Teavana / Tea

cicisiam

:laugh: Very good description. Thank you for the chuckle.

FitandFab33

Someone gave me some kind of expensive set from Teavana.. and I can tell you- Monkey-picked Oolong tea tastes like monkey-harvested pee. Steer clear of that one. The rest of the "Balance and Harmony" set is pretty good (my fav is the white ayurvedic chai).

I love the intensity of their teas...

vanguardfitness

I really like the superfruit unity. Teavana always has a flavor or two you can sample when you visit there store, so I always try to make note of which ones I like. Most of them are really good, but a few are too terrible to spend all that money on without trying it first.

Yeah, I'll try the samples when I get there. The Queen of Babylon that I bought had an tag of over $100 but I bought it at 75% off around the holidays. Hope they still have these sales. Didn't know teas could get this pricey.

There is a Davids Tea in manhatten. Maybe while I'm out there for St. Patty's I'll stop by

sarabella1987

I like the fruity ones so my faves are pineapple kona pop, peach tranquility, dragonfruit, summer breeze, iced princess (makes really good iced tea), and strawberry lemonade!

ahviendha

I drink plain green tea from a tea bag (Lipton, Salada, Tazo, etc). I have a Teavana here and I always laugh to myself when I pass it because I'm thinking "How much different can gourmet tea taste from grocery store tea if you're still drinking it plain?".

So, for you who like the gourmet stuff drinking it plain? Is it still way better than grocery store tea when nothing is added to it? I may stop in there sometime if you can convince me to try it.

loose leaf tea is fantastic. the flavors are more pronounced, more full-bodied, and much prettier to brew and stare it. i have a blueberry acai white tea with dried out blueberries, and acai bits and when it's brewed, the acai slowly changes the tea pink, and the blueberries swell up and flavor the white tea. FANTASTIC.

and the bagged tea is hit or miss. some brands are quite good, others are old and when i pull the tea bag out, tea dust falls off it and the taste is dull. i'd rather pay more for a delicious tea than pay less for a crappy one i have to replace or throw out.

margarita_mrs

Teavana's tea is definitely yummy but sooooo expensive! I'm a DAVIDs TEA girl myself. In Canada, they now have tea tastings on Sundays. I'll be going soon!!

aseymour13

I love tea and do buy some stuff from Teavana but got to agree with some of the folks that it's expensive. I do like some of their teas though. I have the Samurai Chai that is really good and the Wild orange Oolong that my daughter and I are addicted to. I have been looking for some options myself as I really enjoy looseleaf tea. Going to try some of the suggestions. Thanks all

rocket_ace

I'm from Long island and have been to Teavana often in the past. but they've changed the last year or so. I used to like it because they had a great variety of teas (I prefer the "real" teas...particularly black teas) but over the last few years I've gone less and less because they are replacing all their more traditional real teas w/ flavored herbals....so I can no longer get my Lapsang Souchan or Keemum Imperial or even Scottish Breakfast, but if I wanted BubbleGum Chai Calypso, I could get that. Blech. Although, I think they are selling what people want to buy I guess. America has less of a tea history I guess (we are patriotically coffee drinkers), but even if you go to a fru-fru place like Whole Foods, you will still mostly see box after box of Ginger Roobis Floral crappy weird made-up type herbally-teas.

Sorry if I offend anyone BTW!! if you like something, then more power to you, and obviously people vote w/ their dollars. So, I'm probably coming off as a Tea dictator. But my only point is, just as a coffee place should have good basic coffee first and foremost, and then only should it add as extras vanilla peppermint chai latte frappe' juice-chinos....I think you should be able to go into a specialty tea place and order a reliable set of a dozen or so teas recognizable to tea lovers of all ages...and then add your Minty Pear White Teas and other artificially made-up blends.

Also, a pet peeve of mine is that mostly, they don't know how to brew the tea (particularly the one in Roosevelt Field)...they totally over-brew it. Also, unlike a starbucks, its tough to just get a cup of tea brewed up.....I'm ok w/ $5 for it, but given the lack of quality tea, the long lines, and inexperience in being able to brew....I just avoid now. Actually Starbucks went the other way - their tazo full leaf blacks brew up just great (Awake Eng Brkfst/Earl Grey are basic but satisfactory).

