Is drinking grocery store tea bad?

The bagged tea is generally not the best quality leaf, but as hot beverages go, I drink way more bagged tea than loose leaf (or coffee, for that matter).

And the snobbish tea lady doesn't get that it is literally 2 seconds to drop a teabag in hot water, and it doesn't matter if you forget it a bit long, or if the water is a bit hot, the tea will taste fine.

Whereas with loose leaf tea, I need to portion it out, stuff it in a strainer, or strain it after, and time it, or it comes out too frank and I don't add sugar, so then my fairly pricey tea leaves have been wasted.

It's not lazy to make bagged tea, it's convenient, which is why there's such a variety in shops.

For every day brew (I don’t drink coffee etc at all) I drink Tetley. I have a variety of Twinings’ “dark” tea bags and they’re great.

When I have time and inclination I will drink “real” tea.

The shop lady is gatekeeping. Ignore her and enjoy your tea.

Absolutely not! Drink tea how you like, and what's convenient for you. That person was acting like elitist garbage, or was actively trying to sell you something. Some of the best teas I've had came in bags.

Now, if you microwave your water......

J/K🤣

What a snob!

Tea balls are worthless anyway, because they don’t allow for good expansion of the leaves and circulation of water through the leaves. So she’s full of shit.

Drink how and what makes you happy.

"Lazy" =/= bad. Do as much as you want to bother with. Sure, loose leaf tea has a lot more of a complex and interesting taste, but if it's not worth the effort to you, it's not worth the effort!

Also, don't let anyone make you feel bad for doing what you want. Be it tea bags or loose leaf. You do you.

No. Sounds snobby to me. I would change the shop. I've also started on Twining's. Though, I love my loose tea I still come back to bagged tea (e.g. Yorkshire, Pg Tips etc.). If you like to try new teas, perfect. If bagged tea is what you prefer, perfect. Instead of being glad that you already drink tea and that she could make some recommendations upon your preferences she looks down on you like she's your better for drinking fancy tea.

Drink what you like :)

If it tastes good to you, it’s not bad! I drink twinings Earl grey in bags or loose leaf, and I also drink fancier and more interesting teas too. Trying different methods and types is a good thing, but shame as a sales tactic sucks so maybe try a different store?

she was trying to sell you things from her shop. if you *like* the tea you drink, keep drinking it!

No it’s not. She sounds like a tea-snob, and like she was possibly trying to sell you things through guilt.

Every tea drinker has their own ritual. Do what works for you!

I wouldn't give that shop any money.

No way, Twinings Lady Grey is fucking delicious. Plenty of loose leaf tea is just mediocre. Just drink what tastes good, who cares?

Nothing wrong with tea bags!

but loose leaf tea does taste quite nice in comparison - more of a weekend / not in a rush beverage for me though.

Tea shop lady has some issues - wouldn't bother even taking it onboard.

Twinings is good shit and I AM too lazy for loose leaf tea most of the time.

That was pretty snobbish of her and not very good salesmanship either. If you like Twinings (English Breakfast? Earl Grey?) and want to try better quality tea with the convenience of bags try Harney & Sons Royal English Breakfast or one of their Earl Greys. They sell a wide variety of loose tea and bags with a higher grade of leaves. You can sometimes find a few varieties of Harney teas in grocery stores or Target as well.

Enjoy yourself.

I laughed that she had an attitude about grocery store tea then... told you to use a tea ball. Ma'am. Ma'am. Is that really the best way to enjoy "real" tea? Using a tea ball?

That aside, I drink loose leaf (with and without a tea ball, lol). I also drink Twinings and Bigalow and whatever else from the grocery store. It hasn't killed me yet. Bagged teas are convenient, and that's why they're nice, especially on a busy day at work or such. You enjoy your teas how you like them, and don't feel bad for not conforming to someone else's standards.

Tea balls are worse than bags—they restrict the flow of water around the leaves and so limit the the flavors and the healthy stuff into your tea. Not only is she a snob but she is an ill-informed snob. Tea bags are very convenient if you’re busy. But if you want a higher level tea experience, when you have the time to relax and make the small effort to brew whole leaf tea, a whole wonderful world of tea is out there for your enjoyment.

