2.21.2011

The Chai Investigation

This is the tea that started it all. Well, not my love of tea, but my investigation into Teavana and discovering the world of tea, tea companies and even tea fraud. (I'll get to that in another post.)

This tea is one of my most favorites on the planet, and one I have not yet been able to replicate. Anyone who shops for tea knows that Teavana may have high quality teas and tisanes - but it comes at a price. A hefty price tag doesn't work with everyone's budgets, especially nowadays.

I have searched and searched for a comparable chai to this one because $16.20 for 25 cups of tea doesn't work. But there isn't anything like it out there.

The chai blend is amazing - spicy, cinnamony and with multiple layers of flavor. It's a complicated tea. Teavana gives you some instructions like a teaspoon of tea, brew for, what, eight minutes or so and ta-da! It's ready.

But I do my own thing. Rarely do I follow instructions when it comes to tea. I'm a tea rogue. I use at least two teaspoons for my small mug (it's a Fiestaware chocolate mug), and I (wait for it)....leave the tea infusing for the...entire length of the cup. So at the end the tea filter is soggy and pitiful looking but I am enjoying a spicy sip.

Harney & Sons has a great alternative: Hot Cinnamon Spice black tea. It's decent and I like it. But it's not the Chai blend I start every workday with...

I kept on my search, looking for a cheaper version of chai - from big companies like Bigelow (Vanilla Chai, which is decent) to smaller companies like Harney & Sons. I have yet to find a comparable alternative. So I am a slave to the Teavana corporation...like many others.

To Be Continued....

Keen Tea Thyme will be live March 1

This site will be live and online by March 1 with plenty of fun things to read, learn and even play. Take the poll to let me know what you'd like to see here.

I'll have reviews, a company profile, a few articles about tea, a contest for March (win a selection of tea!), a word search game, recipes, fortune-telling (just for fun) and more.

PLUS - big news - a battle will begin between bagged tea and loose tea. Which is better? Which will prevail? Post your comments and state your piece. Get started now, before the melee, and/or wait until the gavel drops. Check out the arena scene here: The Fight for Best Kind of Tea

Got ideas? Want to tell me anything? Drop me a line: keenteathyme@gmail.com.

See you March 1!
-KeenTeaThyme (KiTT)

Bagged Tea versus Loose Tea

Get your mitts out!
The battle officially begins on March 1. Who will prevail: bagged tea or loose tea?

Each have pros and cons, but only one can be Preferred. Which do you like best? Is there even a reason on Earth why bagged tea should still be around?

Should there be a different rating scale for bagged tea versus loose tea?

What are your thoughts? Get ready to post away. For an entire year, we'll allow comments and posts in favor of both. From March 1, 2011 to March 1, 2012, the debate will rage on. In the end there can be only one. The version of tea declared Keen Tea Thyme's Preferred will rule over...well, the other one, since there are only two versions here. But it'll be fun to discuss and see what others think. So get your thoughts together and post away! The battle is on!