Tea Bags

Zelda247

What's the best around? I am using Barry's Gold but they seem to have lost their flavour over the years? I like a strong cup of Tea. My favourite overall is Taylors Yorkshire Gold but you can't get them in Ireland.

jungleman

Zelda247 wrote: »

What's the best around? I am using Barry's Gold but they seem to have lost their flavour over the years? I like a strong cup of Tea. My favourite overall is Taylors Yorkshire Gold but you can't get them in Ireland.

Bewley's teabags are a cut above Barry's, I find. I like strong tea, and the Bewley's Gold Blend hit the spot. Robert Roberts is also worth a mention, their tea bags are up there too.

Lyons have a horrible aftertaste to them, you might get a strong cup of tea out of them but the taste is pretty awful compared to the above.

Zelda247

jungleman wrote: »

Bewley's teabags are a cut above Barry's, I find. I like strong tea, and the Bewley's Gold Blend hit the spot. Robert Roberts is also worth a mention, their tea bags are up there too.

Lyons have a horrible aftertaste to them, you might get a strong cup of tea out of them but the taste is pretty awful compared to the above.

Thanks I will try them... I agree about Lyons, they are awful! Have you tried the Aldi special reserve ones? I see they won some awards.

jungleman

Zelda247 wrote: »

Thanks I will try them... I agree about Lyons, they are awful! Have you tried the Aldi special reserve ones? I see they won some awards.

I could be wrong on this, but I think that Robert Roberts who I mentioned earlier, manufacture the Aldi teabags!

Another thing to try would be to switch from teabags to leaves. Can be difficult if you just like making a cup for yourself rather than a pot, but if you can buy a small enough teapot for yourself, I'd highly recommend using leaves.

J_E

You'll never look back moving to tea leaves. You can make it as strong as you like and probably save a lot of money in the process. Tea bags have only shavings of proper tea in them, that's why it became popular to milk them down because they just don't hold up on their own. You can get a teaball (metal ball for leaves) or a strainer you hold over mug and pour through. It gives you a whole new world of choice even for black teas!

Zelda247

J_E wrote: »

You'll never look back moving to tea leaves. You can make it as strong as you like and probably save a lot of money in the process. Tea bags have only shavings of proper tea in them, that's why it became popular to milk them down because they just don't hold up on their own. You can get a teaball (metal ball for leaves) or a strainer you hold over mug and pour through. It gives you a whole new world of choice even for black teas!

What Tea leaves do you use?

J_E

Zelda247 wrote: »

What Tea leaves do you use?

I get mine from a local café in Laois. You can get a few breakfast blends in the supermarket (regular tea) or usually places in towns have some, usually specialist shops. In Dublin there's Oolong Flower Power, Wall & Keogh, Clement & Pekoe for some really great teas. I am not sure about Cork but I know in Galway there's a few spots in the town area.

If you're not feeling so inclined though but would still like to experiment a bit, Twinings Chai tea bag is a pretty nice one to try - it's not the same as the Barrys/Lyons blend but has a bit of a spice kick that is just fantastic with a bit of sugar.

odyssey06

+1 for the ALDI Reserve Blend
https://www.aldi.ie/en/about-aldi/award-winners/great-taste-award-winners-2014/products-detail-page/ps/p/reserve-blend-80s-tea-bags-1/

SMJSF

I can't stand Barry's or Lyons... If I was to have them, I'd need 3 tea bags in the cup!
I like the Tesco brand tea bags (not the value range)... They come in a red or green box in packs of 80 or 160, 160 I think are E2.20 maybe! I find them stronger than the brands.

I've never used leaves, but I wouldn't have the patience for all that messing about- I can go true 60+ tea bags within a week easily!

Zelda247

odyssey06 wrote: »

+1 for the ALDI Reserve Blend
https://www.aldi.ie/en/about-aldi/award-winners/great-taste-award-winners-2014/products-detail-page/ps/p/reserve-blend-80s-tea-bags-1/

Did you like these? were they strong?

Zelda247

J_E wrote: »

I get mine from a local café in Laois. You can get a few breakfast blends in the supermarket (regular tea) or usually places in towns have some, usually specialist shops. In Dublin there's Oolong Flower Power, Wall & Keogh, Clement & Pekoe for some really great teas. I am not sure about Cork but I know in Galway there's a few spots in the town area.