So I do agree with her. Loose tea is like waay tastier (even the loose tea at grocery stores)

But the way she expressed that opinion, that's not ok.

Drink whatever you want.

If she is using a mesh tea ball, then her tea was likely marginally better than bagged shavings anyways.

Tea comes in many forms. You like to take your time and pry apart an aged Puerh cake, then brew it in a silver teapot? Go for it. You like to make fast tea on the go from a bag? Hell yeah.

Have you ever tried Numi brand? Their Jasmin and Tosted Rice Oolong are the bomb.

Everyones tastes are different. One part of it is out mouth itself. The large reason why some people say some waters taste like something and some say it doesnt is largely based on out salinity and ph levels of our saliva. Another thing is how our brain chemistry works with growing up we tend to eat certain things that we might grow a sense of nostalgia to. And then foods with similar flavor combos might taste better because you brain rewards you for the chemicals you like. So if you like twinnings tea bags you like them and no one should tell you differently. Even if it is a lower quality product it doesnt matter its still completely safe to drink. That would be like giving me a rolex or a bottle of fancy scotch i dont know why its better than my casio or fireball and i enjoy it the same so whats the matter. And this doesnt even mention the convenience factor which changes from person to person because we all value time differently.

Some tea enthusiasts are very judgemental and struggle with superiority complexes. You're allowed to enjoy whatever tea you like :)

I don’t want to live in a world where Twinings Lady Grey isn’t an option

The best cup of tea is the one you enjoy

Ive only had bagged tea and i like it

No, it’s not bad if you feel like you want to drink Twinings or whatever you have. Quality of loose leaf tea is in general higher but you know what? Sometimes you don’t want to go through all the hassle. Sometimes you just want to throw a bag in a mug and why not. It is literally whatever floats your boat

Most grocery store teas are "bad" environmentally because a lot of mainstream brands utilize plastic in their tea bags. In hot water those tea bags release microplastics that will pass through you and into the ocean.

Now, in your case with her thinking of you as "lazy" or a "bad tea drinker, that's simply untrue and that lady has some weird superiority complex imo.

Lots of people drink the mass produced tea available in grocery stores because of cost and convenience and both are totally valid reasons to continue buying. Heck if you simply like the tase better, also valid.

If you are concerned about it environmentally, try to find teas that are in biodegradable tea bags or buy loose leaf and use reusable strainers/tea balls. But don't feel like you absolutely have to. You drink whatever tea you want to drink.

So far in my life the rudest experience I've ever had in a store was in a tea shop. The lady made me feel like dirt. I have no idea why but the second I walked in I got the vibe she didn't want me in there.

The store was totally empty too. Super uncomfortable lol.

Drink whatever you like. There's a lot of gatekeepers in this sub who seem to look down on people who don't go through a 5 hour tea ceremony. I don't think it's realistic though. Most people don't have the time to do that. Making leaf can take a bit longer but is nice too. Maybe try some leaf and see what you think, but don't feel pressured to change the way that you enjoy tea.

Tea snobs don’t do any favors for the tea community. Loose leaf is much better but whats even better is not being a snob about it.

thats a very elitist outlook

yes, teabags are generally lower tier than loose leaf tea, but they are not bad and you shouldnt feel bad.

twinnings has loose leaf also, so 🤷‍♀️

do what you like. I often use bagged tea in the morning because I can't be assed to prepare loose leaf.

You can be proud of the quality you put into your work, but you shouldn't ever use it as a platform to feel better than anyone else. Just because you like to put extra time into a hobby doesn't mean everyone has to; convenience oftentimes trumps quality.

This applies to not only tea, but other hobbies like coffee, fountain pens, bullet journaling, audio equipment, the list goes on.

Yeah tea lady could have had a bunch of sales if she asked what type you drink and showed you something comparable and how to brew it etc. No faster way for a sales person to get me to leave than “shaming” what I’m currently doing especially for someone exploring a new hobby.

