How to be a “Green” Tea Drinker

These days, everyone is trying to find ways to cut back on unnecessary expenses, so how can you apply these methods to your tea drinking? Making your own tea at home may not be as easy as stopping at your local café or corner store, but just like making a pot of coffee every morning, you can easily get into the routine of brewing some tea. Below are three ways you can be a “green” tea drinker—feeling better about what you put into your body and what doesn’t come out of your wallet.

1) Heat your own water at home, even if you want a cold brew. It’s cheaper and can even be done while you’re getting ready—just keep an eye on it! This also makes it easier to control the temperature for different types of tea leaves so that it won’t burn and taste bitter. It also allows you to control the sweetener as well.

2) Use your own tea ware and travel mugs. If you make your tea at home, consider using a thermos or travel mug to take with you to work. This will keep your brew hot for hours longer than a throw-away cup. If you are enjoying your tea at home, you could invest in a candle warmer for your teapot which holds a small tea light candle and keeps your teapot warm as long as the candle is lit.

3) Re-use your leaves! This is one of my favorite things to tell people, because they don’t always know or even think of doing it. You could try making your brew before work and then save your leaves by leaving them in the same strainer and putting them in your fridge for no more than 24 hours. Later that same evening when you are relaxing for bed, you can brew the same leaves which now contain 80 percent less caffeine while retaining all of the wonderful benefits and sometimes even a stronger tea flavor. The higher the quality, the more you can re-steep your leaves(sometimes even as many as 3-5 times).
Brewing your own tea your own way is friendly on your wallet and the environment. So, try a new morning routine in the New Year.

Kelley Scruby is the owner of Do You Tea? in Hoboken, New Jersey. As the owner of a small, loose leaf tea business, Kelley is passionate about educating her customers on the benefits that come from drinking loose leaf tea. With a background at a major tea company, she was able to become an expert on the versatility of the beverage and is inspired in her own creations by the changing of the seasons and also desserts. Kelley created Do You Tea? with the confidence that she can help find a tea blend that works for any of her customers’ lifestyle and palate. As Do You Tea? continues to grow, Kelley hosts events and tastings that add a more interactive approach to the expansive world of loose leaf teas. Do You Tea? hopes to have a truck out on the streets of the NYC metro area soon! You are able to purchase her seasonal blends and gift sets online at www.doyoutea.com and follow her on instagram and twitter @doyoutea for updates on tastings and new blends. Please email requests and questions to doyoutea@gmail.com.

The information supplied in this article is not to be considered as medical advice and is for educational purposes only.