Adagio Teas’ IngenuiTEA: Loose-Leaf Tea, Simplified
March 5, 2009
Did you know that Green Tea has about 30 times the antioxidants of broccoli? Or that Rooibos Tea has about 100 times more antioxidants, and is decaffeinated? I bet you didn’t. So spare yourself all those buckets of broccoli and “Turn Back the Clock” beauty products (that don’t work anyway) and indulge in daily Tea Therapy instead… although some broccoli wouldn’t hurt.
I am a huge fan of loose-leaf tea. It has all the benefits of tea that everyone is talking about, and it is the best part of the tea leaf. What goes into the little bags is often the leftovers, stems, and dust after the premium loose-leaf tea has been taken out. The reason most people use tea bags is for convenience. But Adagio Teas has solved this problem with a series of fantastic products. These are my favorite two:
1. This one is aptly named ingenuiTEA and is the greatest thing to ever happen to loose-leaf tea, I kid you not. You just fill it with water, and microwave it for 2-3 minutes. Put the desired amount of your favorite tea in, and let it steep. Here’s the great part: when it is done, you just sit it on top of your cup (any cup!) and the tea pours out the bottom, the leaves remain in the container. Dump out the leaves, throw this thing in the dishwasher, and that’s it! Done. It really couldn’t be easier.
2. These handy guys are individual tea filters for when you are on the go, and can’t use your ingenuiTEA. You can pack your favorite tea leaves and bring them along to make your very own tea bags! This gives you the convenience of a tea bag, with the added health benefits and flavor of loose-leaf tea… it’s the best of both worlds. I plan to take some with me on my next adventure, or at least on the ones when I know I’ll have access to a tea pot or kettle for some hot water.
Just to emphasize the difference between loose-leaf tea and the stuff in regular tea bags, take a look at these green tea samples:
Now go cut open one of your tea bags and see what is inside.
Go ahead… I’ll wait.
Is that even tea? How do we know for sure? When you start drinking loose-leaf tea you will understand the difference, and your body will appreciate the added antioxidants. I would like to encourage all of you to try some loose-leaf teas for your own benefit.
If you would like to try the products I have listed here, you can click on them to be taken to the Adagio Teas site. Please note that by using these links when you shop you will be supporting this blog. I don’t promote or affiliate with any product I haven’t tried, and come to love, myself.
But if you don’t get your tea here, just get it somewhere. It is the most enjoyable way I have found to improve my health and wellness. My favorites are Rooibos Jasmine, and Oolong.
What is your favorite loose-leaf tea?
“Tea’s proper use is to amuse the idle, and relax the studious, and dilute the full meals of those who cannot use exercise, and will not use abstinence.” –Samuel Johnson
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It’s so wonderful having my own personal shopper. I told Lee this is what I want for my birthday!! Do you order your tea from this company or are the adagio teas available in grocery stores? D
Don’t quote me on this, but I think they are only online. I definitely order all my tea and tea supplies from Adagio online, and get it delivered right to my door (call me lazy!) I like to think of it as: The Simple Way.
=-)
I can’t believe I’ve gone this long withOUT trying the ingenuiTEA. Maybe I will get that and some nice dragon pearl jasmine tea, among others. I like the “free shipping w/ $50 purchase” deal.
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Good Point, Alison! I took advantage of that free shipping deal on my first order, because I got the ingenuiTEA, some tea samples, and a couple of other things all at the same time.
Thanks for bringing that up!
I spent quite a bit of time last night trying to blow the loose leaf tea around my mug so that I could take a clear sip! Looks like the ingenuitea is what I need. Thanks for pointing out the added health benefits of loose leaf tea, I never realized there was such a difference.
Well, yay, Allison (double L)! I’m glad that helps. I think you will be very happy with the ingenuiTEA. I started drinking a lot MORE loose leaf when I got it because the cleanup was so much easier and I could drink without swallowing entire leaves! I know what you mean, you have to move them around or hope they settle at the bottom of the cup.
Don’t forget you can use it on just about any size cup. I’ve even used it to pour tea into twelve little demitasse cups! If you end up getting one, be sure and let me know what you think of it.
Thanks!
Hey, Lisis!
You’re right – I didn’t know that green tea and rooibos tea had more antioxidants than broccoli. I didn’t even know what rooibos was until I clicked on the link in your post (thanks for that btw).
Now I can tell my little one that she can’t get up from the table until she’s finished drinking her rooibos. That should get an interesting reaction.
See? I’m just here to help. Everyone should know about rooibos because it’s super healthy, looks pretty in a white cup (it’s red), and is fun to say! What more could we ask of a tea?
As for your little one, I’d bet if you put a little honey in that rooibos, it’ll go down a LOT easier than a pile of broccoli. But really, the way to get her to drink it, is to tell her she can’t have it yet… it’s only for older kids. She’ll be BEGGING you for it, or sneaking drinks out of yours!
But you know this stuff… you’ve got a bunch of kids, right?
