Drinking tea was formerly only second to coffee when it comes to being the most favorable beverage in the world after water. But now, even in coffee shops, there are various tea concoctions available to the consumers. Milk tea and coffee tea concoctions are as abundant as there are different kinds of coffee brews. Different kinds of tea available in the market are as varied as there are different kinds of coffee. These are signs of teas popularity as an alternative beverage to coffee.

Both tea and coffee have caffeine and both beverages have medical benefits discovered through numerous research studies. What the tea beverage has many of that coffee has little of are the antioxidants that fights off and manage cancer-causing free radicals. Antioxidant properties of a tea made it quite popular at this present age when the number of cancer diseases is on the rise. Aside from cancer, tea has other medicinal properties over coffee that can provide relief from a number of sickness and its symptoms.

There are four types of tea; the green tea, black tea, white tea and oolong tea. These types of tea are made with varying steeping processes of different parts of the tea bush plant, camellia sinensis that can either be its leaves and small twigs or buds. Processing covers the fermentation, heating and drying of the parts of the tea bush. The addition of other herbs and flowers can contribute to the distinct taste of the tea.

Aside from the iced tea, present day tea concoctions include the so-called herbal tea or herbal infusion available in hot or cold serving. These tea concoctions are formed by adding a particular type of herb or fruit in the tea. Such herbal teas include the chamomile tea. The chamomile tea is also available in the market as a decaffeinated product for people who are advised not to drink too much caffeine. Herbal tea concoctions are presently famous in the mainstream market and are hip among the younger generation. This is the main reason behind the tea's present popularity.

From its birthplace in China, tea drinking has captured the taste of the rest of the world and is now considered a global beverage like the coffee. Whether at home sipping a hot green tea or inside a coffee shop enjoying a herbal infusion tea or an iced tea, the tea has finally gained status as a respectable beverage of the public. Present reviews shows that the tea will be as much a part of daily life as coffee. As more and more studies support the drinking of tea and the global taste of tea flavors are continuously being improved, it is expected that the beverage will continue to rival the coffee.