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.
