Same tea, same time, every day? Our comptroller, Gigi, needs to drink loose leaf tea out of a mug with a different colored top every morning.

Raise your hand if you think you have a tea habit.

If you’re reading this blog, chances are you have a hand in the air, and that’s good.

The dictionary defines “habit” as “an acquired behavior pattern regularly followed until it has become almost involuntary,” like looking both ways before you cross the street. But having this kind of tea “habit” conjures up images of reaching for a mug, a sachet and the electric kettle like a robot, with all the emotion of scratching your nose.

Tea is quite emotional for many of us, isn’t it? It’s both a habit and a treasured ritual, something we do to wind up for a big day, focus in the afternoon, chill out in the evenings. So what I really wanted to know from my fellow staffers in terms of a “tea habit” is, “What tea do you drink every day, without fail? And how do you drink it?”

Richard Rosenfeld, Founder and CEO: Assam every morning. I will confess that I "doctor" mine a bit with conventional (non-organic) Assams that I get from different gardens. Afternoons have been in transition for me: I have started to drink our new African Sunset. I like how the lemon balm and peppermint now balance out the rooibos flavor. I never have been much of a rooibos guy, but this one really is growing on me.

Gigi Durand, Comptroller: As you may remember, I drink white tea.  One loose cup in the a.m. and a sachet in the afternoon. The truth is I’m sick of white tea, so today I started to experiment — I tried green tea from Japan. But I let it brew too long and threw it out — not my type. Someone suggested green needles, and I liked it because it’s lighter. I also like to drink my tea out of the “FORLIFE” mugs we sell on the website. They come in lots of snazzy colors, so I pick the color for the day at the beginning of the morning. Since I drink loose tea in the a.m., I use one of the warmer tops that come with the mugs.  My rule is the mug and top have to be a different color. Very silly. (Use promo code NovDeals11 for a 30% discount on FORLIFE Curve Mugs through the end of November!)

Bess Hammer, Brand Ambassador: I drink 1-2 cups of strongly brewed, loose Assam at home with agave or honey and milk — one while getting ready and the other, if there is time, for the half-hour car ride, and then usually a cup of straight up Assam at the office. If I drink tea in the afternoon, I drink Tamayokucha, Jasmine, Darjeeling or Chai.

Dena Albright, Purchasing: I usually start my day with one or two cups of green tea lke Tamayokucha, with no additives. Around 2 p.m. I have a cup or two of Mountain High Chai, again with nothing added, to boost me through the afternoon slump.

Jennifer Okeson, Sales and Support: First thought in the morning (early morning, like 4 a.m.): “Yummm, Assam.” Plain. Nothing added. The rest of the day is fairly random tea-wise, but I always start with Assam.

Allison Hill, West Coast Regional Sales Manager: Every morning immediately after getting out of bed, I put on the electric kettle and make myself a "double Assam."  That is two Assam sachets in a 20 oz. cup of hot water with a heaping teaspoon of honey and a splash of unsweetened vanilla almond milk. I drink this all morning until around 11 a.m. when I try to get in my water for the rest of the day.  At bedtime, it is a good book and a cup of Better Rest, straight up … no additions, no adulterations, just a good cuppa' Better Rest tea.

Customer Care Associate Lindsay Winkler says she's addicted to tea from this mug, which keeps her tea warm ALL day.

Lindsay Winkler, Customer Care Associate: I drink Jasmine Petal and Mountain High Chai regularly. My true tea habit is my tea mug. It is a Thermos mug and is simply amazing. I am a slow tea drinker, and I mean slow — 1 mug from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and I may not even finish it! This tea mug keeps it hot hot hot all day long. I love it and don’t even use regular mugs now – at work or at home! (Find Lindsay's perfect travel tea mug here.)

Christy Garfield, Marketing Coordinator: I am an equal opportunity tea drinker. I start my morning with a different tea every day. Sometimes black, sometimes green and often herbal. On mornings that I wake up really thirsty, I crave rooibos tea (red tea) since it is so hydrating. I take my tea very hot, not too strong, and rarely with anything in it. I have always been an all-day, every-season tea drinker, so I am grateful to work somewhere that feeds my habit!

I'm totally with Christy — whatever tea, whenever, because that's the luxury of working for two leaves and a bud. Maybe that's why I'm so interested in tea habits; because mine isn't very well defined. But having heard from all these staffers, I'm starting to think about a nice cup of Assam with milk and sweetener. Or a Mountain High Chai latte ... or a simple cup of African Sunset ... or ...

Do you have a tea habit? We want to read about it, so chime in!