matcha green tea blend that's pretty okay.

I have two of these in my fridge most of the time they're great.

I agree, but I recommend this one instead. The only reason I prefer it is that it has the tab/handle on both sides. The ones with the handle on only one side tend to fall or sag into the cup, I find.

Hey, I'm in the exact same kind of setup and just recently dumped soda for tea. There's a hot water spigot on our coffee machine that pumps water out at 200 deg F.

I got one of these: http://amazon.com/dp/B004PV6SXS?tag=dimwellnet-20

If you want something with a built-in infuser, try this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003FGW71G?tag=dimwellnet-20

Add that to a box of sample tea bags (I started with a Twinings sample box from Publix, I think) and you're ready to get started.

The mug linked above keeps everything nice and warm for an hour or so.

I'm sure that loose is measurably better, but I'm ignorant and bags are fine. Plus, it's easy to brew a bag while I'm on my way to a meeting and just drop the used bag into the trash before things get started.

I have 2 tea trays from this seller and I love both of them. I recommend spending a bit more than you'd expect on a tea tray as the quality of the cheaper budget ones really shows (before I bought the second I bought a 20 dollar one from another manufacturer and it fortunately arrived damaged so I sent it back and picked up one that wasn't so awful)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00M3Y8LNY/ref=mp_s_a_1_11?qid=1463497355&sr=8-11&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=tea+tray

This for practical, everyday applications. For fun, historical stuff, try the New Tea Lover's Treasury

I've had one of these for a while now and it's absolutely fantastic. Couldn't recommend it more!

I have one of these and it serves me well. I read about it on a thread of recommend containers. I'll see if I can dig it up.

I have the teastick, and really don't recommend it. It doesn't leave any space for expansion at all, and it's actually rather a pain to refill. Not to mention, the holes on the teastick are rather big, so any small tea leaves tea will slip though. There's really no winning with this; I can't discourage you away from this enough. A teaball definitely works better than this does.

I would instead suggest these two: FORLIFE infuser with lid and the FORLIFE infuser with carrying case.

I enjoyed The Tea Enthusiast's Handbook, which helped me to understand a bit more about the differences between all the different classes of tea.

My go to:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B010RV810W/ref=cm_sw_r_other_awd_9s34wbVNJQXHH

With the size 2 it's really easy to just curl the edge over the side of the mug while steeping too.

I use T-Sac brand when I travel. These are made in Germany. They're pretty good, but I never use them at home.

https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Filter-Disposable-Infuser-Filters/dp/B010RV810W/ref=pd_bxgy_79_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=CQTY4VQKTX56WTD76MA2

I don't believe a quality, all in one solution exists at that volume and at that price. The closest thing to tick most of your boxes will be something like this, but that's not really the best solution if you're drinking quality teas.

• Whenever a vendor has a tea they list as "silver needle", you can safely assume there's going to be a price markup. Ignore teavana's white teas - the cheaper/better tasting teas will come from smaller tea vendors.
  
• I've tried many green tea brands, but the one that sticks out the most is Kirklands Matcha Blend. This is my go-to green tea nowdays. It's cheaper to buy at costco instead of amazon though. It's a blend of matcha powder and tea leaves.

http://www.amazon.com/Chefman-RJ11-17-GP-Precision-Electric-Kettle/dp/B00V9LJF78?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00

this is the model I have and love it. It was around 60 new, but I got a used one for I think 38$. It goes up by increments of ten degrees, and even has an infuser already in it.

I've had The Story of Tea for several years and like it a lot.

It's called The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide

After that guy deleted his post, it's like we're having a secret conversation about a secret mug and a secret book. I was almost tempted not to post the reply...

the costco ito-en bagged sencha + matcha. it's like 100 bags for 10-15 bucks in a costco and on amazon it is almost 20.

This is my favorite all around, and I've tried a lot:

https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Loose-Infuser-House-Again/dp/B01N1OTXHW

If you want something a bit smaller and sturdier, but with slightly bigger holes (that will let more tea particles through):

https://www.amazon.com/FORLIFE-Stainless-Folding-Infuser-Carrying/dp/B00FOMKNSI

Pretty similar, but I prefer this one for traveling.

i use one of these with a built in strainer. Looks like the yellow one is the same thing.

http://www.amazon.com/Tea-Traveler%C2%AE-Character-Teas-Etc/dp/B003FGW71G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1408682120&sr=8-2&keywords=tea+to+go

I found this on Amazon

I got it from Amazon.

Edit: This one: https://www.amazon.com/Tasteful-Bamboo-Gongfu-Table-Serving/dp/B00M3Y8LNY

Found it on amazon here

Tea: History, Terroirs, Varietes: https://www.amazon.com/Tea-Terroirs-Varieties-Kevin-Gascoyne/dp/1770853197/

And the Story of Tea: https://www.amazon.com/Story-Tea-Cultural-History-Drinking/dp/1580087450

I haven't read it myself (it's on hold at the library though), but I've heard this is basically the definitive guide to tea.

> Costco green tea

https://www.amazon.com//dp/B000WB1YSE

Ive been using this Breville as my kettle and has lasted for 3 years! Works wonders

I found a few:

• one
  
• two
  
• three
  
  Most fancy tea ware is overpriced but there seem to be many options here.

Right here.

Here you go!

cheaper alternative http://www.amazon.com/Teaology-Luna-Double-Borosilicate-Espresso/dp/B00AOA1T56/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1391736244&sr=8-9&keywords=tea+cup

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FOMKNSI/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=E45EKS8JK8EG&coliid=I3N1BSOVH037VB

We got it from Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00QFKXHZO/ref=mp_s_a_1_7_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1487175397&sr=8-7&keywords=moyishi+gaiwan

Here's a tea maker for $55 if all you need is boiling water and a very compact machine. Kinda resembles a small coffee maker.

You could also go with the Chefman kettle. It's around $50, variable temp, and includes an infuser so you can make a full pot of tea with it after you heat up your water.

I use this currently

I brew my tea at home in my pot, then pour it into my travel mug before I leave for work in the morning. This is the travel mug I use. Keeps my tea hot even if I can't get to it right away. It's so hot straight from the mug that I usually pour it into my work teacup and drink it that way.

• Gourmia GDK290
  
• Chefman RJ11-17-GP
  
  I've never heard of them before searching so I really can't say how well they work. Judging by the similarities of the bases, they're probably identical outside of the tea basket.
  

According to my sources (this book and this book - great reads BTW, i suggest OP check them out) it's made like green tea but there's an additional process after firing the leaves, called Smothering, men huang, or "sealing yellow" that involves multiple iterations of lightly heating/steaming the leaves -> wrapping them in paper/cloth -> letting them rest to "reabsorb their aromatics and breathe at the same time".

The descriptions in the two books differ, but only slightly:

Pettigrew specifies that the process is a "non-enzymatic fermentation" and the leaves are wrapped in something called "cow skin paper" (Heiss just notes it's "a cloth").

Heiss brings up the names smothering/men huang/sealing yellow, and notes that the heating method for this step is steaming (as opposed to Pettigrew's "gently firing")

The other tea book I have (Harney&Son's guide to tea) just confesses his ignorance on the process and makes a wild guess on how yellow tea is made. But since it's just speculation it's safe to ignore it.

It's a Tea's Etc. I've been thinking about getting one like this, however, it's made of plastic which turns me off.

I'm really tempted to get a Libre, which is made of plastic on the outside and glass on the inside, but the price is ludicrous.

This is the one I have. I've been using it for the last 8 or so months and I have no complaints.