new to tea and trying to decide where to start.

[jamesh2]

Hey everyone. I am new to the world of loose tea. I have been trying to decide where to start.
I would like to get some kind of starter kit.
I have been looking at

http://www.adagio.com/gifts/holiday_ing ... 09ebd40d4b

but I'm not completely sold.
Is this be best route to go, or should i just get an assortment of materials and start fro there, and if so what should i get?

Thanks in advance for everyone's help.

[Chip]

Welcome to the forum and the world of tea!

A lot of newbies start with this kit. You get about all you need for an intro to a bunch of teas and an interesting brewing vessel that is pretty easy to use. You can add a few other samplers and try an even wider range of teas.

An alternative is to order some samplers and order their personaliTea, a more traditional style and material pot.

[bsteele]

Good place to start and a great deal-- much better than taking that question to Teavana.

Not... that... I've... ever done that before and walked out with $160 worth of iron crap... *doh* Though I do use the infuser basket a lot to strain tea... best $75 strainer I've ever bought!!

Good call on the PersonaliTEA, Chip. Also, If you are willing to spend the money and don't already have one, add Adagio's UtiliTEA electric kettle with tins of tea samples. Love, love, love mine.

Though all you really need to get started is the tea, a couple mugs (one to brew in, one to drink out of), and something to separate the tea leaves and water...

[TeaPeople]

I'd recommend going to a teahouse/tearoom if you have one nearby. They should be able to get some of your questions answered, let you sample some teas and get you started. The TeaMap on this site is pretty useful to locate a nearby teahouse. Good luck and ENJOY!

[Symmetry]

I agree with TeaPeople. If you do end up liking what you try, I recommend the IngenuiTEA gift set that you were looking at - it's very easy to use and beautiful, especially if you watch your tea while it's brewing. I've used infuser baskets and balls before, and I prefer the IngenuiTEA any day for the style points it has - not to mention the free samples and book that come with the gift set.

[tingjunkie]

People here seem to love this product. I just can't deal with the thought of brewing tea in plastic though. Let's skip the debate about safety- I'm just talking about the effect on taste. The personalitea is half the price which means you could just purchase a sampler separately. That would be my vote.

[Dreamer]

I gotta second the PesonaliTea and a bunch of Adagio samples.

I have the PersonaliTea (actually two...I bought one for my vacation place) and use it daily. My brewing got even better when I stopped putting tea in the infuser basket....I just put brew the loose tea in the PersonaliTea and then decant the tea thru the infuser basket into another pot.

Adagio samples are an awesome way to explore the different kinds of tea.

No matter what...have fun,
Dreamer

[Victoria]

Hello and welcome! The IngenuiTEA is a great place to start and as stated getting the sampler set is getting free tea. But I also recommend looking at the ratings and trying some of the high rated non-blends. Some oolongs, but not the sampler set.

[Rainy-Day]

2nd don't buy plastic pot. Ceramic pots can be found for nearly the same price and it makes no sense to save a dollar or two & to get plastic instead of ceramic. I haven't had sampler from Adagio, but I've had some oolongs and blacks, and they were pretty good. It's a decent way to start exploring teas.