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My standard, go-to, everyday, I'm-in-the-mood-for-a-good-tea-but-don't-feel-like-paying-attention tea is bagged Twinings earl grey. Any temp water, no milk, no water, good brand, not price, can't be oversteeped if you use 10+ fl oz (I just leave the bag in, even suckle it when I'm done). It's basically my, "If you were trapped on a desert island and could only have one" tea, though it's not necessarily my favorite.
When I need a right-good dick in the ass (but don't feel like having coffee farts all day), I go with Kenyan tea. Much drier and much more bitter. Probably depends on brand and such on how much you have to follow steeping instructions, but I would certainly not do any more than 3 mins the first time around and work your way up from there. I just fill up a 16 oz mug and don't take the teabag out.
Stay away from Bigelow, Celestial and Stash. Especially with green tea. I sometimes find one kind or another from one of those brands or another that's potable, but you're best off avoiding. "But while I'm figuring out what type of tea I like, I should keep it cheap and not be too picky about brand," I imagine you saying to yourself as you stand in the aisle of your local grocery. Unfortunately, I won't be there to point out that this is a terrible idea because you'll get a terrible tea and go around the rest of your life thinking you don't like green tea or earl grey or whatever you happen to get, but really it's because the brand is shit, so to combat I'll have to say that twice so that you remember next time. Unfortunately, I won't be there to point out that this is a terrible idea because you'll get a terrible tea and go around the rest of your life thinking you don't like green tea or earl grey or whatever you happen to get, but really it's because the brand is shit. The first time I got Stash earl grey, I thought it had gotten mildewy somehow, and I lamented my storing habits, etc. Then, I got Stash earl grey at a restaurant and it tasted just the same. They just suck. Again, Twinings is like $0.10 a bag if you get in bulk on sale; no need to go cheaper for that if you place any value on your taste buds.
Anyway, if you're drinking white or green tea, you have to be very mindful of steeping instructions. Greens are particularly fussy with brand, temp and time. Don't use boiling water, don't steep longer than 3 mins (probably quite a bit less than that) and you reeeeeally can't afford to get a shitty brand green tea. High-end greens are something I think is worth splurging on every so often because they can be quite good and there's a lot of different things to try; there's not near as much variability in black teas.
The brits in here probably don't like earl grey and green tea because they put milk in fucking everything. Don't put milk in green tea, what the hell are you thinking? And earl grey has citrus in it; of course it tastes like ass how you drink it.
From there, it's a matter of if you like more floral (jasmine white and rose petal black are just a few of my fa-vor-ite things), more fruity, darker (chocolate, coffee, etc), herbal (spearmint, etc) or if you just like a fucking cup of tea no fancy shit please.
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