Help! Buying tea for a friend's birthday
Hi! I’m pretty new here, I’ve been lurking for a couple days, and you all seem nice so I figured I’d pose a question :) I’m planning on buying some tea as a birthday present for a friend, but I’m not sure what to get her. I’ve seen her drinking herbal teas (chamomile), fruity blends (berries, apple, pomegranate) and chai, and I know she’s bought some of them from Teavana (and complained about the prices!). I’d like to get her something unique and interesting- something that she wouldn’t normally have either because it’s not available locally or because it’s too expensive.
Are there any brands/websites that you guys would recommend? Any specific teas? Thanks for the help!
Hmmm, I’m not sure. I’m hesitant to recommend something specific I love because there’s no guarantee that she will to. Everyone’s tastes with tea can be so different.
For this scenario, I would recommend getting a sampler pack of teas. That way, you don’t have to worry about buying a large amount of one tea and her not liking it. I really enjoyed Lupicia’s sampler kits. I’ve had the 30-pack myself and given the 15-pack as a gift.
Lupicia has very reasonably priced teas, in my opinion. It’s definitely much more reasonable than Teavana. They also sell all their teas as loose or bagged, though the sampler kits are only bagged. But I like that they provide the versatility for people new to tea and hesitant to try loose-leaf.
Anyway, here’s a link to the 15 tea sampler: http://www.lupiciausa.com/product_p/22000103.htm
And the 30 tea sampler: http://www.lupiciausa.com/product_p/22000104.htm
Ah, I didn’t even think about a sampler! Great idea, thanks!
I’m looking at Lupicia’s sampler – are all 15 teas different? Or do they give you a couple of each?
First, I LOVE that you want to get this person tea. And specifically, tea that she’ll like! Ideally, this friend would have a Steepster account and you could scoop her shopping list. If not, as Charoma suggested, sample packs can be a great bonus. I’m not sure how much you are looking to spend, but LiberTeas offers an intense sampler on her teatrade site. They are all different teas and different companies so the odds are prettty high that your friend will find at least one thing to love. It’s also a great way to try new companies without a big purchase.
If you’re not feeling the samples, I would recommend checking out 52teas.com (since you said she drinks fruity/flavoured teas). I really enjoy Joy’s Teaspoon and David’s Tea as well, but I don’t know where you’re located so I don’t know what is reasonable in terms of shipping.
I actually don’t think she knows about this site. (gasp!) She’s done all of her tea buying in stores, so I don’t think she’s ever had a reason to go searching for good tea online. But yes, that would have made things much easier!
I can’t seem to finde LiberTeas’ website (google is currently failing me) – any chance you could post the link? Thanks! 52teas is on my list of places to check out – definitely some interesting sounding teas on there- and I’ll check out Joy’s Teaspoon and David’s Tea. Thank you for the suggestions!
Thank you! Your Big Box of Tea looks perfect – and it looks like you have some 52teas in your cupboard so I’d be able to add a couple for her to try too. I think I might have found a winner ;-)
Golden Moon Tea has a really nice sampler: http://www.goldenmoontea.com/store/gifts/tea-taster-s-sampler.html
They also have one that also includes T-Sacs: http://www.goldenmoontea.com/store/gifts/tea-taster-s-sampler-with-natural-t-sac.html
I actually love searching Etsy for hand-blended teas from smaller teamakers. I love Tea For All Reasons!
Oh, great idea. I never even thought about looking on Etsy! Tea For All Reasons looks like it has some great flavors, thanks for the rec :)
Nice? NICE? NICE?!? I’LL SHOW YOU NIC … dammit, I was never good at being imposing. I always wanted to be, but people just laugh, ah well.
I second the 52 teas option, fairly affordable, pretty universally well loved, and definitely unique, I’d say you couldn’t lose with something from there.
Another option is flowering teas, they make fun gifts and people are usually excited about them, especially if they have had limited exposure to them.
Hope it goes well, remember if she doesn’t like it just tell her to wait for the to wait for the south pole lunar axis to line up with the polar gravitational water pull for the water to reach optimal quantum oxidizational levels and try brewing the tea again. Trust me this is something that all true tea lovers will understand.
LOL! Thanks for the recs – I actually bought her a couple flowering teas and a clear teapot as a present several years ago, so that’s spot on :) 52teas looks like it has some interesting flavors, I think I’m definitely going to check it out (if not for her, then for myself!)
Blushing
Okay, I’ll toot my own horn: A subscription to our tea of the week plan really is a cool gift. The recipient gets a different 1-2oz pouch of tea every week in the mail. Our prices include shipping to the US and Canada, and subscriptions start at just $49.99 for six weeks of tea. Tooting complete.
:)
I was actually just looking into that! It sounds like a great deal – and it would be a birthday present that just kept coming :) Thanks for the suggestion!
Wow… I want friends like you! I am sure that your gift of tea is going to make your friend super happy!
There are some great suggestions so far. The 52teas subscription sounds amazing. I would be super excited to receive that and it has a great variety of flavors so that you are bound to be at least a few she will enjoy!
Also, if she likes Teavana, they just released their new flavors. They have really good fruity tea, so maybe that could also be a good option!
Good luck choosing!
hahah, we’ve been friends since college – after that much time you get to know people really well :) I’m definitely looking into 52teas, their teas sound really interesting. And I should take a look at Teavana just to see what they have too. Thanks you for the suggestions!
You can also look into Mariage Freres flavored teas offered at Dean and Deluca. Their Marco Polo is a best seller and they are widely recognized as one of the top purveyors of tea in the world. their tins are nice too.
Happy shopping!
Hi there! We have a bunch of featured gifts this season. Tea is always an appropriate and much-appreciated gift. Check it out!
I hate to say this but a gift card might be the best way to go. I often help people choose tea gifts for others but its really hard to choose tea for someone. Especially as the seasons shift their taste may shift and they may not want the same thing. As someone who has in the past received tea as a gift, I have yet to receive something that was suited for me. In fact, someone once bought me strawberry puerh. I thought it was an odd choice for me since I don’t like flavored puerhs so I asked why. He said so you can lose some of that weight you gained. Ouch. Last month I had one of my long standing customers place a larger order. A couple days later her daughter placed an order telling me that she needed it the next day because it was for her mom’s birthday. The orders were completely different even though her daughter is very close to her and knows what teas she generally likes. Of course I told her about her mom placing the large order just recently and cancelled her order. If you don’t want to do a gift card than a sampler would be the next best option.
Login or sign up to leave a comment.