Coffee, Tea or Me: Tea it is!

[Spectrum]

TaoBums,

 

I'm going to fast from coffee for a spell. Lets say 28 days. I think the high acidity is taking it's toll on ph balance!

 

Anyone have any favorite chinese/japanese teas they wish to share? I'm reading up on wulong (oolong) teas and am enjoying the nuances so far. Please share your favorites, for taste, aroma, tonics or otherwise.

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Spectrum

[Eric23]

I'm getting hooked on Chai. Started out with the sweetened w/ milk, then just started drinking it straight. Tazo makes a chai in bags with a nice aroma and taste. For loose tea, Republic of Tea makes a good chai and others. For some reason, I never liked coffe and have been drinking tea for years.

[thelerner]

I go back and forth from semi exotic teas from Chinatown then back to the teas of my youth namely Constant Comment and Earl Greys even Lipton with a bit of sugar and slice of lime can hit the spot awfully well. I'm working through a jar of 'To Life' a fragrant tea from Teavana which has white and green in it.

 

I'll slice a lemon or lime, roll the slices in sugar then freeze it in a zip lock bag. It works great to flavor the tea and cool it down a bit.

 

 

Michael

[mYTHmAKER]

Ginger tea

fresh ginger chopped fine in hot water.

honey and lemon optional.

[Spectrum]

Nice touch w/ the limes. Ginger would be so refreshing. This is going to be a great opportunity for an expansion of my taste and palette while an old pattern transforms into a healthier cycle.

 

In the spirit of the TaoBums tea gung fu:

 

Ox Boy Coin Teapot

 

Reflections over tea anyone?

 

Spectrum

Edited March 2, 2007 by Spectrum

[soaring crane]

ditto on the Ginger Tea

 

Thrice boiled water for breakfast. Comfortably hot with nothing added.

 

The Teapot is interesting but I would be wary of drinking tea out of bronze. Bronze could have practically anything in it

[thaddeus]

This is my favorite:

http://www.tuochatea.com/tuocha/minipu-erhtuocha.htm

smooth and delicious...plus fun to make!

[Yoda]

There was a recent study that came out saying that adding milk to tea negates its cardiovascular benefits.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_benefits_of_tea

[wenwu]

well done on dropping coffee for a whiile, i try to do that for a couple of weeks everys every now and then, beware of depression like feelings!

 

 

as for tea, for me you just can't beat a good cup of Chinese green tea, it is the most refreshing drink i have had, and great if you have been out the night before (not too often) or if it is just a really hot day. luckily for me all of the resturants here offer you free tea with your meal

[Neijia]

... hat trick on the ginger tea? I've read that ginger has tonification benefits on Yang chi, and is good for the digestion.

You might like Green/Jasmine.

I'm into the herbal tea, the Chinatown "semi exotic" stuff. Often mixed with Shou Wu Chih.

Edited February 27, 2007 by Neijia

[Spectrum]

"semi exotic" is good!

[spyrelx]

I've been trying to cut down on coffee myself.

 

I'm lately partial to green tea. But there are a few brands of white tea that I've enjoyed as well. I think they all taste different, so you have to try different types and see what you like.

 

For non-caffinated stuff I reccomend indian spice teas (note that many spice teas are made with black tea - i.e., have caffene).

 

I'm partial to Celestial Seasonings Bengal Spice but you need to find the one you like as they are all different. I like to put powdered milk and a spot of honey in it -- complete heaven. (I use powdered goat's milk for an earthier taste but regular milk would be fine. It's best not to use fat-free milk however, as the fat gives it all the richness).

 

Enjoy.

[affenbrot]

I drink a lot of, ehm what's the english word here... ersatz kaffee (grain coffee? Malt coffee?) these days. (we call it muckefuck) It contains rosted zichorie and other rosted non coffeebean stuff. If one makes it thick and strong the taste goes into the direction of real coffee. It is supposed to be healthfood, what it does to my PH i don't know though.

 

affenkaff

[Yoda]

powdered goatmilk? Malt coffee? Fun ideas!

[Uncle Fester]

.

Edited September 28, 2021 by darebak

[Spectrum]

Thanks for all the input guys! Initial report; slight headache cut w/ leaf tea; 3 day in general increase in energy, w/ no "downers" after teatime... very nice change. Biggest thing I noticed was coffee killed my appetite, and I was drinking it before I would practice in the morning; definately qualitative differences to practice.

 

reminder: fasting is good; with everything! Even air! Fast from air for a few seconds everyday! Taoist wisdom? <chuckle>

[bd2]

Why do you drink tea?

i think that tea and coffee are harmful because they contain caffeine which decreases the amount of sleep. Sleep is necessary to replenish chi.

Moreover, tea contains fluoride and pesticides which are harmful, too.

[soaring crane]

Edited March 5, 2007 by soaring crane

[Yoda]

Why do you drink tea?

 

 

Ken Cohen has a whole chapter on it and says that in China drinking tea is very common amongst energy cultivation experts. There are many health, energy, and mood benefits of tea, but the most important one per Ken is that, "Tea promotes the function of the liver to spread and harmonize the qi. This is an important benefit for qigong students."

 

I agree that caffeine can have some negative aspects, but decaf tea works too. I get the strongest mood boost from green tea, but then again, green is my color!

 

Yoda

[bd2]

"Tea promotes the function of the liver to spread and harmonize the qi.

 

Can you prove it?

[thelerner]

There's a saying Too Pure twice poisoned. Watch your diet too closely, keep it too pristine and you open yourself up to vulnerabilities. A person who never exposes himself to pesticides could get majorly sick walking through a neighborhood or near a farm.

 

For example, most of the water I drink is filtered, but I think its important to drink tap water every now and then. I need to keep up tolerance for it, otherwise I could get sick from a random ice cube. Likewise I have air filters in my house, but if that was the only air I took in, eventually going outside would be uncomfortable. I applaud my children when they get dirty. It strengthens there immune systems.

 

Some caffeine is not bad. Trace amounts of pesticides are not bad. Without some traces we'd open for sickness.

 

Populations that drink the most teas are healthier then those that don't. One point three billion chinese can't be wrong.

 

Random thoughts

 

 

Michael

 

I'm drinking a banana(not organic) spinach (organic) milk shake as I write this. Its..spinachy, my recipie needs tweaking

[Uncle Fester]

.

Edited September 28, 2021 by darebak

[Yoda]

No, but then again who cares about proof, studies, expert advice, tradition, etc... it all boils down to seeing how it works for you.

 

Yoda

[Yi Tao]

Black tea in the winter and green tea in the summer.

 

Ginger juice is really good in tea as well. Simply grate fresh ginger, squeeze the juice out of the pulp and then discard the pulp. The juice can be used in cooking and marinades. One of my favorites in a mango lassi - yogurt, mango, ginger juice and honey.

[bd2]

Without some traces we'd open for sickness.

 

Normal food contains many toxins. If potatoes are fryed for a long period of time then Acrylamide is generated which causes cancer. I would advise not to expose yourself to toxins on purpose.

 

I applaud my children when they get dirty

 

clay or sludge is not toxic. Some health experts promote eating clay and bathing in clay.

 

Apparently there are masters that smoke

 

It is hard to prove whether or not a person is energetically sensitive or not. Chi is invisible. Only few are able to show tricks such as heating their finger and igniting paper etc.