I have a mug of tea with breakfast every morning. That’s the only regular caffeine I consume. I will sometimes drink a can of soda, a bottle of iced tea, or a second mug of hot tea. But I find that a relatively small amount of caffeine can lead to me being awake far into the night.
On a whim, I just bought a pound of Tetley loose tea online, and brewed it for the first time today. It’s fine, something a person could drink every day, not great but good; but it seems to have one peculiarity: I used the same amount of sweetener (Pure Via stevia) as I always do, but the tea tastes like I used 50% or even 100% more. What’s up with that? Although if I only need half as much sweetener, that’s a good thing.
I have currently 7 other teas that I drink in rotation, one variety per day: an English Breakfast, Lapsang Souchong, and China Black, all from San Francisco Herb Co. in bulk for around $10 per pound; Scottish Breakfast, something called Bolder Breakfast, which is chocolate flavored; another one called Chocolate Truffle, likewise, and Chocolate Chai, all ordered online and considerably more expensive. Tea is almost my only indulgence any more.
I have a large (~10 ounce) cup of Cafe Bustelo (made with one heaping teaspoon) instant espresso every morning. On weekends, I may also have a cup of tea late morning.
Two cups of moka pot Café La Llave or Cafe Bustelo every morning, adulterated with a generous dollop of hazlenut/vanilla cream creamer.
Whereas I find that Tetley tea, at least the stuff you can get in grocery stores in the US, is comparable to Lipton and worse than the (much cheaper) Benner brand you find at Aldi.
And I like my black tea with nothing more than a spoonful of sugar or honey-- No bergamot, mint, chocolate, smoke, orange rind, or anything like that, and no milk or cream.
I drink at least 16 ounces of black coffee every week day and usually pop or energy drink in the afternoon. Looks like a rockstar is 160mg, so I probably average >400mg a day?
Ah, Lapsong! I used to have a cup of that every morning, decades ago, on my drive to work. I loved the smoky, ropey aroma and flavor. But after a few years, I found I lost my taste for it. I should try it again.
It’s as wonderful as ever. I can tolerate black tea to be polite, but Lapsang Souchong is the only kind I enjoy.
When i can afford it, I get a medium Dunkin iced mocha, 4 extra squirts of mocha, which adds 40 cents. It lasts me 2 days
M-F a 14 oz cup on arrival at work (7:00 AM) and another at 1:30 or so. Weekends - two 10 oz cups when I wake up and read the news & SD.