In the future, should I order tea, I will do so through the internet.

ps - on a side note, I was really excited that the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (a chain from LA) is now in manhattan...but my love was turned to loathing. Teavana comes off gifted in brewing tea compared to the dretch and clumsy brewing they do at the various branches in the city. Funny, because the chain is REALLY great on the west coast, but it seems they've hired employees here who have never had tea. I'll skip the tirade, but for example, they charge by the bag and are surprised when I want a tea in a small cup ($2.45 per bag...my fav being the dragon river pearl oolong)....because they say you can have a large cup for the same price.....because, you know, more water is better right? To add insult to injury they always mess up the order (putting the teabag in a large cup) so I have to tell them to re-make it - they don't seem to understand that adding more water to a good tea turns the tea from what its supposed to be to watery hot Gatorade...

gddrdld

Teavanna is lovely and all, but it smells more like perfume than tea. I've tried several varieties and did not particularly like any of them. Stick with the big English brands, like Lipton or Bigelow. Can't go wrong with a nice Earl Grey or English Breakfast, and my favorites are Green or Chai.

Bigelow is not an English brand. It was started in and is stil made in the USA.

NotBonJovi

Try Amazon. Sometimes I find good deals on tea there. There is a Subscribe & Save option which offers you the tea at lower price. You can always cancel the subscription at any time.

I work in Manhattan and there is a Teavana here, but as you said they are a bit pricey.

kimimila86

I'm currently addicted to the Samurai Chai Mate and Maharaja Chai Oolong Linda blend... perfect pick me up in the morning. I recently tried a couple fruity green teas and didn't mind them. I think my spring/summer addiction will be Pineapple Kona Pop though. I think the fruity teas are best iced... just in time for warmer temps here in Arizona!

livitup85

The strawberry rose oolong tea is one of my faves. Also, the Tropical Peach.

luckyjuls

IMHO

Buying tea at Teavana was both expensive and unpleasant. I felt like I was in the finance office of a car dealership. I was 99% sure they were going to try and sell me on a service plan for my tea.

Perhaps your stores are better, but they won't get any of my money again.

LOL. This made me laugh. I always feel so badly when I say yes to a sample but don't go ahead and buy. It's almost like they are trying to sell me a time share. They do have some amazing teas though. I especially love one of the iced blueberry varieties.

kelleyannclemons

http://www.amanashops.com/category/amana-coffee-and-tea

This is a local place (within 30 miles) for me, but you can order their tea online. Priced very well. You can get one 3 oz pouch for $3.00. They have a large selection of black loose leaf flavored teas. They also have a couple green tea varieties.

My favorite is the blueberry. I also really enjoy the Ginger Peach, Old World Spice, Raspberry, and Passion Fruit. I am new to the tea world, and those are the ones I have tried so far. I am hoping to get back over to their store soon to try more of their varieties.

ajmaccar

I really like their Snow Geisha. Its a Cherry-flavored white tea.

rocket_ace

IMHO

Buying tea at Teavana was both expensive and unpleasant. I felt like I was in the finance office of a car dealership. I was 99% sure they were going to try and sell me on a service plan for my tea.

Perhaps your stores are better, but they won't get any of my money again.

LOL. This made me laugh. I always feel so badly when I say yes to a sample but don't go ahead and buy. It's almost like they are trying to sell me a time share. They do have some amazing teas though. I especially love one of the iced blueberry varieties.

exactly - its like $5 for a cup of tea is not enough for them.

rocket_ace

I like the Yogi Egyptian Licorice tea.....seems expensive to me, but it's a treat. Like making it as sun tea too.
Kaye

lol. and yet they don't even have English Breakfast anymore.

rocket_ace

Teavanna is lovely and all, but it smells more like perfume than tea. I've tried several varieties and did not particularly like any of them. Stick with the big English brands, like Lipton or Bigelow. Can't go wrong with a nice Earl Grey or English Breakfast, and my favorites are Green or Chai.

couldn't agree more

zissou

The Youthberry and Pear Luna flavors are delicious!

KelBelz22

I love the lavender tea! Its great tasting and the candied lavender is edible! It's like a bonus in the tea. I liked my experience at Teavana but I do agree with what a lot of peple are saying. They tend to be really pushy about the products.