Who cares? Tea is good. Period. Looseleaf tends to be somewhat higher quality, but some days you just need to brew something in a hurry without a strainer. Tea bags are perfect for on the go.

You've gotten a lot of good advice, so I won't rehash what has already been said.... I would just like to point out that tea balls produce tea that's just as shitty, vapid, and nasty as she is as a person. Fuck assholes like her (and fuck tea balls).

Nope. Enjoying tea however you like it is great and you should be proud.

Drink what you like. It isn’t lazy or bad. Hugs

No shame in liking what you like. I have a lot of loose leaf that I love but also a lot of bagged teas I love too.

The thought of someone snobbishly suggesting to use a tea ball is actually hilarious. Loose leaf wants to breathe!

If you like what you’re drinking, great! It’s always nice to try new things and methods so you don’t miss out on something amazing, but you’re not being “bad” for brewing the “easy” way.

My daily morning cup is Tazo Awake because it’s good and my husband makes it for me and I’m not going to be so specific as to request someone bring me loose leaf brew in the morning, haha. If I make a second cup in the day I’m going for a nice loose leaf as a treat - and I consider the process to be part of the treat.

That owner can get fucked. Drink what you enjoy.

I personally use tea bags during the week and when I have time on the weekend, I make a big pot of nice loose leaf tea when I can take the time to really savour it.

It’s bad enough to be an elitist, but criminal to recommend using one of those tea-ruining balls. I don’t like tea bags but I’ll take a bag any day over a mesh ball.

Loose tea is better (though making it in a French press and not confining it to a tea ball makes for better flavour in less time)... but I drink bagged tea from time to time too. It's faster, and if you buy it fresh and get through it in a reasonable amount of time (and store it well in between), it can taste very good and have a decent shelf life.

I'd encourage you to try loose tea if you haven't already, but the convenience of bagged tea is always going to be a thing.

To be honest supermarket “lose leaf tea” is just marginally better. 99% of the time it’s stale low quality tea, just slightly less broken up pieces than a tea bag. So you do you.

It is not a matter of grocery store tea, it is a matter of bagged tea.

It is possible that your city's grocery stores sell good loose tea (they do in my area, but it was not always the case.) But good mass-market teabags do not exist, period. Sometimes I see "premium teabags" which are good but extremely overpriced. They are more expensive (per gram) than top-shelf loose tea in specialty shops, and not as great.

I might be a snob. There is no shame in liking what you like, but if you want to explore better teas, the teabags got to go.

Wow some great sales skills there. /s

I do recommend trying loose-leaf sometime though! It's a little extra work, but worth it IMHO. Most bagged tea is made with low quality broken-up stuff that's left over after the better materials are sold off to the loose-leaf vendors. Loose leaf tea will give you a more vibrant fresh flavor. And most can be re-steeped several times and still taste good, so it's not quite as expensive as it might look.

.... When/if you do make a foray into loose leaf, though, don't use a mesh ball or tea egg. Use a basket-style infuser with plenty of room. The tea tastes better if it's had space to expand and move around during brewing.

Lots of people would say that loose leaf is better but there’s room for both, and it’s in the interest of the shop to tell you that. You should drink what you want of course.

Sometimes I make a pot of tea in the morning with loose leaf, and sometimes I just want a small cup and use a bag. Basic teas Twinnings (English breakfast etc) makes are fine. In loose leaf you will be able to find more variety of each type.

Do you enjoy twinnings? Then it's OK to drink it. I have a soft spot for twinnings earl grey, though they do have a loose leaf option which a get sometimes.

Listen to yourself. In america most people don’t even spare tea a passing glance. You are already enjoying tea more than the average person regardless of what you drink. Yeah there are more high quality specialty teas out there but Twinings isn’t bad, and saying it’s not “real” tea just because it comes in a mass produced sachet is really snobbish and honestly a little ableist. Sometimes I don’t have the mental energy to worry about cleaning an extra vessel just because I want one flavor over another, and that’s why we have tea in tea bags to begin with, to make it easier. Enjoy your tea and screw that lady

The answer is nuanced. Drinking grocery store tea is not too unlike drinking boxed wine. There are contexts where boxed wine is better, chief among them is maybe you just like the taste beyond an expensive, single-estate Bordeaux.

