Tea-licious

Look out coffee bean, the tea leaf is hot these days and it’s tougher than it looks. Healthy, tasty and now being served in a number hip tea shops in trendy locales, loose-leaf tea is growing in popularity and accessibility.

Like coffee, tea comes in various forms and grades. If you are accustomed to the dull grocery store teabag tea, you’ll be amazed at the hundreds of different loose tea and tisane offerings made from herbals, rooibos or fruit. Properly brewed (one teaspoon of loose tea for an entire pot), fresh tea tastes great and offers doses of antioxidants (among other benefits) if you’re working on some new year health changes.

You can order loose teas online from any one of our recommended tea houses, but we suggest taking a trip in-store first to learn the difference between black and oolong, green and white, or chamomile and Rooibos. Take the opportunity to look, smell and even taste a variety of teas before committing to a purchase.

The main streets of Kensington seem to be the epicentre for the budding tea trend. Sneak a peak into Oolong Tea House and sample one of their over 150 loose teas at antique tables with local hipsters. They have a McKenzie Towne location as well for the suburban set.

Walk up 10th and poke your head into the Naked Leaf. No tables here (and no milk or sugar to go), but the shop has a wide assortment of organic teas sold in tins custom designed by local artists as well as many locally-designed teapots (great for gift giving).

Down Kensington Road (beside the Kensington Wine Market), check out Elixir Fine Tea. This Japanese-inspired tea shop sells fewer varieties but offers special services such as food accompanied tea tastings (walk-in or pre-booked) served by well-informed Tea Guides.

16th Avenue SW is home to Steeps the Urban Tea House in the high-end Mount Royal district. This shop has ambience galore with teas displayed in glass jars lining the walls. Open until 11 pm daily, Steeps is a good dessert stop after an uptown dinner out.

Totalitea has a home at the transitioning Calgary Farmers’ Market, as well as locations in Bankers Hall downtown and Chinook Centre. With over 180 different types of tea and a warm and pleasant atmosphere in shop, it’s worth a trip.

Finally, consider contacting Nicole Schon, owner and tea expert at t‌‌‌‌‌│nik for an at-home tea consultation complete with tea tasting. T‌‌‌‌‌│nik primarily wholesales to local restaurants and shops but will deliver to your door as well.

So, while we aren’t suggesting you abandon your sanity-saving latte, we do promise you’ll never look at orange pekoe the same way again.

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