I’ve gone from getting tea bags at the grocery store to tea bags ordered online and just started getting loose leaf tea. I’ve been buying the bags and the loose tea from Stash but I was wondering where all of you get your tea.
I like to get it from a little shop in the town I grew up in. I don’t live there anymore but I still like supporting their small business. Thankfully I can order online from them as well.
I’ve been getting my tea from Upton Tea Imports they have great selection of teas. Some great Lapsang Souchong and Earl Greys.
It’s low-end, but I enjoy Harney&Sons
Aside from my grocery store basics, I subscribe to the Dollar Tea Store explorer monthly box (more like an envelope), and there are, in fact, a couple tea stores roughly local to me here in the Twin Cities, one that imports mostly Chinese teas and one that does Western-style blends in loose leaf.
I bought a bag off amazon but after reading comments on there i want to stay away from tea grown in places with contaminated soils, but thats usually where tea seems to be grown
Some sellers will give you results of tests done on the tea. Others reassure you that, once you pay a certain amount for high quality tea from older tea bushes/trees, you can assume that the farmers treat the tea with care and have no need for harsh chemicals.
Be careful with the former, of expecting certifications though. Here is a succinct explanation of why that expectation can limit your tea selection, from Jeffery McIntosh, a tea youtuber. See point at 3:50.
Yunnan Sourcing (US & China sites) - for all types of tea, but also my source of puer
Mei Leaf - just the cheaper teas (still expensive) and samples
King Tea Mall (Etsy) - just samples, so far
Arbor Teas - bulk black and white tea I use for western brewing
Shamelessly dropping my referral link to my favorite company: Bird and Blend 😀