There isn't a judgment on the act of drinking the boxed wine. Yes, the boxed wine itself is of far less quality, but, who cares?

However, where things get more complicated is this: certain regions have traditions of producing specific teas, using traditional methods. When you buy a knock off, you're missing an opportunity to support these heritage farmers and thus protect historical terroirs.

For example, quality matcha only comes from Japan. Quality Matcha is shaded before harvesting (which is a necessary, but laborious, process.) Quality Matcha is handpicked, not machine harvested.

You can buy "Matcha" from Vietnam, that's not shaded, that's mass produced. Just like boxed wine compared to terroir-specific AOC French wine, this "Matcha" has little in common with true Matcha. Other than the name, of course.

And that's just it!

As a consumer, your purchase is a vote. I don't think it's unfair or "snobbish" to suggest that buying grocery store tea is a vote against historic regions, traditional processing methods, or the preservation of quality in Matcha, Tea, etc.

I think that what is snobbish is how the above is described, rather than the actual statements themselves.

From a taste perspective, I'd argue that teabags are (for good reason) nearly also synonymous with bad tea. But that doesn't necessarily mean that the loose leaf tea is good. Location, production methods, and cultivar are all relevant.

Lazy is a judgment. I prefer the concept of conserving my time and energy into an activity I enjoy more. I think loose tea tastes better but sometimes I want the convenience and lack of clean up for bagged tea. Haters gonna hate and I'm gonna sip tea.

Is the quality bad? Sure. Bad that doesn’t matter if that’s what you enjoy

If you like Twinings, drink it. Neither loose tea nor bagged tea is "difficult", so there is no laziness here. Grocery store tea can be very economical or a waste of money depending on your drinking habits, tastes, and other available tea options.

Personally, I have literal pounds worth of various spiced chais and blends, schmancy Oolong, rose buds, and good quality Keemun black tea; a large infuser basket to brew with, and a couple of packs of Celestial Seasonings novelty Christmas teas because I like all of those things.

I'm steamed at the lady you interacted with. I only hope she misunderstood what you were there for and was having an off day. Otherwise she was just hard-selling you on crap that's not selling well in her store, which is a shitty thing to do and a shitty way to do it.

I am kinda a tea snob, from Q3 2019. I understand why people could become snobbish regarding tea.

A bit of my background. Since my childhood, I am not comfortable seeing how the tea spread on my teacup, the colour seems unnatural (maybe food colouring additive?) and the tea taste so ordinary. When I learn sone history that there were wars because tea trading, I was confused why people made war just for this bitter drink?

At 2019, I met some tea lover people. Yeah, "tea snob" people and some tea expert. Of course they only serve tea leaves. In general I learn that low quality tea (including in tea bag) felt rough on my tongue. Higher quality has smooth feel when the tea water flowing in mouth. The rough taste usually appears together with astringent or bitter taste. This kind of tea is not the product that caused the wars.

How the tea drink feel on my tongue, rough or smooth, is my valuation method. So far, I haven't found any teabag that has smooth taste.

Tea snobs, due to drinking specific quality tea for a long time, their body could have negative reaction if drink bad tea (i saw people vomit, and i heard some could get allergic reaction like rash skin). At first i thought that was only snobbish, but then I got similar reaction since 2021. It is similar as people who eat healthy food then vomit when they eat junk food. So some tea snob really consider "commercial tea" as unhealthy drink.

The tea owner on OP story could be like that.

She'd REALLY hate me because I love a cold bottle of Snapple Peach Tea!

I keep my Kenyan Purple Leaf Oolong for special occasions!

I have a coworker show interest in tea when I started bringing loose leaf to work, started bringing more, and my tea pot occasionally to share. I’ve explained the difference (and still drink bagged) but I did it in way that peaked his interest, I wanted him to enjoy the tea, and know he’s got a dude with some info if he’s ever interested. He brings me tea now haha.

