I have always been a tea drinker. I start the day with coffee, but the rest of the day is devoted to tea. On a trip to Charleston, SC in May my husband and I found a store called Teavana. We walked in and were completely out of our element. It was sort of like going to our first wine tasting-we didn’t know enough to ask intelligent questions. The employees were very helpful and explained to us that they sold many varieties of loose tea leaves and that we could taste or smell anything we liked. My husband goes for the fruity teas. Teas that have apple or raspberry mixed in with the leaves. I prefer teas without flavors added. We ended up buying several different kinds and have been to other Teavana locations since to stock up. My favorites are the Iron Buddha Oolong and the Dragonwell Green while my husband loves the Raspberry Black and the Black Current teas. Our best investment was the Teavana Perfect Tea Maker. This item makes brewing tea leaves as easy as using a tea bag. You put in a spoonful of the tea, add sugar if you like and hot water. The tea brews and then you place the entire Tea Maker over a mug or cup and it drains the tea in, and the leaves stay behind. I have given several of these for gifts since we bought ours. Teavana stores are located in upscale malls and they do mail order.
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