The Great Beverage Melee, Round 01

Not everyone drinks tea. Hey, that’s cool—more for us, right? As for me, I haven’t had Coke since I was 10 or something, but I do like coffee now and then. They say ‘you’re going through a phase’, but I love walking into Starbucks just because of the smell. I don’t even hate them for ripping me off, because Haagen-Dazs is coincidentally right across the street and puts things in perspective.
That got me thinking, though. What if tea, coffee, and Coke were all drunk, Irish, and at a splintery little pub with no glass in the windows? Who would win? That’s why this week we’re having a very special 3-part drink fight on this here blog. Now accepting bets!


ROUND 01: CAFFEINE!

OK, let’s get this straight. Water is the only thing you actually have to drink in life; everything else has the consequences of either a chemical buzz or a chemical slump, the latter more commonly called a ‘hangover’. If you use this logic, fruit juice is useless and soda a short-term measure that ultimately just wastes your money (Root Beer, being awesome, is an exception). Plus, everyone at the meeting will think you’re a hippie-ass yoga moron if you walk in there with a chaya-pineapple smoothie, and yes, they’ll still laugh if you can prove your doctor told you so.

COFFEE:
Espresso coffee, brewed, 8 fluid ounces: 502 mg
Coffee, brewed, 8 fluid ounces: 85 mg
Coffee, instant, 8 fluid ounces: 62 mg
Coffee, brewed, decaffeinated, 8 fluid ounces: 3 mg
Coffee, instant, decaffeinated, 8 fluid ounces: 2 mg


COKE (per can):
Coca-Cola Classic: 23 mg
Coca-Cola Blak: 46 mg
(All other varieties are between 15 mg and 31 mg)


TEA:
Black Tea: 40 mg
Flavored Tea 40 mg
Oolong Tea 30 mg
Green Tea 20 mg
White Tea 15 mg
Decaf Tea 5-10 mg
Herbal Tea 0 mg

WINNER: COFFEE, hands down (see below). Which isn’t always a good thing.


Tune in for Round 02: Health Benefits sometime next week!

SOURCES:
faqs.org.nutrition/index.html
coca-cola.com/us nutrition fact sheet
adagio.com

Tea Gear - well, it's your money

Tea accessories? Look at all of the stuff you WON'T be buying this summer if, like me, you plan to devote your cash to art supplies, a tennis racket, and learning to ollie properly.

Crafted in Kyoto, Japan, it can be yours for $45 from CooksShopHere.com.
If that's not enough for you, get some Chawans!
I remember Chawans from the video game Shenmue II, when Ryo has to secretly communicate with other martial artists in Hong Kong by arranging teacups in restaurants.








On the creepy side of things, there's a place on the net where you can buy a tea set, for $175, that seems to feature realistic human faces. Uh, OK. No, I'm fine...thanks.




The New York Botanical Garden made these lovely espresso spoons--but of course you can cheat and use them for tea. That goes double for their petal-saucer cups.






But above all, there is the Teashirt. It's actually a tea brewer by designer Eva Solo for people want the choice whether or not to have their tea with tannin. I don't get it, but it looks awesome! But does it remind anyone else of Kingdom Hearts?

AriZona Canned Tea - Now I've Seen Everything

It was the Japanese who launched canned tea in 1981, and I still don't get the concept. Arizona Beverages' green tea was my gym partner today, and though it was too sweet compared to Tazo or Honest (the glass-bottled tea drinks I'm used to)it gives you lots of energy when cold, and can you beat the size of this thing? It's like a foot worth of tea for a buck. Awesome, except don't fool yourself; this might be closer to tea than Gatorade but it's still not tea. Yeah, and read more than the label because they sneak in HFCS every now and then.

Jamaica – the berry of flowers

Jamaica is a drink made from the dried calyces of a flower native to Central America (Hibiscus sabdariffa). The bright red flower, with its frilly petals and protruding pink and gold stigma, may put you in mind of someone who just loves catching attention; jamaica ('ha-my-ka') with its crimson color when brewed, is no different. The cranberry-like flavor is best when chilled, and those who find it strong should add honey. Hot, it's a wonderful sick-day pairing with ginger because of its high vitamin C content, but watch out for the stains!

Iced Mint Jamaica

3 dried flowers per teacup (about 9 per pitcher)

Honey

Fresh mint

Peeled, thinly sliced fresh ginger

Brew flowers with a couple of slices of ginger like any other tea, steeping covered for a few minutes. When tea is bright red fish out and discard flowers; add honey by teaspoons and stir in. Leave the ginger to chew on (aphrodisiac, good for digestion and the immune system) and chill or let cool for about an hour. Do not add ice cubes. Serve in clear glass with mint leaves.

No Time For Tea!

