How did you become the tea lover you are today?

I’ve drunk red rose etc. for decades. On a recent trip to England I was reminded of how much I like Darjeeling, and when I tried to buy some I discovered this wonderful world of high-quality tea.

I used to be a wine snob, but am taking a medication that demands I be alcohol-free, and I’ve found the tea tasting notes etc. to be nearly as much fun as the wine tastings I used to do. I’m still exploring the various types of tea, but have fun doing things like drinking 4 similar teas side-by-side.

I’m indian and my mom drinks 3 cups of chai religiously everyday. I guess I got it from her :D

I started to research tea in order to buy my brother a Christmas gift of tea…was fascinated, bought myself a couple different blacks, greens, and a nice white….leaf and pearl! Now I have a WHOLE shelf of tea in my cupboard, a digital tea kettle and accounts at more than a couple online tea houses. I brew up 2 pots a day, morning and evening.

One day I bought a bunch of different grocery store bagged tea. I came home and started sipping some of the white tea and it was soooo bitter. The box said it was supposed to be sweet.. So confused me googled ‘white tea’ and it came up with a BUNCH of different sites to buy tea. I didn’t even know that loose leaf existed. I started buying from Adagio and then reading books on it and then I found Steepster. I was amazed at all of the different flavors and varieties. Now I have an obsession with it. I love it and I can’t go a day without drinking at the very least one cup :]

In college I got into green tea after reading about the health benefits. I only got the flavored Lipton ones, and I liked those well enough. For the next decade I drank a few varieties of bagged greens, and enjoyed them. A few months ago I went to lunch with a friend, and afterwards we went to the mall. She wanted to stop at Teavana, and I waited by the entrance. I never cared for the samples from there because they were all super sweet and just not my thing. When she was done I asked what she got, and she mentioned a couple green teas. I made the comment about them being sweet and she said the employees add boat loads of sugar to the samples and their teas aren’t really that sweet. I mulled that over for awhile, and I realized I had no idea how to brew loose tea. I Google’d it, and when I found out all it took was a diffuser, I went to Teavana and picked up a few ounces of various kinds. The first one I tried when I got home was the jasmine phoenix pearls, and I knew I had stumbled upon something special.

I asked my fb friends if they knew of some good places to get loose leaf teas besides Teavana, and one friend mentioned Adagio. I also discovered an independently owned tea shop on the other side of town. I got some samples from Adagio and the tea shop…and I’m officially hooked. My favorites are still the greens (jasmine pearls and Adagio’s vanilla green being my favorites. I’ve also been turned onto Earl Greys, specifically the Lady Grey varieties.

Right now I’m steeping some Adagio casablanca twist :).