Favorite Strawberry Teas

With strawberry season upon us, it's time for making strawberry tea - unless you are allergic, of course. (In that case, you have my deepest sympathy).

What are your favorite teas - hot & cold? I enjoy Teavana's Strawberry Lemonade - prefer cold. And Frank @ 52teas had me at Strawberry Pie Honeybush. Got any other favorites? Post here!

Using an Electric Tea Kettle

OK, I'm really bad about spending gift cards.  I want to wait for the PERFECT thing, or a sale or something to truly take advantage of the, well, free money.

So last year I bought this tea kettle from Russell Hobbs on a great deal at Macy's (using the gift card, of which there is still some $$.)

I am finally using it. Tonight. Over a year later. {insert laughter here}

Here are some pics. I brewed up Peppermint tea from Teavana, because it's late in the evening and I love peppermint when I've got a migraine (which is slowly turning into just a headache). It works pretty well. It doesn't have special times for certain types of tea, but I like that I can brew up a whole pot of peppermint tea, keep it warm and nurse my headache. (I will be watching reruns of Still Standing to help as well.)

Need more info? Check it out on Amazon.com: Electric Kettle by Russell Hobbs.

Russell Hobbs Kettle before (please ignore wine glass)

With Peppermint Tea a'brewin'

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....