My favorite tea is oolong. If you’ve had tea from one of large communal teapots at a Chinese or Japanese restaurant, chances are it was oolong.
But I can’t find a strong variety that I can buy regularly. The two types I’ve tried varied in flavor much more than the black tea varieties I’ve tried. I forget their brand names, but the one I picked up at Epcot for a not-unreasonable price was pretty good but the only one I’ve found in the local stores was so weak-tasting that I had to pair it with black tea or it was just unacceptable. But I can’t just go traipse to Epcot when I want a cuppa for the privilege of paying twice as much for my teabags.
I’d recommend poking around the Harney & Sons website. Www.harney.com. They sell tea, but it’s also very informative about different teas, their different preparation, and different flavors. I’ve learned a lot about tea, just from their site.
As to which tea, I’d ask, do you like black tea, green tea, something in between? Funky flavors like are in pu erh? Fruity teas? Non-tea infusions?
There are various types and brands of DIY teabags, usually called filters. David’s Tea has some, 200 filters for $20 so 10 cents each; there are probably cheaper ones out there, but I like David’s because they have a drawstring.
Mariage Freres Darjeeling Himalaya
Normally I wouldn’t recommend bagged teas, especially for Darjeeling only because you want the tea leaves to “dance” in the pot to bring out its full nuanced flavours, but Marriage Freres makes great teas so here’s an exception.
I started a thread like this several years ago and discovered Barry’s Tea Gold Blendas a result. Since I found it, nothing has taken its place. Highly recommended. It’s not fancy, just damn good.
I was coming to suggest Harney & Sons. If you want an unadorned black tea, Harney’s English Breakfast is the smoothest I’ve found. Note that I don’t take dairy with my tea, which definitely influences my choice.
I like their brand generally, though it certainly isn’t the cheapest.
I do have a tea ball (where the two halves screw together) and Pac-Man-type infusers. You can also drink tea through a yerba mate straw (even more portable). Or a “gaiwan”… I am not sure whether these are really optimal or if the water will cool too quickly compared to using a regular teapot. I wonder what the goal is? To avoid having to rinse out a teapot? To prepare some bags you can conveniently use at work or elsewhere away from home? The OP did specify bags, in any case, so those drawstring filters could be just the ticket in case he gets some loose tea leaves.
On “tea plus” - Earl Grey and the like: I enjoy it occasionally, including Indian chaiwala style spicy masala tea.
I literally just had some, it was Ceylon black + Ceylon green + hibiscus + strawberry + cherry, so the taste is fresh in my mind. My comment is, while it clearly is based on tea, in no way, shape, or form does it taste like “no flavors other than tea”. So, if someone is just beginning to sample and get a taste for different kinds of tea, it might indeed be better to try regular tea first before all sorts of crazy mixtures.
Another green tea recommendation: “Dragon Well”. Tasty and not bitter!
Tazo brand teas are always high quality, I’ve found.
I commend your “hobby” of exploring teas. I became quite the tea hound in high school, collecting fancy tins and becoming familiar with all kinds of delicious tea. It’s a pleasurable and inexpensive pastime, rewarding and not too time-consuming.
If you find yourself really becoming a connoisseur, you will have to branch out into loose teas, as they will generally be higher quality. Tea balls and the like are a pain, but you can get disposable tea filters like this that are cheap, easy to use, and which allow you to brew tea from loose leaves with very little fuss.
Many herbal teas (chamomile and the like) don’t appeal to me, but hibiscus (aka rosella) teas are delicious and possibly good for you. Since rosella tea doesn’t contain caffeine, you can drink it at night. And studies have shown it to have a mild blood-pressure lowering effect. Plus, it is tangy and delicious - like a rather tart lemonade.
Enjoy yourself! The more you learn, the more you’ll find interesting new teas to try.
Hibiscus is also the base for a lot of other fruity tea flavors. If you’re going that route, I’m rather fond of Celestial Seasonings, especially their Black Cherry Berry flavor.
[Technical]
And the problem with editing on this board is the same as the problem with posting. Your post/edit probably will go through (possibly even multiple times). It just won’t successfully bring you back to the thread after you post it. Incidentally, if you do happen to double-post, don’t sweat it. We all know the board is buggy right now, and it wasn’t your fault.