Christmas Eve: a time for good tidings, togetherness and … tea. Yes, tea! Tea may seem an unusual holiday tradition, but for me, it’s the perfect accompaniment to a cozy night in with family and friends. And ever since ditching my daily hot chocolate for healthier tea a few years ago, I’ve become something of a tea enthusiast—and not just on holidays.
I basically drink tea all day long when it’s cold out. Even in the summer, I love my tea in the cool mornings and chilly evenings. In fact, the only thing I love as much as my chocolate is my tea!
My favorite teas come from two companies in particular. I love them not only because their mint and chamomile tea is the very BEST in my opinion (and I have tried many teas!), but also because they are both socially conscious, which I love.
Here are my picks for seven of the best, most truly delicious teas:
1. My favorite tea brand is Mighty Leaf. They are a great company, and I absolutely love their Organic Mint Melange in the a.m.
2. My second favorite from Mighty Leaf is Chamomile Citrus in the p.m.
3. Their Organic Green Dragon is a fave of my friends who like their teas caffeinated.
4. & 5. My second favorite brand is Numi. I just love their Moroccan Mint and their Chamomile Lemon. They do a lot of giving back; check this out—they are a cool company!
6. My caffeine-drinking friends swear by Numi’s Chinese Breakfast tea.
7. My favorite loose leaf tea is from Mountain Rose Herbs. Their Firefly Chai is super delicious, and it’s the only chai I’ve ever found that is caffeine-free.
When Leah D’Ambrosio (my SARA co-founder) and I return to London in August 2015 for SARA teacher training, we will be looking for some great places for afternoon tea. (These look like top contenders!) London is such a hot spot when it comes to tea. This was our absolute favorite tea place last time we visited. You can bet we’ll be visiting it again!
And now for the secret to a perfect cup: According to a study commissioned by Cravendale Milk, the most important ingredient is patience. Click here for their step-by-step instructions.
I would love to hear from you! What are some teas I simply MUST try?
Thanks Danielle, I have never tried Choice teas but will now! How great that they support Jane Goodall too! 🙂
Choice Organic Teas! All organic, most fair trade certified, and some raise funds and awareness for the Jane Goodall Institute. I love many of their teas, especially Wild Forest Black, Japanese green, and jasmine green.
I like the teas from Adagio Teas. http://www.adagio.com/
They have a Roots Campaign, where you can learn about the farmers they buy their teas from
http://www.adagio.com/roots_campaign/fang_ai_hua.html
They also had a Carbon Offset campaign (looks like the voting is over) to offset the emissions from their tea deliveries.
http://www.adagio.com/pages/shipping_carbon_offset.html
And in the past they have planted trees in honor of Earth Day
http://www.adagio.com/trees/view_estates.html?preload=2845
Oh, and their tea is delicious. 😉
They also have this fun section called Fandom Blends
http://www.adagio.com/signature_blend/fandoms.html
… where anyone can create a themed tea and upload artwork for the packaging. Up near the top right of that page, you can click on ‘create a blend’. They walk you through the easy process.
Kathleen, you should make some Animal Reiki Tea Blends!!! 😉
Love,
Kelly
Hi Kelly,
Wow these look amazing! I can’t wait to make my own blend, how fun 🙂
Love,
Kathleen