If you're not feeling so inclined though but would still like to experiment a bit, Twinings Chai tea bag is a pretty nice one to try - it's not the same as the Barrys/Lyons blend but has a bit of a spice kick that is just fantastic with a bit of sugar.

Sounds nice but I am not keen on herbal or Chai tea, have tried a lot of them and they don't do it for me, I am strictly a "builders tea" type.

jungleman

Zelda247 wrote: »

Sounds nice but I am not keen on herbal or Chai tea, have tried a lot of them and they don't do it for me, I am strictly a "builders tea" type.

If it's just black tea you're after, it kind of helps to try out different leaves, and work your way up to nicer tea as you go along, if you know what I mean?

I'd avoid Barry's tea leaves anyway. They're grand, but very fine. It's the closest thing you'll get to the dust inside teabags.

I'd start off with Robert Roberts tea leaves. You can pick them up in Dunnes or Tesco, they come in a nice yellow metallic tin. They're bigger than the Barry's, and brew a lot nicer.

After a couple of tins of that, I'd move onto Bewley's leaves. Again, you can pick them up in Tesco, or in a Bewley's cafe like in Arnotts or something. They're totally different to Barry's or Robert Roberts in that they are actual leaves, not just little brown balls. They swell up a lot when they soak up hot water. Where two teaspoons of the Robert Roberts is usually grand for a regular sized pot, you'll need about three teaspoons of Bewley's. Give it a stir after you add the hot water, and give it another stir about a minute before serving.

After a few bags of Bewley's I'd move onto the real nice stuff. At the minute I'm loving Palais des Thés, a tea shop on Wicklow St in town. They have an amazing selection of teas. And they'll really be able to help you choose what kind of tea you want to move onto next. The stuff there is the real deal. Expensive, but worth it.

You could just start with Palais des Thés if you wanted, but I kind of liked working my way up through cheaper brands of tea first. It made me really appreciate the quality of great tea when I finally got there. And it helped me to hone my taste regarding tea too.

Zelda247

jungleman wrote: »

If it's just black tea you're after, it kind of helps to try out different leaves, and work your way up to nicer tea as you go along, if you know what I mean?

I'd avoid Barry's tea leaves anyway. They're grand, but very fine. It's the closest thing you'll get to the dust inside teabags.

I'd start off with Robert Roberts tea leaves. You can pick them up in Dunnes or Tesco, they come in a nice yellow metallic tin. They're bigger than the Barry's, and brew a lot nicer.

After a couple of tins of that, I'd move onto Bewley's leaves. Again, you can pick them up in Tesco, or in a Bewley's cafe like in Arnotts or something. They're totally different to Barry's or Robert Roberts in that they are actual leaves, not just little brown balls. They swell up a lot when they soak up hot water. Where two teaspoons of the Robert Roberts is usually grand for a regular sized pot, you'll need about three teaspoons of Bewley's. Give it a stir after you add the hot water, and give it another stir about a minute before serving.

After a few bags of Bewley's I'd move onto the real nice stuff. At the minute I'm loving Palais des Thés, a tea shop on Wicklow St in town. They have an amazing selection of teas. And they'll really be able to help you choose what kind of tea you want to move onto next. The stuff there is the real deal. Expensive, but worth it.

You could just start with Palais des Thés if you wanted, but I kind of liked working my way up through cheaper brands of tea first. It made me really appreciate the quality of great tea when I finally got there. And it helped me to hone my taste regarding tea too.

Thanks so much that's so helpful. I will do exactly as you suggest.

I can get to a Dunne's but sadly not Wicklow Street as I live in the wilds of Kerry!

jungleman

Zelda247 wrote: »

Thanks so much that's so helpful. I will do exactly as you suggest.

I can get to a Dunne's but sadly not Wicklow Street as I live in the wilds of Kerry!

Not to worry, they have a website you can order from!

J_E

How could I forget Palais Des Thés, they do some really really good stuff. Very rich and consistent.

odyssey06

Zelda247 wrote: »

Did you like these? were they strong?

The ALDI ones, the OH likes a strong cup of black tea and it ticks that box. I whip them out a little quicker as I like a smoother cup and it works for me too.

