July 12, 2004, 2:54PM

EDITOR'S PICK

Herbal tea loses baggage and joins

the iced age

Buster Dean / Chronicle • Teaology green tea sachets • www.Teaology.com

Portable and stylish -- instant iced tea will never be the same, thanks to Teaology, whose motto is "tea without the baggage." A chatty wallet filled with six sachets of instant green tea extract; unique flavorings like rosemary citron and osmanthus flower; and plenty of feel-good messages -- depending on your tea selection either calming (Lavender Mint) or invigorating (Hawthorne Berry Sage) -- is struggling for a local presence. No takers yet in the Houston market, but the T Spot, 2444 Bolsover, is giving the product a serious taste test. The no-steeping, no-bag, no-caffeine, lightly Splenda-sweetened powder designed to be shaken into your favorite bottle (or large glass) of cold water is the herbal answer for the modern iced tea drinker -- the person who flits into express yoga classes late.

Basically, Teaology is instant iced tea with a lot of snap, tons of antioxidants and incredible panache. Currently available only on the Web.