That lady is rude and doesn’t know it should be fun to share new teas and ways to people. Drink what you like loose or bagged.

As a recovering tea snob I agree with the tea lady. Her stuff is better but sometimes you need a cuppa’. After two weeks of drinking Twinnings I start thinking will I ever run out of tea so I can go to the store and get some good tea? Try shopping the Asian markets, Indian or Pakistani markets and the Middle Eastern shops. In general their tea is better than a supermarket and cheaper than the snobbish tea shop

If you like the tea it is good tea.

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There’s no such thing as bad. It’s tea. It’s all tea, it doesn’t matter. However like everything there are snobs who will look down on you for doing anything other than going for the absolute top quality. You were in a tea shop so obviously the people there are going to be of a certain kind and have a vested interest in getting you away from grocery tea so you will start buying from them. All that said doing it the way she said and buying better quality teas like she was probably selling will get you a better quality cup of tea. But there’s nothing wrong with not wanting to go to that trouble.

There's nothing I dislike more than a snob, and if that snob owns a shop, my suggestion would be to never shop there again. It's true that bagged tea is generally lower quality than loose leaf, but this doesn't mean it cannot be pleasant to drink. I drink almost exclusively loose leaf tea, but sometimes I just want a good old cup of English breakfast with loads of milk and sugar. Using expensive loose leaf tea when the complexity of the flavour is going to get lost in the milk and sugar seems pointless to me. Drink whatever you like and are comfortable with, OP. Do try loose leaf tea if it's something you're interested in, it's quite good, but don't do it because of people's rudeness.

Not at all, I don't like "proper traditional tea" as in tea without aromas in them.

Give me a floral blend with chocolate or coconut or vanilla and all the other shit and I'm all yours. I always drink it with a hefty amount of barista oat milk and it's fucking delicious.

Both from teabags and loose tea. I get that people get nerdy about tea and leaves and different types just as people get nerdy about stuff in general. But it's always down to what I prefer because I'm the one drinking it.

Like I've stopped drinking IPA beer, it's been popular here for years and all the beer snobs swear by it. But it's just so bitter and not nice at all, a normal tasteless lager is way better in my opinion. Its the same with tea. If your favourite is black tea with vanilla flavour and milk and sugar? Go right ahead!

I heard it once in the whiskey sub but it seems to apply a lot of other places.

Good whiskey is the whiskey you like drinking.

Good tea is the tea you like drinking.

Could it be good-er? Yes. Is it enough as is if you're happy? Also yes.

I kind of scanned this thread and boy.

First off, I want to say that Local Tea Shop Lady is not a real tea snob, she's an asshole. Also the kind of asshole who thinks she knows more than she does, which is the worst kind of tea-seller. I bet her best tea kind of sucks. I bet that whatever she's got that you like, you can mail-order it cheaper and get better.

Also, fuck the mesh tea ball. You want a basket type infuser, either like a Finum or a For Life, depending on your tolerance for plastic.

I hardly ever drink tea from teabags but I have an unusually privileged life that lets me sit around all day drinking tea shots from a gaiwan at my desk.

In summary,

Is drinking tea from bags lazy and bad?

No, and fuck that person with a stick. Go look at the vendor list and find somebody decent who's selling what you want to buy.

It's not bad, but it's pretty low end in the tea world

Lazy? Yes. Bad? No. Drink what you like.

I'm not saying that is bad, but it isn't good. The taste, half of the times, is horrible or just sugar, the other half is regular bad quality tea. (I'm talking about drinking tea that it's already made in a shop, tea bags are ok most of the times if you do it right).

For every hobby there are different levels to it, and while drinking pre-packaged cheap bags is the lowest quality tea, doesn't mean there is anything wrong with it. If I'm feeling lazy I use them, or if I'm really in a rush I buy the bottled stuff. Everyone knows it's not as good, but you don't need a 5-star experience every cup you know?

No, that person is just an elitist asshole. Don't get me wrong, loose is definitely better. But there's nothing wrong with bagged tea.

