Tea for health and pleasure

My Canadian grandmother made sweet, milky English tea, perfect for dunking her homemade crumpets. Two years in India added spiced, sweet, milky chai to my tea desires. Morning and afternoon chai became rituals that carried me through writing my book.

When dining in Japanese restaurants here in New York City, I enjoyed green tea with my sushi.

Meanwhile, I was reading the accumulating research on green tea, and noticing the accumulating pounds on the scale.

I’m always looking for choices to strengthen my health, but now I was also looking for ways to stop my scale’s slow but steady creep. After I finished writing my book, I resolved to delegate chai to special occasions and create a more sustaining daily ritual. I switched to green tea.

My favorite teas

Fortunately Andy Weil, MD had introduced me to a very special tea master, so the switch was easy — and yours can be too. Sebastian Beckwith of In Pursuit of Tea is as enamored of everything tea as I am of all things Reiki, and I love his artisanal approach. Years later, a Chinese herbalist introduced me to Verdant Tea. Both companies support small farms with practices that are sustainable and beyond organic. I value their teas and am happy to support them.

If you’ve only tasted green tea or chamomile infusions from bags, you’ve not tasted them at all. Eshew teabags and teaballs, and steep tea leaves and herbs where they have room to swell and release their goodness.

All teas come with brewing instructions, which you can follow, or not. Here’s a tip: if your tea tastes bitter, either the water is too hot or you’ve left it too long. Enjoy!

Tulsi is another herbal drink I enjoy and Organic India is my go-t0 source. They offer tulsi both loose and in bags, which I keep in my purse when I’m on go. Although I enjoy their original tulsi-only, I love the rose tulsi! Their lemon ginger tulsi tea is perfect when I’m feeling a bit sluggish or my digestion seems burdened.

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