This is a guide for all people out there who have to make tea. Quite possibly you don’t drink tea; instead, like all the other sheep out there, you drink coffee (“oh, I need the caffeine, yeah, I do, I can’t work without it“) or more likely you just buy it at a ridiculously over-inflated price from Starbucks. But you may have to make a round of teas at work, or someone you invite over may want a cup of tea instead of a coffee. This is a simple guide to doing it.
There are lots of guides to making tea out there on the web and in books. They’ll tell you to put the milk in first, or put it in last, to choose Earl Grey tea, or Lapsang, or green tea. This is not one of those guides. It’s an instruction on how to make a single cup of tea, in a cup, with an ordinary tea bag. No Russian Caravan or Assam or anything. Just ordinary tea, like PG Tips or Typhoo or Yorkshire Tea. Here’s the guide.
- Put a tea bag in a cup
- Boil some water
- When the water boils, AND WHILE IT IS STILL BOILING, pour it over the tea bag
- Add milk and sugar to taste
That’s it. That’s all you have to do. If you make the tea while the water is actively boiling, it’ll always be pretty reasonable. If the water is not actively boiling, then it doesn’t matter which tea you’re using or when you put the milk in, your tea will taste like ditchwater piss. Boil the water!
This has been a public service announcement on behalf of people sick of drinking shit tea. Thank you.
The one thing people don’t bother with (especially in ‘coffee houses‘) is that you need to boil FRESH WATER. This thrice boiled stuff in an urn is no good. The water needs oxygen in it to brew the tea properly! Gah!
Thanks for the opportunity to rant!
Posted by Jon Hicks on March 25th, 2005.
I can almost hear you yelling while reading it.
:-D
Posted by kNo' on March 25th, 2005.
Jon: good call. I didin’t say that because I don’t go to coffee houses, so I forgot; any place that uses a kettle automatically uses hot water. Consider Jon’s point about using fresh water to be added to the main post :)
Posted by sil on March 26th, 2005.
You might want to take the tea bag out before you add your milk and sugar…..
Of course, “proper” tea drinkers drink only from leaf without milk and sugar. ;)
Posted by mrben on March 26th, 2005.
Well I think that when making tea in a pot one shouldn’t boil the water. Firstly add boiling water to a pot then allow the boiling to subside. Add a teabag or two. Leave over a warm stove for 5 minutes, to allow the tea to draw but don’t let the little teapot boil stir if necessary. Add milk and sugar to taste.
Just my opinion
Posted by Wesley on March 26th, 2005.
As a person who doesn’t drink tea (at least the yucky white stuff with sugar) or coffee I can see where you are coming from.
The only thing worse that white tea is stewed white tea with three sugars ;-)
I drink some quality teas (weak and black, as I presume MrBen does) and lots of fruit teas. I have had nutters add milk to those!
We have a water cooler/hotter at home so we always have fresh hot water on tap. As a househusband I have to make sure I have the office environment on tap ;-) (pun intended)
Posted by sparkes on March 26th, 2005.
mrben: “You might want to take the tea bag out before you add your milk and sugar…..” Hell, no. The tea is brewing while you’re adding the milk and sugar. You have to take it out before you drink it, though :)
Anyone who’s drinking leaf tea shouldn’t need to be told that the water needs to be boiling. If they do need to be told then they’re only drinking leaf because it looks posh, not because it’s nicer, and pretentious dicks like that can just get lost. :)
Posted by sil on March 27th, 2005.
Generally, I am a coffee drinker, although I have the occasional cup of tea. I’m afraid I normally succumb to the evils of milk and 2 sugars, although I recently stopped putting sugar in coffee, and tea will likely follow. I may even take to drinking it black, which is how my parents have always drunk it (from leaf, using a nifty little metal sphere into which you put the leaf, and then suspend it in the pot.
Suffice to say, tea from leaf from a pot far surpasses that from a bag in a mug, but we are slaves to convenience, are we not?
Posted by mrben on March 28th, 2005.
Also try and give Rooibos tea a go.
You can drink it with/without milk. Also great in summer to brew a pot and leave it in the fridge with the bags still in it. There are no tannins, so it doesn’t get bitter.
Me, I drink coffee, ‘English’ tea and Rooibos, all depends on the time of day. Just a pain for me to have to buy tea at the British Store here in NL.
(BTW, totally nifty comment preview!)
Posted by epoz on March 28th, 2005.
I found myself just screaming “Yes! That’s how to do it! Why don’t people know this?!?” while reading your post …
Posted by davee on March 29th, 2005.
davee: clearly they don’t, though, which is why I wrote it :)
Posted by sil on March 29th, 2005.
sil: Mrs Davee doesn’t drink tea and never makes any for anyone else (not a criticism, just a fact really – and I have to say nice things ‘cos she might be reading this later …). However, even she knows that the water has to be boiling, not boiled.
Posted by davee on March 29th, 2005.
