Tea Fights Anthrax, Star Trek Tea & More

Issue two of The Leaf is now available at digital newsstands everywhere. In other words, click here to read the full issue online. Good stuff.

Can tea fight anthrax? That's the good word nowadays, according to some American and British researchers. More here from the Telegraph and a tongue in cheek response from Graeme Wood at the Atlantic, here.

The record for the world's largest tea party was upped again recently in Indore, India, where 32,000 people turned out to take their sips. More here.

We've written about Zen Green Tea Liqueur, but recently the McClatchy-Tribune News Service had their say on the matter. Read more and check out the recipe for a Zen-tini here.

While undertaking research for a project I've been working on, I ran across some unearthly teas, including Cardassian red leaf, Pyrellian ginger and more. Don't rush out looking for them, since they only exist in the world of Star Trek. More here.

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Two Leaves and a Bud Introduces Organic Rooibos

Two Leaves and a Bud Tea Company to Introduce Organic African Rooibos Tea and the Trust Organic Small Farmers Co-op at The Natural Products Expo West Show
(from a press release)

Two Leaves and a Bud, the tea company with whole leaf organic tea sachets for "a better cuppa' tea", is pleased to announce the introduction of Organic African Sunset Red Tea. This rooibos (red bush or red tea) caffeine-free herbal tea will be supplied by a small farmers' cooperative in South Africa; it will be the first tea launched in North America from The Trust Organic Small Farmers Alliance (TOSFA).

The TOSFA is a unique initiative, founded by producers, traders and non-government organizations (NGOs) from around the world. The TOSFA works within existing Fair Trade labeling and organic certification procedures to help small farmers overcome the disadvantages that they face. African Sunset tea will debut at Expo West Natural Products Show, March 14-16 2008.

Other exciting company developments include the introduction of three new Super Fruit Teas and the conversion to Certified Organic of White Rose (White Peony) and High Mountain Chai.

African Sunset is a 100% organic herbal tea blend, which includes organic rooibos (red tea), organic lemongrass and lemon peel. Rooibos is a naturally caffeine free tea and like green tea, contains significant amounts of antioxidants, iron, potassium, magnesium, copper, calcium, manganese and fluoride.

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New Tea Pyramids From Choice Organic Teas

Whole Leaf Organics: New Tea Pyramids From Choice Organic Teas
(from a press release)

Choice Organic Teas, North America’s leading purveyor of exclusively organic teas, announces the launch of Whole Leaf Organics, the largest collection of organic, Fair Trade Certified tea pyramids on the market today. Packed in eco-friendly, biodegradable tea pyramids, this product line brings an artful new shape to the organic tea experience. Available May 2008, the first taste will come at Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, CA from March 14-16.

Loose leaf teas are often considered by tea connoisseurs to be the finest way to enjoy a cup, as the unfurling of the full tea leaves allows complex flavors to come to the forefront. With extra room inside each tea pyramid, Whole Leaf Organics achieves this same quality but with the added convenience of a tea bag. The line includes eight varieties of traditional blends and new favorites — English Breakfast, Earl Grey, Estate Blend Darjeeling, Jade Green, Jasmine Green, Chamomile Citrus, Sweet Liquorice Mint, and Lychee White. The suggested retail price is $8.49 for a 15-count box of individually wrapped tea pyramids.

Choice Organic Teas

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Tea Bag Art, Teapot Worship & More

The New York Times ran a brief report this week on an interesting project that takes used tea bags, of all things, and turns them into little wee canvases with which artsy-fartsy stuff can be made.

Even the most avid tea fanciers among us probably stop short of worshiping tea or the paraphernalia associated with it. Not so for a group in Malaysia who once worshipped a giant teapot, or at least they did until the government there destroyed it. For more, read this recent article from the Telegraph.

Here's a nifty item called the Tea Control Teapot with Brew Stop Infuser. Whether or not it works as promised, it still gets points for looking nice.

Last up is an item that falls into the category of tea tourism. It's the Web site for the Tea Factory Hotel, in Sri Lanka, the land of Ceylon tea.


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