There are lots of reasons to drink tea. Maybe your throat hurts. Maybe you hate coffee, so you drink black tea for a burst of caffeine. Maybe you’re a noblewoman living in the English countryside and you need something to sip during long afternoons on your outdoor chaise lounge as you ponder your malaise. No matter the case, we have you covered. The Sporked team has steeped untold tea bags—everything from plain ol’ black to the gentlest chamomile—to find the freshest tasting, best tea you can buy at the grocery store. Here they are, from high octane to super soothing.
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- Lipton Black Tea Bags
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Lipton tea has a lot going for it. It’s affordable, you can find it pretty much anywhere, and, we’re pleased to report, that it tastes really good. In fact, it was the best tea we tried during our black tea taste test. In their ranking of the best black teas, senior writer Jordan Myrick acknowledged that it probably isn’t going to grab you with its chic packaging or cute graphic design, but this stuff is all about utility. “It has a standard, lightly bitter black tea flavor that makes it taste great hot or iced,” Jordan wrote. “It would also make an ideal base for an Arnold Palmer, homemade bubble tea, or a tea-based cocktail. These trusty tea bags can do no wrong!”
Related: The 5 Best Black Teas for a Cozy Night In
Credit: Liv Averett / Rite Aid
- Hartney & Sons English Breakfast Tea Sachets
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If you like the bold flavor of English breakfast tea but also enjoy the cozy, calming nature of tea, we think you’ll like this Hartney & Sons English breakfast tea as much as we did. In their ranking of the best English breakfast tea, Jordan described this one as a real crowd pleaser (you know, in case you’re having a crowd over for tea). “This tea manages to be both mild and robust,” they wrote. Bonus points for the cute tin it comes in. We’re not immune to the joys of good packaging.
Related: The Best English Breakfast Tea Fit for a Queen
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- Bigelow Vanilla Chai Black Tea
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If you like a nice, sweet chai latte like the kind you get at Starbucks, you’re going to love this vanilla chai from Bigelow. It’s not super vanilla forward, it simply has a nice, creaminess to it that smooths out the sharper aspects of its spicy flavor profile. “I’m not a chai expert,” Jordan wrote, “but I do know that this tasted very, very delicious.” What can we say? Sometimes you just know the best tea when you taste it!
Related: The Best Chai Tea Bags You Can Find at the Grocery Store
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Good Earth Creme Earl Grey Black Tea
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We weren’t familiar with this brand prior to our Earl Grey tea taste test, but it made a lasting impression. Earl Grey is generally a complex tea (some might even call it challenging), and Good Earth Creme Earl Grey manages to stay true to that without being overpowering or unpleasant. “In my opinion, this is the perfect Earl Grey,” Jordan wrote. Can’t argue with perfection.
Related: Best Earl Grey Tea: Cuddle Up with a Cup Of the Best Earl Grey Tea
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- 365 Organic Green Tea
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We tried a lot of green teas during our taste test—some super strong, some whisper weak—but we thought this 365 organic green tea was just right. A lot of green tea is bitter; this has flavor without being bitter. It may be simple, but simple is good in the right circumstances. As managing editor Gwynedd Stuart wrote in her ranking, “Some of the flavored green teas might be more exciting and some of the matchas might have a bolder flavor, but if you’re looking for something simple and reliable, this is the best tea you can buy.”
Related: Best Green Tea: The 7 Best Green Teas for a Mellow Morning
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- Yogi Honey Lavender Stress Relief Soothing Serenity Blend
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There’s a whole wide world of herbal teas out there, but we’re here to save you lots of time and trouble and money by directing you toward this Yogi Honey Lavender tea. Jordan doesn’t even like lavender-flavored beverages, but was totally won over by this blend, saying, “It’s so sweet and mild and fragrant.” Even for people who think lavender can be a lot, we promise this isn’t like steeping a sachet. And, since it’s super honey forward, you don’t have to add anything for it to be super sippable. If you’re looking for relaxation and comfort, this is the best tea to buy.
Related: Best Herbal Tea: Sit Back, Relax, and Enjoy the Best Herbal Teas
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Traditional Medicinals Organic Peppermint
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Traditional Medicinals makes good tea and that’s all there is to it! Their products are go-tos when we aren’t feeling well, but they’re so good, we sip them when we’re hale and hearty, too. For instance, this peppermint tea would be so soothing for a sore throat or a stuffy nose, but it’s delicious anytime you want a warm bev that tastes great and won’t keep you up all night. “It tastes like just-picked mint with no bitterness at all,” Sporked editor-in-chief Justine Sterling wrote in her ranking of the best mint teas. “I couldn’t stop sipping.”
Related: Best Peppermint Tea: 7 Best Mint Tea Bags to Steep Away the Pain
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Traditional Medicinals Organic Ginger
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If you want a ginger tea that really tastes like ginger, once again, Traditional Medicinals is the way to go. It has the “purest ginger flavor of any of the ginger teas we tried during our comprehensive taste test,” according to Jordan, plus some nice floral undertones that make it super pleasant to sip. It’s soothing, calming, and great for an upset stomach.
Related: Tummy Troubles? Try the 6 Best Ginger Teas
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Tadin Herb & Tea Co. Chamomile Herbal Tea
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Last but not least, we have the best tea for a hard day, the most soothing tea of them all, chamomile. While a lot of the chamomile teas were at best too flowery and, at worst, weirdly sour, this Tadin tea was perfectly balanced and “sweet without tasting sugary,” according to Jordan. This is one you’ll want to keep stocked in your pantry.
Related: Get Cozy with the Best Chamomile Teas
Credit: Liv Averett
Best Black
Rating:
10/10
Sporks
Best English Breakfast
Rating:
10/10
Sporks
Best Chai
Rating:
10/10
Sporks
Best Earl Grey
Rating:
10/10
Sporks
Best Green
Rating:
10/10
Sporks
Best Herbal
Rating:
10/10
Sporks
Best Peppermint
Rating:
7.5/10
Sporks
Best Ginger
Rating:
10/10
Sporks
Best Chamomile
Rating:
10/10
Sporks
I’m surprised, to be honest. I’ve found better teas at the supermarket than some of these choices. Tea Pigs Mao Feng is way better than the other green teas, it’s mellow and not bitter. It also depends where you go, bit if you can find Revolution, it’s a game-changer. They make a banging Earl Grey.
I also doubt those Lipton teas are loose leaves. Likely cheap CTC tea. That’s not agreable unless you add milk and sugar. Might as well drink red rose, then.
“I’M A “TEA DRINKER”,BUT I LIKE SWEET TEA ALSO( MADE WITH SWEET N LOW), I’M GOING TO TRY SOME OF THE OTHERS AS WELL, THANK YOU FOR ASKING FOR MY OPINION 🙏♥️🙏!!!”
I always choose organic teas. Less pesticides. They are also stronger in flavor.
The thing is that some areas have smaller tea farms that bundle the teas together at a tea centre where it’s sorted and blended. The certification for the organic label is too much for those farmers’ pockets. Some teas may be organic but don’t have the official label or could be a mix.
Red zinger from Celestel Seasons I think is the best out there
I like red rose teas than anything else