Hello and advice for a beginner...

[Johnnyxs676]

Hello tea drinkers,
Here is my story of how I became interested in drinking tea. I started drinking green tea from teabags for a while and then got my first taste of real tea after visiting a Teavana shop in the mall. Woah, those teabags now taste like dirt after tasting some real tea. I never knew about brewing temperatures and steeping times until coming in to this little tea shop. After a while I finally dove in last Christmas when I got a Zarafina teamaker and a bunch of samples from Adagio through Amazon. I was hooked and there was no looking back.
My favorite teas are the lighter varieties like green, white, and some herbals. I'm a little bit of a heath nut and enjoy drinking tea to stay healthy and prevent getting sick. I'm currently drinking the Citron Green and the White Tropics and my next purchase will include White peach. I'm always wondering if I should drink my tea sweetened or unsweetened. I've heard that the medicinal effects of tea are heightened without sweetener so I'm drinking it unsweetened for now and I'll see how long that lasts. What does everyone else think?
I just received an order of tea and I'm having some trouble finding some containers to store them in. Are dry goods containers good enough or should I find some airtight storage containers? If anyone can advise, that would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for reading and let me know what you guys think! Thanks

-Johnny

[Chip]

Welcome to TeaChat Johnny.

The sweetening question is a surprisingly hot button topic!

Bottom line, sweeteners add calories and other things less desirable than tea straight up. It would be one thing to add sugar to one cup of tea a day, but what if you drink 5 or more ... seems the answer from a health standpoint becomes obvious.

But I always say, like what you drink and drink what you like.

More airtight and nonclear is best for storing teas. There are lots of topics about tea storage under Teaware and Accessories.

Share what is in your cup on TeaDay.

[debunix]

Chip is right, sweetener is a hot topic.

I figure that if I need a lot of sugar to enjoy a tea, that really means I don't enjoy the tea. I'd rather take my sugar where it plays a structural role, in baked goods, or in chocolate, since there are so many teas I can enjoy without sugar, in addition to some that are honey-sweet all by themselves.

[nonc_ron]

Hello tea drinkers,
-Johnny

,Hope to see you around.

[msurads06]

Some teas i drink with sugar, some i dont, it depends on the tea, but even when i use sugar it is max 1 tsp per 10-12 oz mug. I dont worry too much about it because if i wasnt drinking tea i would be drinking soda and it has ALOT more sugar. I usually only add sugar to the first tea of the day. When i first started drinking tea i sweetened everything but i started gradually cutting back. you have to do what is best for you but i would say as long as you are not using too much, sometimes sugar can complement the tea.

[TwoPynts]

...you have to do what is best for you but i would say as long as you are not using too much, sometimes sugar can complement the tea.

Great with Chai teas. Green, eh...not so much.

[Victoria]

Welcome, nice to have you with us!