When you think of a barista and a coffee shop, you most likely think of coffee. That’s okay! When I first started, I did, too. However, there’s a road-less-taken when you go to your local java bar. Last week, I told you about some coffee concoctions and one tea drink to try. A lot of people have asked me about my “self-appointed tea expertise” and what I like when I need to mellow out.
Before I go into a list, it’s good to start with some tea knowledge. It’s tea-ducation time, everyone! Loose-leaf tea will always, always give you the stronger flavor. Think back to high school chemistry and math (which were never my strong suit, so forgive me) and remember what you learned about surface area; the more surface area something has, the more contact it makes with what’s around it. Loose-leaf tea moves around in the water freely, so more of the tea leaves are able to percolate more fully.
It’s a common misconception that strong tea means bitter tea. Its strength comes from the quality of the leaves and the type of tea. For instance, black tea will be a stronger and darker flavor than green tea. Fun fact: black teas have the most caffeine, and herbal teas have none.
Now that I’ve mentioned herbal teas, let’s learn about what those are. As you may have noticed, teas can be infused with literally thousands of different flavors, and that is done by putting spices, fruits and other general flora in with the leaves. Most herbal teas use rooibos (which is really just a fancy name for a flowery legume) in conjunction with said spices, fruits and flora.
Without further ado, here are some tea tastes to sample. I’ve said before that I’m a big fan of Souvia teas, so my suggestions will likely be coming from there. Plus, who doesn’t love supporting a local business?
The traditional black tea
One great thing about black tea is that it’s really easy to infuse a lot of different flavors with it. However, I will always recommend trying—at least once—a high-quality black tea, either hot or iced. Instead of grabbing a store-bought tea bag and carelessly plopping it into your hot water, steep some black tea leaves in your kettle for two-and-a-half minutes, then strain into your cup.
Since this is Arizona, you could do the same with iced tea. Remember that once you pour your tea over ice, it dilutes, so when you steep it, put an extra teaspoon in.
If you’re like me and you order restaurant iced tea all the time, you’ve probably noticed the dry, sand paper-y feeling in your mouth after you drink it that tastes a bit bitter. Once you try it loose-leaf steeped in a single batch, your life will be forever changed.
Suggestion: China Breakfast from Souvia
A fruity herbal tea
When “passion fruit” and “tea” are used in the same sentence, the answer is most likely, “yes, please.” I’m still not entirely sure what passion fruit is (from my Google image searching, it looks like the lovechild of a lemon and a plum), but any tropical tasting tea is bound to be amazing.
Much like the black teas, they can be made extremely well hot or iced. Also, if you’re forgetful, like me, they can steep for a long time without turning bitter because there isn’t any real tea in them. The recommended time is around 4-8 minutes, but it also depends on the tea itself.
Suggestions: Coconut almond (sweet flavor, strong aroma) or lemon soufflé (mild berry flavor, strong aroma) from Souvia
The caffeine kicker: Yerba Mate
Yerba mate (yer-ba MAH-tay) is your perfect cross between coffee and tea. It has the caffeine strength of coffee with a heavy green tea flavor without being a green tea. Personally, I’m not at all a fan of the flavor of yerba mate, but many people are.
It originates from the holly tree and is very kick-you-in-the-face with its flavor and its wakey-wakey factor. Because I don’t like strong green teas, I mix this with a fruity herbal tea because they steep for the same amount of time and it has a strong enough flavor to overpower the yerba mate.
Suggestion: Yerba Mate and Raspberry Honeybush (mildly sweet, aromatic fruity flavor) from Souvia steeped together
The perfect chai
There’s this very delicate balance when it comes to your chai flavor. On a scale of milky horchata to a dragon torching a small village, you probably want to be between a 4 and an 8. It’s entirely personal preference. Personally, I edge closer to a 9 because when my eyes water and I can feel the burning in my belly, and I feel like I belong in Game of Thrones.
There are both chai teas and chai lattes. Chai tea is just the chai tea combination steeped in water, and chai lattes are a chai concentrate with milk. Chai tea has a much stronger flavor while chai lattes tend to be a little sweeter. Usually your coffee shop will make a chai latte when you order a chai, so make sure to ask if they have a tea if that’s the route you want to go.
Suggestions: Maya Chai or Oregon Chai concentrate.
The sore throat soother
It’s hard to put into words the magical combination that is peppermint and chamomile with honey/agave nectar and lemon. Peppermint is a cooling sensation that totally throws you off—in a really neat way—when you have it hot, and the chamomile flowers tone the flavor down and give you a sense of peace.
Many people believe that herbal teas like peppermint and chamomile have other healing powers. I won’t go much into that, but I will say that this combination has always helped me when I feel the sniffles (and the stress) coming on.
Suggestions: Peppermint leaves and Chamomile blossoms from Souvia
Reach the columnist at Nicole.Tyau@asu.edu and on Twitter @nicoletyau_ASU.
Nicole Tyau is a sophomore at ASU and also works for The State Press as an opinions columnist. She is majoring in journalism with a focus in print and multimedia. One of the biggest tools in her written arsenal is sarcasm, so enjoy the ride and don’t take it too seriously.