Also, I like that the ALDI box actually has two foil wrapped bags inside with 40 tea bags in each. I think it helps the tea bags because when you get to end of the box they are fresher.

MiskyBoyy

Also from Aldi, I tried their fair trade Tea on a recommendation and love it.

Spanish Eyes

Aldi Gold Blend for me all the way. Just such a nice taste.

Well let's put it like this, when your mother likes the tea you make her when she visits it passes all the tests!

irishmoss

Suki Tea is absolutely gorgeous, a real full bodied tea They are based in Belfast and available online

No affiliated in any way. You can buy the tea bags in some Supervalu stores

New Home

The Supervalue Reserve Fairtrade ones are pretty good, I find.

.red.

Sorry for hijacking a thread but my questions relate to answers here and might help the op.

I've been thinking if getting a teapot for leaves for a while, ever since i had it in a restaurant and it was the best cuppa ive had in years. It was actually Barrys tea leaves that they served. Im a Barrys man but it was different.

Does it really matter what you use to make the tea? So far ive looked at the balls on a chain that you put into any teapot and also the teapots but have settled on getting a pot.
Is there any difference in the various pots? Im not looking to spend a small fortune but would if it made a difference.
Ive picked this purely on price, dont care what it looks like
http://www.homestoreandmore.ie/tea-pots+accessories/glass-teapot-with-infuser-11l/invt/059782
I also spotted these, anyone use one? I was thinking it might he nice for work.
http://www.homestoreandmore.ie/mugs+tea/nova-tea-infuser-mug/invt/059839

Cheers.

J_E

Any teapot with infuser should be no problem. A little goes a long way with the tea leaves, a small teaspoon goes a long way with them. I have a mug with a slot in steeper so I'd say it's similar to the mug above, only thing you have to watch out for is make sure the leaves are dry-ish when you take them out, let them drip for a bit or a puddle forms! The flavours are so great though.

jungleman

.red. wrote: »

Sorry for hijacking a thread but my questions relate to answers here and might help the op.

I've been thinking if getting a teapot for leaves for a while, ever since i had it in a restaurant and it was the best cuppa ive had in years. It was actually Barrys tea leaves that they served. Im a Barrys man but it was different.

Does it really matter what you use to make the tea? So far ive looked at the balls on a chain that you put into any teapot and also the teapots but have settled on getting a pot.
Is there any difference in the various pots? Im not looking to spend a small fortune but would if it made a difference.
Ive picked this purely on price, dont care what it looks like
http://www.homestoreandmore.ie/tea-pots+accessories/glass-teapot-with-infuser-11l/invt/059782
I also spotted these, anyone use one? I was thinking it might he nice for work.
http://www.homestoreandmore.ie/mugs+tea/nova-tea-infuser-mug/invt/059839

Cheers.

The only problem with balls-on-a-chain is that a lot of the time I find the balls aren't big enough. If you're using proper leaves, they swell when they hit hot water. If the ball is too small, they just clump together inside it and don't really infuse because water can't pass through them.

I'd always recommend a pot. The leaves don't clump together and you get a far tastier and stronger cup of tea.

Zelda247

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Aldi Gold Blend for me all the way. Just such a nice taste.

Well let's put it like this, when your mother likes the tea you make her when she visits it passes all the tests!

is this the Special Reserve one?

nc6000

Any views on squeezing the teabag whilst in the cup or is it better to just leave it to brew? I've started drinking tea after realising how much easier it is to make a nice cup of tea than to make a nice coffee.

I think the Aldi blends or black Barry's could be my favourites so far.

Zelda247

I tried the Robert Roberts Kenyan one but not that impressed.

hightide

When i try out different Teas I'm reminded of a time after the war when Tea was scarce and rationed. So next time you try out some new tea variety, Spare a thought for the people who lived in that time.

Zelda247

Finally tried the Bewley's Gold, not impressed, quite a sharp flavour.

I prefer the Barry's Gold although nothing can compare to my favourite tea bag. Yorkshire Gold! if only I could get them in Ireland.

I hated the Aldi ones, can't understand how they got awards.

newbie11

LIDL have a brand of tea called knightsbridge with 4 different styles, Ceylon with the blue logo is a delicious tea I think, tried it first about 6 months ago and haven't bought any other teabags since