“It’s interesting: From the last 40 years or so, it’s really expanded and grown and that’s great,” said the owner of Foods For Living, 2650 E. Grand River Ave.

As the weather gets colder, enjoying a cup of tea becomes more appealing. A growing variety of teas - from strawberry to licorice to Pollen Season to PMS - offer different flavors, scents and health benefits for the increasing thirst for tea.

Theater graduate student Tom Lynch, who often studies at coffee shops, has noticed more and more people drinking tea during the past couple of years. The coffee-lover credits the increase in the tea-drinking population in part to the expanding number of herbal teas.

“And tea is more global,” he said, adding that he started drinking the beverage in Japan when he lived there three years ago.

“In Japan, I got used to drinking tea everywhere,” he said. “It’s a lot more common over there: You could get it out of a vending machine.”

When he got back to the United States, Lynch picked up his old habit of drinking coffee most of the time. However, he usually tries to switch to tea after 5 p.m.

“I drink mostly the herbal stuff, so I can go to bed on time,” he said.

Herbal tea has many benefits, Snyder said.

“It’s a good alternative for people that want to get off coffee or pop and it can have good side effects, such as calming you down or helping you battle a cold or helping your throat,” he said.

East Lansing resident Sam Reddy sipped lemon zing herbal tea while studying Tuesday night at Espresso Royale Caffe, 547 E. Grand River Ave.

“It seems like there’s a wider selection nowadays of herbal teas offered,” he said, glancing at the cafe’s menu on the wall.

Beaner’s Gourmet Coffee, 270 W. Grand River Ave., has recently added more herbal teas to its menu.

“There are very distinct kinds, whereas before it was pink or strawberry,” said shift leader Carolyn Manney, a communication senior.

Tea can even be used for slimming down. General Nutrition Center, a health food and supplement store, sells dieter’s tea in regular, lemon, cranberry and cinnamon flavors.

The main ingredient is senna, an herb used as a laxative, so many people buy dieter’s tea for laxative purposes rather than dieting, employees said.

One of the most popular teas nowadays is chai, an Indian spiced milk tea, Manney said.

“Chai is really big - everyone gets that,” she said. “A lot of people freaked out to try it, but it’s really, really popular.”

Chai comes in many flavors, from chocolate to Masala spice to Gujarati.

Another new favorite is green tea, a tea with dozens of varieties touted for their health benefits.

“A lot of people ask about green tea now,” Manney said.

Beaner’s makes a peppermint chamomile tea specially for those feeling under the weather.

“It’s supposed to make you feel better,” said shift leader Amber Paulen, a child development junior. “I only suggest it for sick people.”

Aside from health benefits, many people just like to drink tea for the taste - or tastes. With hot and cold options, fruity flavors and different textures, teas cater to all kinds of taste buds.

Lynch has tried lemon tea and tea zing - a cold tea with a texture similar to a slushee - in mango and berry flavors.

“It’s pretty good: You still have a little bit of the normal tea taste, but it’s fruity so it’s not icky,” he said.

Reddy has tried lemon zing, apricot and Earl Grey teas. Earl Grey is a popular English tea.

Although he likes trying out different flavors, Reddy usually only drinks tea while studying.

“I get it off and on, usually when I go out to cafes,” he said.

For those lacking time to go out and get a cup or pot of tea, ready-to-drink teas in cans and bottles, such as Arizona teas and Lipton iced teas, can be found in grocery store aisles.

“I think the teas like Arizona teas have really turned on the heat,” Lynch said. “When I started college in ’89, I never saw tea in the beverage section of the grocery store.

“America wants a lot of energy, and (bottled and canned teas) are the fad.”

But the market for tea has always been good, Snyder said.

“It’s a pretty good spread,” he said. “Older people would drink more of the teas. The age for drinking teas for the main market would be middle-aged to older.”

For younger people, the low price of tea - especially in comparison to coffee - is probably a big draw, Lynch said.

“It’s a little bit cheaper - you can get more water and keep using the tea bag,” he said.

Reddy said the small cost is what appeals to him.

As he poured himself some tea, he said he has not noticed many people doing the same.

“But it’s kind of hard to tell if they just get a cup and they don’t get a pot,” he said.

Although the choices have become numerous - caffeinated or not, flavored or not, loose or bagged - many tea drinkers have a preferred tea, and their taste doesn’t change, Paulen said.

“It’s the same,” she said. “Especially the Earl Grey people. They tend to stay the same.”

And unless people are trying to end a coffee addiction, they usually don’t switch between tea and coffee, Manney said.

“Tea drinkers are tea drinkers. That’s what they always get,” she said.