Tea: Hot Drink of Geek Elite

Silicon Valley’s tastemakers are trading coffee for the soothing sensation of fine tea, reports Wired. The same tech giants who helped fuel the Starbucks craze are flocking to expensive teas, and tea lounges are popping up in the Bay Area to meet the demand. “It’s the new social lubricant,” said one tearoom owner. “You’re never hung over and you can never drink too much.”

Digg creator Kevin Rose is among the converts to rare blends, which can cost as much as $140 an ounce. He has a Twitter account dedicated to the beverage and stocks Digg's offices with $1,000 of tea a month. “You want to turn to something really natural and from the Earth,” says Rose. “Once you start consuming tea it makes sense: This is the best of all worlds." (More tea stories.)