I know I haven`t updated this blog since last month--shameful! But you see I just moved and have no internet at home (I have yet to unpack my laptop. Moving sucks >:( ). But I am working on a wholesome, informative article on tea, just need some facts and figures and that`s done. You know what else? It`s hot here--Al-Gore`s-I-told-you-so hot, happiness-is-a-frappuchino hot. And we don`t have our own car OR air conditioning. I hope I can get back to tea soon.

Celestial Seasonings - feel-good tea with artwork to match!

I grew up drinking Celestial Seasonings. It was 'all natural' and yummy, but the boxes also featured darling illustrations of koalas, puppies, and the trademark bear cozying up at home with tea. What's not to love? I remember Sleepytime's chamomile and spearmint flavors, and lively Raspberry Zinger (it was cold in New England, to make it not seem weird that kids are into tea) but since I've been out of the States the company has managed to explore various blends from Honey Lemon Ginseng to Imperial Peach to Morrocan Pomegranate Red. The illustrations and taste are as sweet as ever, though.

Pairing tea with occaisions

Connoisseurs take pride in having found the perfect pairings of alcohol with chow, but doesn’t the beauty of tea lie in its I-felt-like-it whenever-ness? That said, some occasions suit certain flavors better than others.

Air Travel – green

Ask any business-class skyhopper or Disneyland-bound mother of four what the perfect flight would be, and both answers will likely include words like ‘peace’, ‘tranquility’, and ‘empty row’ or ‘good movie’. Green tea, the elixir of Zen monks, will get you as close as possible to the first two with bonus antioxidants. Unfortunately, due to recent policy changes those departing from American terminals are no longer allowed the home-brewed hot thermos. If you don’t mind it cold, fetch a glass-bottled Tazo or Honest Tea while they load in the first-classers; otherwise, stow a teabag or two with your MP3 player and ask the flight attendant for hot water after liftoff (as with all above-room-temperature beverages consumed above 55,000 feet, mind the turbulence warnings). Preferably, buy organic Matcha bags either in Chinatown or at Whole Foods Market, but when running late don’t hesitate at theft from hotel lobbies. Skip the 4 AM-taxi-traffic-jam Starbucks; jet lag renders excessive caffeine superfluous.

Tea tip: Green tea isn’t picky about its partners. If it’s too bitter on its own, brew it with mild fruity flavors like tangerine or raspberry, or herbal essences like mint. To stop the second teabag from overpowering the flavor of the first, take it out of the cup sooner.

The Cyber Café – fruity combos

For a couple hours of heated IM debates (“j00 r34dy n00b?” “just tel me hwo long 2 bake teh gadamn pie xO!11!!1!”), illegal acquisition of music, and addictive Flash cartoons, café is really a misnomer—no roast or frappe will pair as satisfyingly as a lively tea. A good WiFi parlor has a brand-name selection of both cold and hot teas, and a bad one dishes you the overpriced NesTea with high fructose corn syrup. Branch out from Twining’s Orange Spice; lemon and ginger is a classic, peach is infallible, and berries match green and black teas nicely. Your cyber café should be more about the ambience and drinks than the broadband; for a treat, find one that boasts of ‘free internet’ with purchase of a beverage, or else burn your tongue watching the per-minute meter rise.

Tea tip: Anything that tastes good hot won’t fail you with ice cubes, except for Earl Grey, which takes on the flavor of February’s dishwater. Remember; the tangerine slice floats in hot tea, but garnishes the rim when served with cold.

The Movies – mint, ginseng, ginger

Popcorn? Passé. A tall, steamy cup of tea in the dark (between fight scenes) won’t grease your fingertips and does not require sharing when with a group. If you like it iced, bring a jean jacket; the only thing more annoying during “I’ve always loved you” moments than a bawling baby or cell phone is the perpetual sneezer who denies the existence of air-conditioning. Make sure the cup has a heat-proof sleeve or bring a travel mug from home; you’ll be cool as long as your choice fits in the beverage holder. Hitting the screening with a runny nose is risky, but if protocol dictates, brew fresh sliced ginger with lime juice and spin in a spoon of honey just before heading out.

Studying – black

Even when writing a thesis, don’t confuse your metabolism with Coke or coffee. Earl Grey is dark for a reason—it works all night long, like hospitals and Cartoon Network. If the brew is too strong, spread it among two or more teacups and top off with hot water. Any fresh juice of the citrus can be added for taste, but I discourage sugar. At dawn, press the cool teabag on each eye for a few minutes while performing the savasana, or corpse pose, and do some stretches to preserve daytime posture. Expect queries on how your hangover is treating you.

These are suggestions only, of course. Sports, drawing, and lunch are among the events when personal taste is the only guideline. This is why everyone gets stuck in ruts—eating the same lunch, driving the same route home, sipping the same flavor Gatorade in between drag-ups at the gym—and gets the idea that they have no control over whether or not their lives are boring.
So try something new every week. As for tea, you never know when you’ll discover a new favorite, but the right stimulation of your taste buds at the right time is the definition of pick-me-up, if not nirvana.

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