Loose leaf tea is not snobby.

It’s more complicated to make, especially here in the US, bc most people don’t set up their kitchen with a tea pot and electric kettle.

In most commercially produced black teas the product in the tea bag is almost like dust.

It’s called fannings and it’s literally what’s left over once the rest of the tea is sold (tips, whole leaf, broken leaf, on down the grade to fannings).

The reason tea bags are essentially foolproof is that it’s impossible to overbrew the tea in them. It’s the same cup all day, every day, no matter how long you leave the bag in.

It’s a matter of taste; it’s fine if you like that but I wouldn’t make a decision without also trying a loose leaf.

There are some companies that sell their loose leaf teas in bags as a convenience. Generally, these are good products.

There are also “tea socks,” some reusable, which essentially behave like a tea bag for the loose leaf you’ve bought.

I come from a family who mostly drink loose leaf.

It’s full of taste, has incredible flavor, and a world away from tea bags.

Remember in The Wizard of Oz when Dorothy opened the door to Oz and everything was suddenly in color?

It’s like that.

My favorite top quality tea seller is Upton Tea Imports.

They have samplers and also send samples with purchase.

Enjoy.🍃

Nah, they just want to sell you more expensive tea. Usually you then get into better tea, declare teabags to be utterly disgusting, go into full tea-snob mode, spend a lot money on all kinds of tea and utensils, Matcha, Gyokuro, Puerh, buy directly from Yunnan over the internet, and eventually come back to teabags. Then your journey will be complete. It's the same with most hobbies, tea, coffee, craft beer, single malt whisky...

Alright I’ll be the one to tell the truth. Yeah, you do you, drink what you want as long as you like it yadda yadda yadda. But tea bags are awful. They are filled with tea dust that is absolutely tasteless, it is low quality tea full of pesticides and artificial flavors and it is actually really the lazy and “bad” way of brewing/drinking/tasting tea. If it comes from generalist store I can guarantee that the box containing the tea bags is more expensive than the tea itself. All loose leaf teas are not necessarily good teas, but tea bags are tea’s fast food. But I don’t think that giving a look of disapproval is the solution to get people into the real world of tea… give yourself a treat and taste a pure unadulterated loose leaf tea and give it a proper brew : it will change your world.

Bagged tea isnt usually cheaper and is usually worse, but it's not a bad thing, and not lazy imo, it's okay and if you like it, well good for you. No judgment should be done

People should at least know what they are drinking and that quality wise bagged store bought teas can be sort of lower end. Nothing wrong with drinking it if you enjoy it though. But also there’s bad bagged tea and bagged loose leaf

The grocery store I work at actually has a great brand of loose leaf called tumblewood. The company is located in a small town about an hour from here. Hardly anyone buys it though.

That lady has a hang up. Don’t let it be catching drink whatever makes you happy!

It's not bad. Teabags to tea, as microwave diners are too a 5* Michelin resteraunt.

Sure, the five star place would be a first choice, if you can... But when you're tired, nothing beats PG tips pyramids.

Yes.

for the most part, yes.

People can be both correct and obnoxious, and that teashop owner is that. But perhaps she doesn't mean ill, she owns a tea shop for crying out loud; go into a fancy restaurant and ask for a big Mac and you can anticipate a similar response.

Lazy, yes. Bad, no.

I have roughly 25 different loose leaf teas at my house but I still go bagged when it's a rough morning and I don't have the energy yet to prep anything else.

Yes.

Bad? No. Not good tea? Yes. Should you drink better tea? Yes. She wants you to enjoy better things than tea dust from the most sub par trees.

Was this lady a boomer by chance?

No I really like one local tea called Wise Mouth even though it's not loose leaf it tastes great. It's not tea bags though! I personally am not a fan of tea bags in general

Drink what makes you happy, and don't listen to snobs. The only angle I could have found acceptable in this exchange is if she was demonstrating how to make loose leaf tea if you sounded interested but intimidated, to let you know it's not as hard as you would have thought, but in this actual exchange she just sounds snobbish to me.