LOL! Hey, it’s not like we’re the Brady Bunch or the octuplet mother. We’ve only got four.
Thanks for the good information. Acooba says she’ll come by later – she’s really into tea.
Oh, goodie!!! I love it when Acooba stops by! And you know, to a mom of an only child, anything above 3 kids looks like a whole bunch. I’m just glad YOUR bunch has such loving parents.
=-)
Hi Lisis,
I just cut open one of my many teabags, and yep…all dust! I know the loose leaf tea tastes better, but didn’t realize it was that much better (content & nutrition). Thanks for the heads up, now I can feel better about indulging my love for tea. I really REALLY love tea…in fact, I dream of opening up a tea house some day.
Michael’s responses tickled me, because I’ve been feeding him rooibos for quite a while now. He likes it in fruity combinations with rosehips (his favorite), blackberry leaves and agave syrup. I don’t think I’ve actually seen loose leaf rooibos before though, so I’m really excited to try it. Thanks also for introducing me to Adagio; I took a quick look at their website and I can’t wait to go back and browse around the teas and accessories.
BTW, the little one has a very mature palate. She and I have tea parties (with real tea) all the time. We have several tea sets (including a vintage set from England with service for 12), and having “tea” is one of our favorite activities.
Incidentally, I happened across an interesting quote last night from Jerome K. Jerome (1859-1927) in The Ultimate Tea Diet by Mark “Dr. Tea” Ukra:
“After a cup of tea…[our stomach] says to the brain, ‘Now rise, and show your strength. Be eloquent, and deep, and tender; see, with a clear eye, into Nature, and into life: spread your white wings of quivering thought, and soar, a god-like spirit, over the whirling world beneath you, up through long lanes of flaming stars to the gates of eternity!’”
BTW, I’m so JEALOUS of the octuplet mother!! Just kidding…I did want eight kids though, until I had the first 1. Now I’m just enjoying my 4 and waiting for grandkids.
Hey, how was I supposed to know what the stuff was? It’s all tea to me.
(Note: Acooba still wants 8 kids)
Acooba, I am so glad you stopped by, and that you are already teaching your family to love tea (even if some of them don’t know what they are drinking!). I think it is neat that you actually cut open the tea bag, too. It’s worth it just to see the difference.
I really love that quote you shared with us. I find that SO inspiring and uplifting, I’m going to go have some tea right now… and I haven’t even had my morning cup of Costa Rican coffee (the other ritual)! Maybe it will help me “spread my white wings of quivering thought” today.
(Note to Michael: There is still time… You could have the last four kids all at once!)
Regarding:
Hey! I’m not laughing, Lisis! Just smiling a little.
[...] * If I must eat between meals, I have “fregetables,” or tea. This means fruits or vegetables, as in stuff that grows in gardens and still looks the same when it is at the grocery store as it did the day it was picked. This does not include any dressings, dipping sauces, or creams… just produce, and tea that still looks like leaves. [...]
Lisis,
I love the part where you stress….”I have no medical or scientific findings to support my approach, but I really don’t care. Life is too short to worry about every
little thing.”
It left a grin on my face… reminded me of an artcile i read… by Steve Pavlina entitled “Trust yourself, Not the experts”. To quote from that article, STEVE PAVLINA writes…
“Don’t worry so much about what the so-called experts say. Decades from now their advice will probably be proven wrong anyway. Study yourself as an individual, and use expert advice only as a general guide for new experiments of your own. Notice what works for you and what doesn’t. Trust your senses. If the experts say one thing, but your personal experience suggests the opposite, put more faith in your own experience. That will take you much farther down the road of personal development”
This is something i have come to learn and accept about life….”one will not accept the testimony of another until they can find it in themselves”….AND THAT IS OK. It is a GOOD Thing! That is what is meant by the integrity of individuality.
Great post and a great reminder for me.
.-= Christopher Kabamba´s last blog ..Why Not? =-.
Christopher! This is a wonderful comment, and I LOVE that quote. I completely agree!! I wonder if you could add this same comment on the main post, so we can throw it into the discussion. That’s exactly my point, these “experts” THINK they know what we all need, but they change their findings all the time. I’m just not going to worry too much about them anymore and, instead, listen to my own body.
i will do that… i thought i was commenting on the latest post
.-= Kabamba´s last blog ..Why Not? =-.
I’ve been using the IngenuiTea for about 4 years…absolutely love it! And Adagio itself is a pretty great company.
.-= Karol Gajda´s last blog ..Finding Your Right People =-.
I’ve never used IngenuiTea (though I love their ads). However, this company Dilmah (http://www.dilmahtea.com/ ) has amazingly good tea, even in their bags (very little dust). It’s a bit more expensive then some, but the flavor was enough that I ended up ordering my last back direct from Ceylon because the store that I first tried it at stopped carrying it.
They do provide a decent selection of loose teas too though.
I WILL be looking into IngenuiTea one of these days though. Sounds wonderful, and one can never enjoy good tea too much. =)