The crisp little tea shop at 12th and Mountain was too sunny and too new to drive by. Plus, it was open on a Sunday. And so Sophie and I chatted up the proprietor of Albuquerque's newest tea shop, a visionary guy named David Edwards.

David opened New Mexico Tea Company about 2 months ago in what real-estate types are calling "an up-and-coming" part of Albuquerque's downtown. Indeed, signs of gentrification are everywhere -- from the numerous art galleries on Mountain to David's tea shop itself, all spotless and linear.

Tea snobs may wish for more loose-leaf selections, but the offerings are hardly sparse. [NOTE: This was written when we first opend, we are exclusively bulk loose leaf now]

Sophie and I sipped oolong and rooibos. We lusted after those expando blooming tea blossoms and some pretty ceramic tea sets. Ultimately, we took home a pomegranate white tea (Sophie) and a tangerine oolong (me). I'm drinking the oolong right now, in fact, and it's pretty darn great, especially if you mingle it all up in your mouth with a bite of Maya Gold chocolate from the Coop. Check out the place for yourself and let us know what you think.

UPDATE: I drank so much oolong last night that I couldn't fall asleep til 4 AM, which makes makes me one overly satisfied customer.