And as my partner says (he drinks Twinings bagged tea and I have a whole loose leaf cupboard, I like having options), "as long as I like this one I don't want to get hooked on expensive tea I'll have to repurchase as often, and will be longer to prepare when I'm too lazy". We all have different preferences and that's absolutely ok :)

Absolutely not; drink what you like! If I were to be as snobby as that woman, I'd tell her that mesh tea balls don't give tea leaves enough space to expand and if she really cared about her tea she'd brew loose in a pot. But I wouldn't say that, because that's just annoying. As an owner of a tea shop what she SHOULD have done is asked you a few more questions about what you like about twinings, then given you some recommendations of other teas you might like based on that information. There are some easier ways to brew loose leaf if you're interested in trying that, but preferring tea bags doesn't make you lazy or bad; it's just a preference. The correct way to brew tea is the way which results in a cup of tea you want to drink. That's all.

It's not bad if you like it. After all its the way probably 98% of people drink their tea. And it does certainly have the advantage in convenience.

For tea nerds like the people who bother to read a tea-reddit-forum or run a tea shop loose leaf is usually preferred. The reasons for this are:

Bagged tea in grocery stores uses pretty finely crumbled up leaves or even dust, which basically release every flavor they have into the tea at once. This can result in less depth of flavor and they get bitter very easily.

The quality of bagged teas (from plant to processing to storage) are generally, though not always, lower for bagged teas. So they just don't taste as good.

In the case where full leaves are in the bag, the bag itself can prevent the leaves from fully expanding, which reduces surface area and their ability to diffuse flavor into the water, making things more bland.

Obviously you can see where my preference lies, but if none of these reasons sound compelling to you then that's fine. The purpose of this "hobby" (is it really?) is purely selfish enjoyment anyway.

Bagged tea is on the go convenient for me. Brewing loose leaf in the office would be a pain in the ass. When I’m at home teleworking though I get the good stuff.

Just run with whatever works for you. There are some bagged teas I loved where the loose leaf versions do not have exist

I beg to differ. I've tried more costly tea bags and they can be just as good as loose. It has more to do with price, not wether it's bagged or not.

Just drink whatever you like. I always drink bagged tea because it’s less work then loose tea.

The tea shop person is either miscommunicating or they're being Wildly pretentious.

Make no mistake that tea bags have lower-quality tea in it than every single loose leaf you can get. But that doesn't mean it's bad; it's simply a different and more convenient way for drinking tea.

As far as tea brands go, Twinnings makes a decent number of ones I enjoy even though I'm not super fond of the company itself, like how you might hate Jeff Bezos and Amazon as a company but still enjoy some of their products.

What they mightve been trying to get at is wanting you to get the highest quality stuff you can get (ie it's a Tea Shop clerk trying to sell specialised Tea), but you don't drink bagged tea for the quality, you drink it cause it tastes good and is caffeinated.

Don't let them knock you down, I reckon it was a miscommunication.

Out of all the snobby tea things to recommend for loose leaf teas, she recommends a tea ball 🙄

Reiterating what everyone else is saying. She’s a snob, I love Twinings. Drink the tea you like!

Twining's Darjeeling is just fine. I've had loose leaf Darjeeling that just did not match up.

In my experience loose leaf tea has produced far superior flavour pretty much across the board. It took me decades to warm up to tea because I was used to bagged tea, and the flavour was always fairly poor (although I tried various mixes from various brands). I fell in love with tea as soon as I started getting loose-leaf. Looking through the comments not everyone has had this same experience, maybe my local tea shop is just particularly good, or my bagged tea experiences have been particularly bad. In any case, I find that I end up paying less per gram of tea for tea that ends up being much higher quality than any of the bagged teas I've tried. To summarize, obviously the lady was being snobbish, but if you haven't tried much loose leaf I would really recommend it. Also, keep in mind that tea bags are wasteful, you end up buying a lot more packaging. They're also not always biodegradable as many people assume. I wouldn't use a ball though, there are better options for infusers.

