Tea For Your Brain
According to the Mayo Clinic, Dementia is a very common disease affecting the elderly, with over 3 million cases diagnosed every year. It is a cruel and lamentable affliction (I, unfortunately, had first-hand experience with my grandmother), and, for the most part,...
True Majestea
All you true Tavalon fans out there know a lot of the history of the company already, but for those who don't know, Tavalon was first known as a brick-and-mortar store on 14th St (right next to Union Square) in Manhattan. We served hot teas, iced teas, tea lattes,...
Move Over Matcha, There’s a New Trend for 2017
2016 was a very good year for Matcha. It went from a virtually unknown ingredient in your green tea latte to a veritable household name, found in everything from cookies to popcorn to cocktails and beyond. Even Matcha Cafes have been popping up in the past couple...
Tea Recipe: Earl Grey Honey Cake
The Honey Cake has existed for hundreds of years, found throughout most of Europe, all the way back to the Medieval times. One of the reasons for its popularity is the simple fact that its primary sweetener, honey, helps keep the shelf life quite long (honey itself...
Tea Video: How Matcha and Bamboo Whisks Are Made
If you have ever wondered how Matcha is made, this video is the perfect primer. As an added bonus, it also shows how bamboo Matcha Whisks are made! Quite artful and hypnotic! Enjoy:...
Tea Video: The Story of the Arnold Palmer
Just last week, the world lost a legend in the world of golf, Arnold Palmer. His legacy will live on not just on the green, but in the glass as well. He is credited with creating one of the most popular tea-based beverages on the market, the aptly named Arnold...
Take the Spice, Leave the Pumpkin
With fall officially upon us, cafés, restaurants and grocery store shelves are filling up with a certain fall flavor: Pumpkin Spice. From pumpkin spice cookies to pumpkin spice cream cheese to the infamous Pumpkin Spice Latte that started this whole mad movement. But...
Steep, Spill and Sword: The (Pretty Unlikely) Legend of Genmai Cha
Of all the tea stories and legends I've found on the internet, one of the most memorable (and dubious) is the legend of Genmai Cha. The story goes like this: Back in Ancient Japan, a bunch of allied warlords were meeting to make war plans. Thirsty, the hosting...
Tea Recipe: Rock & Rye Punch
Lately I've become obsessed with an old cordial known as Rock & Rye. It has started making a comeback, appearing on store shelves more frequently than in years past. My first experience with this little known beverage was with my Irish grandmother, who would...
Tea Recipe: Lemon Verbena Tea-Pops
Lately I have been playing around with one of my favorite herbs, Lemon Verbena. While not the most common herbal tea, the flavor, a combination of lemongrass, licorice, and spearmint, is both unique and versatile, making it perfect to concoct tea recipes with. And...
To Boba, or Not to Boba?
I've been seeing a lot of reports on my newsfeed this week on the healthiness (or lack thereof) of bubble tea, and since I've gotten a bunch of questions regarding it, I will share some quick thoughts. First of all, the bubble tea fad in the United States (it came...
Green Tea Could Protect Against Zika Virus
The Zika virus has been all over the news recently, most notably that an outbreak in Brazil threatened to cancel the 2016 Summer Olympics. The virus itself is one of many mosquito-borne viruses (West Nile, yellow fever and dengue fever, to name a few), and the...
Tea Video: DIY Teacup Bird Feeder
The birds are singing a happy tune, providing a soundtrack for our summer days. So why not provide them with a crafty little feeder that also shows your love of tea? Here's a video on how to make your own Teacup Bird Feeder (video credit to Nifty):...
Tea Recipe: LiberTEA Slush
With Independence Day weekend nearly upon us, it is time to think about what we're going to drink. Iced tea, of course, but when you really want to see fireworks - perhaps something a little more ...adult? And what better way to celebrate our independence than with...
That Tea Tastes Silky
When one thinks of the luxuries in life, you think of sparkly diamonds, fast cars, smooth silk and, of course, delicious tea. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that the last two are actually related: one helped in the discovery of the other, making great...
The Titans of Tea
When most folks think of tea plants, they think of waist-high little bushes. Farmers do this on purpose, of course, pruning the plants so they stay at optimal plucking height. But is not obvious, however, is just how big tea left to grow in the wild can get - and...
Tea and Down Syndrome
Down Syndrome is caused by a genetic defect wherein a child is born with an extra copy of their 21st chromosome. It is the most common form of genetic intellectual disability, affecting approximately one out of 691 people in the United States, according to the...
How to Cold Brew Iced Tea
When I was a young boy growing up in South Carolina, I remember my grandmother putting tea in a pitcher and leaving it out in the sun to steep. My twin brother and I would run outside every few minutes to check on the progress of this "sun tea," as she called it. As...
Tea Recipe: Jasmine Panna Cotta
Looking for the perfect tea-infused dessert recipe for this Memorial Day weekend? Look no further! Sweet, delicate and absolutely exquisite. I give you Jasmine Panna Cotta with honey. JASMINE PANNA COTTA (...with honey on top) 1/3 cup water 1 teaspoon unflavored...
Tea Recipe: Matcha Lemonade
With the weather finally starting to show signs that summer is imminent, I thought I'd share one of my favorite tea-infused refreshments, Matcha Lemonade. Sweet, tangy, and chock-full of antioxidants (some reports say as much as 137 times more antioxidants than...
Throwback Tea Thursday: Jan Huyghen van Linschoten
Jan Huyghen van Linschoten was a Dutchman by birth, but to some he was a merchant and adventurer, to others a liar and scoundrel. In 1583, at just 20 years old, a trip to India was funded by Portugal (the country which enjoyed a monopoly on trade with the East Indies...
Health Benefit Teas-Day: Be Mindful of Chamomile
Feeling a bit anxious? Stressed at work? Try steeping up some relief. According to a recent study, people who ingested chamomile were much less likely to succumb to the stress. The research, done by the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, found that those...
Tea for the Irish
When one thinks of Ireland, the first drink that comes to mind probably isn't tea... but it should be. The Irish drink more tea per capita than the Chinese, more than the Russians, and even more than the famed tea-loving English. In fact, the average Irish person...
Best Blog Nomination!
It has been a while since the Voice of Tea was heard, but wanted to announce that we've been nominated by the World Tea Expo for the best blog! I hope they'll take into account all the effort I've put into it in the past and not merely judge that blog entries have...