What is your favorite brand and blend of green tea?

I’ve had a hard time liking the bitterness of straight green tea, but I do love genmaicha, which is blended with roasted brown rice. this admission strips me of all cred as a tea connoisseur, but then I drink my coffee with cream and sugar, too. It has a broth-y fullness to it that balances out the bite of the green tea.

My favorite tea is Tazo’s “Om” which has a slight hint of citrus added to it, which cuts the bitterness just a tad. It’s very refreshing. I prefer it iced, rather than hot.

I like this one .

I don’t drink the hot tea, but do order “matcha” green tea. It is powdered green tea, but unlike the normal hot green tea, matcha is the entire green tea leaf that has been dried and powdered so you get much more of the green tea benefits. Studies show you get ten times the benefits than normal green tea. I put some in a large waterbottle with ice and water and a scoop or two of instant coffee…what a pick-me-up! =)

Great question and I’m happy that you’re wanting to get into drinking tea. But if you’re going to start, I highly advise you to do so because you enjoy drinking tea, as opposed to drinking for the health benefits.

Having said that, tea bags are fine… if it’s the end of the world and you need a cup to tide you over. Stick to loose leaf tea. You’ll be blown away. My personal favorite green tea is also genmaicha. Very toasty!

Here is a good resource on becoming introduced to tea. My favorite online vendor is Upton Tea

I’ve been drinking Chinese green tea for over a year now. I started drinking Temple of Heaven™ China Green Tea brand called “Special Gunpowder”. It is good not so much due to its flavor which is bland. I like it most of all because how it makes me feel and it is a healthy drink. I drink a couple of small 8oz cups of it in the morning and it gets me going with never any jitters. “Special Gunpowder” is cheap too. My wife bought a one kilogram bulk box of it at an Asian market for less than $7.

Green tee from Taiwan is also very good but very expensive. 75 grams of green tea from Taiwan’s “Ali Mountain” cost me $30. Green tea connoisseurs will tell you the Ali Mountain green tea is the best of the best. I must agree that it is very taste. But the cost benefit is not good enough for me so I’ll stick with my Special Gunpowder.

Like @thorninmud, I think Genmaicha is very good, but I also like the powdered green tea used in traditional Japanese tea ceremonies—-“Matcha Green Tea.” Prepared, it looks like frothy green pea soup, and tastes somewhat bitter.

http://green-tea-powder.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/matcha-green-tea.jpg

@digitalimpression Mmm I’ll have to try. I have loved my blueberry black tea, but I like greens better.

@Gingerlaurie You mix green tea powder in your coffee? Am I getting that right? I heard instant coffee has a lot of cholesterol but I don’t know I never drink instant.

@Teja I have been drinking tea straight for about 18 months. I like my tea like my coffee, plain with nothing in it, and hot! Thank you for the recommendation on loose leaf. I have noticed the full leaf teas at starbucks do taste much better than the bags but I rarely get them – I never thought I could afford the loose-leaf versions.

@gondwanalon Thanks for the tip!

@MRSHINYSHOES is the bitterness comparable to black tea? I like and drink black tea too but I prefer the green because of the lack of bitterness.

-TYAVM.

@Paradox1 No, it’s much more bitter, especially if you make it thick. If you dilute it with extra water, it is more palatable, but there’s still a slightly bitter taste to it. Matcha (powdered) green tea is supposed to be loaded with anti-oxidants, 10 times more than regular green tea. You can buy it an Asian supermarkets. Here’s an interesting article on its health benefits.

http://www.matchasource.com/matcha-tea-health-benefits-s/14.htm

Thank you @MRSHINYSHOES.

Paradox, yes, I mix the powdered matcha with instant coffee granules, water and a lot of ice. The instant coffee I drink does not have cholesterol. I find the matcha quite an acquired taste, so masking it a bit with the coffee gives a great mid-afternoon zing! =)