TAKE FIVE: World Tea Expo

Tuesday, March 28, 2006 | 6:49 a.m.

Tea has been around for centuries - a spiritual, ritual, pleasurable drink. But in a drive-through society, tea companies are having to remarket their brands.

Displayed amid a sea of tea leaves, tea puddings, tea soaps and tea steepers at the World Tea Expo, which opened Monday, are some of the hottest new accoutrements and products.

More than 200 exhibitors representing more than 30 countries covered 22,000 square feet at the Las Vegas Hilton with everything tea.

Here's what we saw:

1. Strained

Three months ago Nancy Raimondo and Andres Ranz Pinto launched a product that allows tea drinkers to make hot tea without tea bags and strainers.

The Wisdom Wand is a glass straw with a glass strainer at the bottom. You pour the hot water over the tea leaves, stir with the straw, then sip.

"That way, wherever you go, you can just make tea," Raimondo said. "I got tired of the restaurants serving me Lipton tea bags."

Besides, she said, "You can make your own blends and create health concoctions."

Prenses, a company from Turkey, avoids utensils altogether with its disposable spoon tea. Sympatea offers its leaves in a plastic netted spoon. Peel the wrapper, immerse in hot water, stir and toss.

2. Shots

Japanese company Ito En introduced Sencha Shot, a canned tea loaded with five times the antioxidants found in a standard cup of green tea.

All natural, unsweetened, no calories, no fat or carbohydrates, the tea is double brewed to extract more antioxidents and comes in a 6.4-ounce can.

"Nothing compares to making your tea at home with green leaves," said Beau Bernstein, spokesman for Ito En, "but, if you can't steep it at home, this is great in your book bag or gym bag."

And, he said, "For people who don't like the taste of green tea, it's down the hatch before you know it."

3. On the bubble

Tearrow USA has introduced "chewing gum with a purpose," which promises a cup of tea in every stick.

Not only does it come in eight flavors - green tea, oolong, black tea, lemon, jasmine, osmanthus, mint and kuding - company representatives say it helps kill germs and battles gingivitis.

They weren't able to hand out samples fast enough. But will black tea gum cause plaque like its liquid counterpart?

"That's why we're coming out with a tooth-whitener gum," joked Bob Risucci, a company associate.

Pointing to a potted Camellia Sinensis growing next to the colorful batches of gum, he added more seriously, "Chew this leaf, and it's the best thing you can do for your teeth."

Or, he said, buy the gum.

4. Candyland

Keiko US set out its green tea chocolate bars and green tea chews, drops, ginger and Marzipan.

The candies' sweet taste comes from the Japanese sweet potato, rather than white sugar.

Sylvana Levesque, general manager of Keiko US, said Keiko has been selling the sweets in Germany, France, Belgium and Spain for about 10 years and is just now introducing them in the United States.

Look for it in wellness centers, natural food stores, high-end tea shops and gourmet restaurants.

5. In the bag

Despite all these innovations, the tea bag is not likely going to be obsolete. For a group of women outside of Cape Town, South Africa, discarded tea bags have become their livelihood.

They dry the used bags, empty the contents, iron them, then use them as canvases for their decorative paintings that are turned into coasters, trinket boxes, Christmas ornaments and greeting cards. The women, who live in an impoverished area, even incorporated the tea bags into jewelry.

"They can't go to an art store and buy supplies. The tea bags were free," said Jodee Thompson, U.S. distributor for Original T-Bag Designs. "They've got big barrels. It's an English colony so they're drinking tea all the time."