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I love hot tea all fall and winter, but can't bear the thought of anything hot to drink when it's humid and above 70 degrees.

Plunk some ice in it and I'm all over it, though.

I especially like Constant Comment in the winter, but am also partial to loose vanilla-mint and peach-based teas. I set up a "tea station" (just a bright watercolor floral tray) on my work island and on it keep two different-sized teapots, honey, and a glass jar stuffed full of assorted teas for tea breaks and visitors. With regular orange pekoe tea, I lean towards using creamer, which I suppose is something of a sin to some. Gotta have that soothing cozy comfort. I'm a sucker for all those nifty tea accessories - civilization owes so much to tea!

In summer I usually buy the cheaper stuff to make in quantity and strength for iced versions.

My latest obsession is chai tea with Eden vanilla soy milk in it (it's fresher somehow than milk or cream). I've been using a concentrate because it was on sale but I've made the commitment (now that it's not on sale and I think the whole idea is a bit silly -- plus they are heavy to carry home) to figure out how to make it from scratch.

I did drink typical British tea for a few years when I had a SO from England but it didn't take long to convert back to coffee when I dumped him.

However, I had some serious tea at a tea house. Dragon something which unfurled as the hot water hit it and it was amazing. I intend to find out exactly what it was so I can share it soon with my daughter who's become tea obsessed lately, mostly with Earl Grey which we buy organic and fair trade (the taste difference is very apparent too -- for the better).

Earl Grey weekday mornings; two teabags if I was up late the night before. English Breakfast on weekends if I can get it. Milk and sugar, please.

I'm a bad water drinker, so I brew a 2-cup measuring cup of green tea, sometimes with a fruity flavor, add 2 Tbsp of organic cane sugar and add it to a 1/2 gallon pitcher of filtered water in the fridge that I fill my Nalgene from. If I drink a whole one of these every day, I'm fine. If not - dehydration city...

I've recently discovered a wonderful brand of tea bag. It's from Newman's own, it's organic, and it's called "Royal Tea". It's a nice, full-flavor black tea, and for being organic, it costs no more than Salada, Red Rose, or Tetley.

I highly recommend it if you can find it in your store!

The perfect thing to add to Twining's Earl Grey are flowers. Scoop some into a tea ball and steep along with the Earl for the perfect complement:

add dried edible red rose leaves for Mademoiselle Grey
add dried edible lavender leaves for Duchess Grey de Provence

www.FrenchRevolutionFood.com for more fresh and fabulous French food...

I'm picky. The more good tea I try, the pickier I become. Lately, I enjoy a cup of Tetley's British Blend decaf in the morning. (Yes, I know -- decaf in the morning!)

I enjoy it by the potful throughout the afternoon -- be it looseleaf or bagged. I love it all -- from silver needle to green to herbal to spice. I drink them all with only a little sugar, as hot as I can stand them (though occasionally I prefer iced on a hot day).

I confess I haven't learned to like Rooibos or Chai. Something about them . . . And strangely, the Japanese barley tea (mugicha) has started to grow on me in the past few months.

Love Iced Tea! My mom always made it fresh and would ice it. Man, nothing better. :) She would make an extra pitcher if she knew my friends were coming over.

Won't pass up an Arnie Palmer (50/50 iced tea/lemonade) either. Quite refreshing-esp on HOT days like today.

Hot Tea-if I have it English Tea first and foremost. I aways have Bigelow Fresh Peach (REALLY good). If Black Tea is what I need, I like Tazo Black Tea. LOVE Chai Tea-esp from Dunkin Donuts (better than Starbucks to me). Green Tea can't be ignored either.

CAN NOT STAND Earl Grey Tea. It is the absolute worst. Second runner up-Mint Hot Tea. Mint has NO BUSINESS being in hot tea.

i'm surprised - not very many tea snobs here!
i have a difficult time drinking bagged tea. I like full, long, unbroken loose tea leaves. Brewed in a pot till strong.

In the morning, a malty Assam with a touch of sugar and a splash of milk. It is full-bodied, rich and is as bracing as good coffee.
If I'm drinking by the pot-ful, a pu-erh. No sugar or cream! It is as dark as coffee, earthy, smooth.
For a treat, a super-low tannin black tea, like chocolate on the tongue but with tea's natural sweetness (a Yunnan or even a Keemun are good for that too. Keemun is almost wine-y in scent and flavor)
Or a roasty, smooth oolong in the afternoon, low in caffeine and able to withstand many infusions, yielding slightly different flavors every time ...
mmm. tea.

Loose tea leaves all the way! I have banned the bag at home and at work. There's something really nice about pouring tea from a pot.
Darjeeling for me please, preferably single estate SGTFOP grade leaves. No milk or sugar, just tea.
Yes, I am a tea snob, and quite content with that thank you very much.

@philosophotarian - You're not the only tea snob here! My mom gets frustrated with me when I refer to her Twinings as "slumming it." I travel with my own tea pot and tea leaves.

Right now, I've been going through a huge Darjeeling kick. Sometimes, I'll drink it straight, but I've been mostly enjoying it as Indian chai with whole milk and a little cardamom (not to be confused with masala chai, which is the whole gamut of spices).

I like mostly black teas - the smoky Lapsang, the assertive Assam, the delicate Yunnan. I admit to enjoying Earl Gray every now and again - but, please! only from someone who knows what they're doing and can balance out the flavors properly. Good Earl Gray shouldn't taste exclusively like bergamot.

My favorite tea, however, are the lovely post-fermented teas. Pu-erh has long been my tea of choice - what other tea could give coffee a run for its money? One of these days, I'd like to buy a brick of 30-year-old raw pu-erh, just to see what it tastes like after aging.

pg tips for me! with plenty of milk and sugar.

for a change i like lapsang souchong or a tisane brewed from fresh mint leaves.

plain old lipton is pretty good, too.

Tea addict here. The very best tea I've found is actually French - Marriage Freres. You can get beautiful cans of it at McNulty's Coffee on Christopher Street (close to Hudson Street). Their Earl Grey French Blue is fantastic and has pretty blue flower petals in it. My all-time afternoon tea is their Grands Augustins, which is light with a bit of citrus. Marco Polo is their big seller, but I find it a bit heavy. Of course, the best way to get this tea is to go for brunch at their tea shop in Paris, but, barring that, try all the flavors you can find here. (I've also seen Marriage Frere's teas at Ballducci's.)

At the other end of the spectrum, in the summer I drink gallons of sweetened iced tea made from grocery store tea bags (classic Lipton, thank you very much), brewed with fresh mint from the Green Market. It is delicious and nicely D'Agostino's-meets-Marrakesh. (Tip - My favorite farmer told me to wrap fresh mint in damp paper towels and sealed in a plastic container. I've had it last for over 2 weeks this way.)