Capital Teas

National Harbor

Last night hubby and I went to the National Harbor in DC/MD to see the Cirque du Soleil OVO show.  We arrived early to get dinner beforehand and walk around some of the shops there at the harbor.  One shop we went into was Capital Teas.  Being that it was really windy outside and I am an avid tea drinker, we went inside to look around.

The first thing that caught my eye was this entire wall of little shelves that each held a glass jar with loose tea leaves inside.  Each jar was neatly labeled with what kind of tea it was and how much it would cost for a few ounces.  They also had a couple sample teas freshly brewed, which of course I had to try at least one.

The one I tried was called Irish Morning Rum Cream.  And yes, it tasted as decadent as it sounds.  Such a creamy sweet flavor.  Very aromatic. And no actual cream or milk or even sugar had been added, mind you!  Then we proceeded to make our way across the wall, opening jars and sniffing away, as many teas as caught our eyes. 

For those of you who may not know a lot about tea, there are several main kinds...black tea, oolong tea, green tea, and white tea.  There are also herbal teas and fruit teas called tisanes although some tea aficionados would argue that those are not true teas.  The different types of tea have to do with how the tea leaves are processed.  White teas are usually more subtle because the tea leaves are young and they have very little processing to leave it as close as possible to its natural state. Then each tea type gets stronger up to the black teas which are the most flavorful because the leaves are more matured and the processing more involved.   I generally prefer black teas as I like a lot of strong flavor but I wanted to give the green teas and even the white teas a chance too. I ended up buying a small tin of the Irish Cream and also a tin of Organic Cherry Blossom Rose which is a green tea (you can really smell the rose!). 

Inside the tea shop

Tea also has many healthful benefits as well, for the body, the mind, and the soul. Tea has high levels of antioxidants which help keep our immune system healthy and strong. It has been known to lower the risk of several types of cancer, bad cholesterol, heart disease, bowel disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimers, as well as helping with weight loss and halitosis! And lets face it, whats more relaxing than sitting in your favorite cozy chair with a good book and a nice hot cup of your favorite tea!! We all need to make time for more of those moments!

So this afternoon I decided to steep a cup of hot organic cherry blossom tea while I took a few moments to blog about how wonderful and tasty tea is.  I hope I get the chance to go back to Capital Teas (www.capitalteas.com) and experience some more flavors.  Until then I'll take as many opportunities to enjoy the quiet tea moments I have.