August 25, 2008

Single Serve Coffee and Tea Wands by Wisdom Wands

Did you know that over 400 billion cups of coffee and tea are consumed each year? Imagine the energy and waste involved in fulfilling our desires for these hot beverages. Wisdom Wands thinks they have the solution with their eco-friendly glass coffee and tea accessories.

The Health Tea Wand Portable Single Serve Loose Tea Brewing Tool is basically a handcrafted glass straw that filters out loose herbs while you drink. Simply place the herbs in your tea cup, add boiling water, let steep, then sip away through your wand. I like the simplicity of it, and my daughter thinks they are "very cool"; however, it takes some getting used to drinking hot tea through a straw.

The Java Wand Portable Single Serve Coffee Brewing Tool is just like the tea wand, only it has a finer filter for the coffee grounds that really works. One advantage to drinking your coffee through a glass straw is it prevents dental stains, besides allowing you to make just one cup and not leave a wasteful coffeemaker on all day. Coffeemakers waste 65% of energy per cup versus just boiling water, and the coffee wand is much easier and cleaner to use than pouring coffee through a filter or using a French Press. Living-off-the-grid, I've never been able to run a coffeemaker because of its high energy use.

I have to admit, at first I was a bit skeptical about Wisdom Wands and thought they were just another green gimmick. After trying them out, I like them and will use them regularly for their simplicity and easy clean up (they are dishwasher safe). The wands come in a safe travel container making them easy to take to work. I have even gotten used to sipping my organic coffee through a straw!