I don’t agree that the tea bag has to stay in while the milk and copious sugar is added. That’s not how I’ve made tea for you in the past anyway. Tea bag tea is so fine that it hardly needs any time to brew at all: 30 seconds, a quick stir and get it out of there.
Posted by Tom on March 30th, 2005.
Whilst I applaud your stance on the boiling water. I do think there needs to be some guidance on Tea bag infusion duration. Although not everyone would agree on a duration a good guideline should be anything from 30 seconds to a couple of minutes (sometimes more). Of course this would depending upon whether a preliminary squeeze and stir was used to kick of the infusion process.
Posted by A Stranger on March 31st, 2005.
It should also be noted that weak tea is different from milky tea. Weak tea is tea that is not infused for long, whereas milky tea is tea with a lot of milk in. People often make that mistake.
Posted by mrben on April 1st, 2005.
It’s just tea!
Posted by Dave on April 7th, 2005.
Dave: you’re wrong. Just wrong. Sorry. :)
Posted by sil on April 7th, 2005.
How to make a good cup of tea
Posted by Aquarion on April 7th, 2005.
Tea is a very emotional subject is it not? There have been wars over it for goodness sake. I personally can’t get by w/out my cuppa. I’ll have it anyway, milky, strong, sweet, not and I love all kinds. Green, herbal, roasted and all kinds the Japanese throw at you. Milky and tepid at Grandma’s house, strong billy tea done over the camp fire and , when you’re a new mum, microwaved for the nth time just to get a hot drink. I’ve recently discoverd ‘stick tea‘…I think it’s just a nicer way of doing the teabag in a cafe….but it’s very cute anyway.
Posted by Beatrice on May 23rd, 2005.
An important point about the LENGTH OF THE BREWING is missed out, I think. If the brew is too short the tea is weak, and even with just a little bit of milk will taste like crap. Brewed TOO LONG is almost WORSE. The tea ends up with a really rich, sickly smell, especially when the milk is added, and basically this is an undrinkable cup of tea. You can try to resurrect the tea by pouring some of the overbrewed stuff out and replacing it with fresh boiling water, but BEWARE this technique takes some time to master, so it is best to practise it one yourself for a while. One final point, the quality of a cuppa can be told by the smell of the cuppa after milk and sugar should be added. It should smell neither to thin (weak) or too rich (overbrewed). But I AM PARTICULAR about my TEA.
Posted by George on July 21st, 2005.
NEVER put milk in hot anything you will scald it. After you tea steeps pour it high (oxygen) and slow on the milk
Posted by Doug on August 11th, 2005.
I am an American and hated tea because I thought it was shitty, but yesterday was the first time I boiled the water first…it’s God-like. I am now a fan of tea. I bought Twinings “Earl Grey” and was wondering if I do decided to add milk how much do I put in?
Posted by Chris on October 4th, 2005.
Chris: I don’t put milk in Earl Grey, although I do add sugar. I only put milk in ordinary tea (you might find it called “English breakfast tea” or something similar); milk will overwhelm Earl Grey’s flavours and make it taste like ordinary tea, and then you’ve wasted the extra money you spent on the Earl Grey. For ordinary tea, put a dash of milk in; the resultant fluid should be a warm brown colour.
Posted by sil on October 4th, 2005.
Does anyone like their tea with lots of milk and allowing the teabag having minimum contact with the cup. Just enought to taste? Am I alone in this? I am at work, they pick on me for my ‘apparently bad’ tea making skills. They have 3 sugars and tea so strong it looks like coffee. Help me.
Posted by Kerry on November 2nd, 2005.
No, no one does. You are beyond help.
Posted by Jon on November 2nd, 2005.
The perfect way to make tea is of course with leaf tea and freshly drawn and boiling water poured into a pot. You then pour the brewed tea onto the milk in the cup (in my opinion, it doesn’t matter if you add the milk first or last - but pouring the tea onto the milk removes the need to stir!).
Nonetheless, a good cuppa can be achieved without a pot as long as you don’t do anything stupid. Stupid things I’ve seen done:
1. Using stale water.
NO NO NO. Why do you leave your kettle with water in it? Do you LIKE limescale? This is why your tea has flakes floating in it (the tannic acid reacts with the salts that precipitate out of stale water)
2. Using reboiled water
NOOOOO! Boiling the water to death removes the oxygen, which is needed in the boiling process. More to the point - why did you boil more than you needed the first time around? Think of the electricity bill and the environment!
3. Putting the milk and teabag in the mug first, then pouring on the water.
OH DEAR GOD, NO! Boiling water scalds the milk, changing it’s texture. Don’t do it.
4. Putting milk, teabag and cold water in mug, then microwaving the lot.
WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? I thought only Americans did this, until a non-teadrinking girlfriend did this right before my eyes. I nearly wept.
