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How overpriced is Tevana?

I'm relatively new to the loose leaf tea experience...I was introduced to it a few years ago by my wifes cousin who had a tea shop in NY and online as well. Unfortunately, I really never got into it at that time, and my wife's cousin has since closed his shop.

So I recently got back into it and have been enjoying it greatly, but the only local place I've been able to find loose leaf tea is Tevana. While I do enjoy their teas, I find them to be a bit pricey...last week I bought a pound of tea that included some jasmine oolong, and two really good black teas...with the 10% off for buying a lb. it came to around $120. I'm sure their tea is marked up, but since I don't have much to compare it to I'm not sure how crazy the pricing really is...any ideas? Where do you get your teas?

Thanks!
 
Tevana is overpriced by 2x-3x depending on the product. I usually buy from Harney which has a completely different business model. Where Tevana is a mall store that charges mall prices, Harney has been a tea merchant since the '80's and sells commercially (restaurants/hotels) and direct to consumer. What makes me laugh about Tevana is that they want you to buy a tin separately from the tea whereas Harney will sell you 4-8 oz of tea in a tin for far half the cost of the Tevana tea without a tin. Harney is not alone in that respect either. There are other vendors and some here at B&B you may consider who will offer a far better value than Tevana. I hope this helps.
 
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I agree that Teavana is very, very overpriced for their quality. I've had their flavored teas, and the ones I got tasted so off I couldn't drink them. The black teas I bought were weak beyond comprehension.

There are many respectable tea venders out there. I buy mine from mountainroseherbs.com. If you're interested in pu erh, Jas-eTea has great customer service (and is run by a B&Ber).

For more info on tea sellers and who to go to, if you head over to teachat.com, they have a lot of really great information.
 
Yep..I pretty much figured I got raked over the coals...rookie mistake for sure. Thanks for the suggestions on where to purchase tea in the future, I will definitely check those out.
 

luvmysuper

My elbows leak
Staff member
Yep..I pretty much figured I got raked over the coals...rookie mistake for sure. Thanks for the suggestions on where to purchase tea in the future, I will definitely check those out.

My wife will periodically stop in there and buy some of their teas.
They actually have some very excellent Japanese greens.

They are indeed overpriced, it's a chain - in a mall - so that is to be expected.

Having said that - They are not the Ant-Christ.
The best? No way!
The worst? Nope, not that either.
 
Buy some tea from teavana and some equivalent tea from a online vendor and compare. Think you will find a significant difference. Teavana is not horrible but the teas are overpriced for what they are. In addition, Teavana does not report the age of their teas. This is particularly important with the lighter roasts or lighter oxidation teas such as white, green, an some oolongs. White and green teas are only good for about 1 year after harvest and processing. Oolong teas are generally only in their prime for 0-2 years after their harvest and processing. However, there are exceptions for the heavier roast oolongs that can be good for many years if stored correctly.
 
My big gripe with the teas I've tried from Teavana is, for what the cost, I wasn't impressed with the quality nor processing of the leaves. Lots of little bits and not a lot of great flavor. Oolongs from Steve have wowed me, whereas the Eastern Beauty from Teavana left me bored. Same for their snow-peak downy tip white. I finally made a serviceable cup of tea by doubling the dose, but it dies after one infusion.
 
It is about as over priced as it comes. My wife got me some tea from a local Teavana store for xmas and when I found out what she payed for it I had to show her online what I could have gotten it for...she was not pleased with her gift after that. Tea was very good though :blush:
 
Even though I don't like teavana, it is a great way to at least get interested in quality teas. Sort of a gateway drug :lol:

The difference between Teavana loose tea and bagged tea is great; the difference between teavana and a high quality tea is just as amazing too.
 
My big gripe with the teas I've tried from Teavana is, for what the cost, I wasn't impressed with the quality nor processing of the leaves. Lots of little bits and not a lot of great flavor. Oolongs from Steve have wowed me, whereas the Eastern Beauty from Teavana left me bored. Same for their snow-peak downy tip white. I finally made a serviceable cup of tea by doubling the dose, but it dies after one infusion.

Yeah, I have found with the teas I purchased that either have to add more than the recommended amount of leaves or steep it much longer than suggested to get a cup of tea to my liking.
 
Buy some tea from teavana and some equivalent tea from a online vendor and compare. Think you will find a significant difference. Teavana is not horrible but the teas are overpriced for what they are. In addition, Teavana does not report the age of their teas. This is particularly important with the lighter roasts or lighter oxidation teas such as white, green, an some oolongs. White and green teas are only good for about 1 year after harvest and processing. Oolong teas are generally only in their prime for 0-2 years after their harvest and processing. However, there are exceptions for the heavier roast oolongs that can be good for many years if stored correctly.

For sure...I will be coming your way in the near future...:thumbup1:
 
I love Green Hojicha tea and get it from Republic of Tea for about $40 a pound.

I know see that Adagio has it for only $24 a pound. I've never tried them but that seems like a good deal.
 
Even though I don't like teavana, it is a great way to at least get interested in quality teas. Sort of a gateway drug :lol:

The difference between Teavana loose tea and bagged tea is great; the difference between teavana and a high quality tea is just as amazing too.
Gateway drug tea! That's hilarious!
I realize this is an old thread, but it's a good one. Even with Teavana's stores closed there are similar "gateway" stores out there that you can fall trap to if you don't know tea grades and pricing.
I used to buy Silver Needle from Teavana and American Tea Room and then later I found out there tea grade was low and their price was high... Not a good combo!
There are a few high quality vendors out there offering high grade teas at decent prices. This is my new source for organic green tea and silver needle:
 
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