Do you like it? Yes? Then it's good.

There are some differences, but if you like the bagged tea and it fits your lifestyle better, drink it!

It's a drink, make it as fancy or as lazy as you want! Its for your enjoyment and acting like there's a wrong way to do it is weird lmao

There’s nothing wrong with enjoying store/bagged tea. Yes obviously specialty tea will be superior— we already know that. Bagged tea is about convenience and importantly because you enjoy that flavor. Tea snob was hypocritical. As a teaball user, teaballs aren’t that great.

Tea is about being communal and serene. Looking down on someone for their tea preference says a great volume about that person and that judgement has no warrant. I wouldn’t fret. Drink whatever makes you happy OP.

It’s not so much that grocery stores seek out the worst tea on purpose, but that tea enthusiasts are willing to pay a premium for the nice tea. So the better batches aren’t sold to the big brands, dropping the average quality of what remains.

Why would it be bad? I only recently got back into loose leaf tea because of this really kind couple who is at my local farmers market on Saturdays. But I really enjoy traditional medicinals, in particular matcha green and licorice root!

Ain't no gatekeeping tea.

I started with tea bags like that, and since they’re (typically) cheaper I think they’re a good gateway to trying tea and seeing what you like. While I understand her logic for “loose tea is better” and also recommend it, I am not one to judge, if the tea tastes good to you, DRINK IT! I am also biased and work in a tea shop hehe, but for my favorite teas I have invested in tea ware and loose leaf versions, otherwise I have a giant stash of teabags in my kitchen for when I want tea fast/ when I’m not in a rush :)

If you can't tell the difference, no, doesn't matter.

It's a spectrum. I generally can't/won't drink the less expensive grades of teas I get from a Chinese vendor. But I've found none of their highest grade teas any better or different than their second to highest. So I don't really explore the more expensive ones. But love trying the less expensive ones looking for a keeper. But I never find one.

Similarly, if after you've tried a few loose leaf teas you don't notice its any better and like the convenience of a tea bag, get the tea bag.

I reserve the right to ridicule you anyway, lol. Kinda true though.

Honestly, I wouldn't sweat it. I tried buying like "real" tea off of Yunnan Sourcing and was honestly only mildly impressed.

Wait, I want to change my answer, is that OK?

Yes it's bad if you consider tea a hobby and consider the experience of drinking it an important part of that hobby. Tea in bags isn't as good.

If tea is just a beverage for you to enjoy and you like bagged tea, drink bag tea. But if you are going to be interested in things like terroir, spring or fall harvest, any of the stuff that tea people talk about and you are trying to get that from bagged tea, you just won't.

I was on a cruise last week and had several cups of teas brewed from different brands/varieties of tea bags. I didn’t think any of them were as good as the tea I brew myself with an infuser or French press.

But they were a lot better than a cup of hot water. I would rather have bagged tea than no tea.

While I prefer tea leafs I have come across some tea bag tea which I ended up really liking! It also depends on how you make your tea. I still mostly drink leaf tea, but I always keep a couple of bag tea bags with me which I know will enjoy for those emergencies where I can’t make leave tea. So I’d say that there’s a place for both :)

It's quick and fuss free. Sure, you're definitely not getting the best quality tea leaves but it gets the job done.

I'm not a fan of those tea ball strainers though, aguably worse than tea bags. I'd rather use a teapot or gaiwan if I'm making the effort to brew loose leaf tea - since the idea is to give the tea leaves room to expand and unfurl.

As long as you like it, nobody can tell you otherwise. Although some loose leaf tea when you have time does taste better.

No,

Like anything there is a optimal price range where quality tends to scale with price. Below a certain price the tea would be weak, bland, overly tannic or bad tasting. Above a certain price, there is no further improvement to the quality of the tea, it's more about conspicuous consumption.

Mass market tea blends spend a lot of time and effort making a consistent product. Will it blow you way as some high quality single origin strains will? No. Will it be undrinkable swill only suitable for aging paper for scrapbooking? No. Will it be affordable, consistent, and sometimes surprisingly good? Yes.