5. Adding sugar without tasting the tea first
OK, this is a personal thing. But I don’t see the point in taking a beautiful cup of tea and then adding so much sugar it makes your teeth rattle. I sometimes add a little sugar to chai tea (which is already quite sweet), but would never add it to, say, a darjeeling or a lady grey.
6. Confusing weak and milky
This isn’t a difficult concept. Weak means hardly brewed, milky means, er, lots of milk. The two aren’t the same. I personally make heavy, black teas (e.g. assam) very strong, but with quite a lot of milk. With milder teas (darjeeling for instance), I add much less milk, but also brew less fully to avoid bitterness. For really fragrant teas, I think skipping milk altogther is a good idea.
7. Thinking lapsang souchong is horrible
I like it.
Posted by AndyMac on November 2nd, 2005.
Ladies and Chaps,
I am an American completely devoted to the tradition of tea. I brew loose tea in a Brown Betty pot, the best vessel attainable. Adding sugar to tea is abominable. I used to add a touch of milk but abandoned that practice on the basis that it blankets tea’s complexity. If I must use tea bags, Yorkshire Gold is my blend of choice. It is incomparably flavourful.
C.M. Jones
Posted by C.M. Jones on November 22nd, 2005.
Hello American Man what is a Brown Betty Pot? As for your well articulated view of how you like your tea well I myself am coming round the idea of a more tasteful cup of tea although my fellow colleagues choice of teabag is open for debate.
You should visit the Cutty Sark, it’s tea clipper! perfect for a tea tantalising time!
Posted by Kerry on November 24th, 2005.
Kerry,
The Brown Betty teapot is handcrafted in Stradfordshire, England, and has been the British teapot of choice for centuries. It maintains heat exceptionally well, and its construction allows the tea leaves to swirl as you pour boiling water over them, negating the need for stirring.
In accordance with its name, the Brown Betty teapot is brown. It is difficult to come by in the States. I found mine at a British provisions shop in Dallas, Texas. But they are abundantly available on the Internet. I urge you to procure one.
C.M. Jones
Posted by C.M. Jones on December 2nd, 2005.
I live in the states and while I’ve always enjoyed a good cup of tea, I recently gave up coffee for the most part in favor of the health benefits tea has to offer. During a recent trip to Chinatown in San Fran, I picked up some loose Jasmine-scented white tea, named Dragon Pearl Jasmine, from the Red Blossom Tea Company. It was the first time I had tried loose tea and wow - what a difference a tea bag makes - or rather, a lack thereof.
I usually take my tea with a touch of sugar or add nothing at all, unless I’m enjoying a dessert tea, to which I’ll add both milk and a fair amount of sugar. My parents drink green tea with lemon and honey, which I cannot stand! Is there anyone else out there who feels that honey is meant to be no where near a cup of tea? It not only creates a sickly aroma, but gives the beverage a taste that is quite uncomplimentary. I understand there are many antioxidants in honey, which I do enjoy in other foods, however, I cannot bring myself to stir it into my cuppa.
I have yet to purchase a quality teapot, as my husband is still quite addicted to java and I am usually only making one serving at a time, so I just use a single infuser ball, to which I add boiling water from the kettle and let the tea steep for about 3 minutes. I’ve read that the water for white tea should be slightly less than boiling, however, as it is such a light tea, I find that the hotter the water, the stronger and more flavorful the tea - no matter what type it is.
I highly reccomend the loose tea available at Red Blossom’s website : redblossomtea.com, and while it is a bit pricey, it is the best white tea I have yet to try and their loose tea leaves can be steeped 2-3 times, according to their site, which is near impossible to do with a tea bag.
I recently read that re-boiling your water is a no-no and have since made sure to refresh the water in the kettle before heating it up again when refilling my cup. I can’t say that I’ve noticed a difference but the explanation as to why it should definitely makes sense.
Posted by April on December 30th, 2005.
All I drink is tea, and at home we use a teapot. However, at university my tea tastes terrible. I make it in a cup, and if I add the milk before the water, its disgusting, but if I add the milk afterwards, I always get a weird skin on top.
Also, I have a huge limescale problem here - are kettles that use water filters first any good?
Posted by Abi on January 8th, 2006.
Can anyone tell me where to buy a TRUE Brown Betty teapot these days? It seems the only place they sell them is on BBC America - and only to Americans. In England there are plenty on sale that claim to be the real thing but aren’t. The right type of clay with a Rockingham glaze is what makes a Brown Betty. And it has to be made by an English potter - not ‘Caledonian ceramics’ or such like. I’d be grateful if anyone could help.
Posted by Edward on January 10th, 2006.
I just returned yesterday from a brief business trip to San Francisco during which I stumbled upon the Red Blossom Tea shop at 831 Grant Avenue in Chinatown. It is worth planning a trip to SF just to visit this shop where the quality of the teas is outstanding. Alice and Peter who have taken over the shop from their parents are so gracious with their time, and the depth of their knowledge about tea is astounding for such young people. Although he was running late for an appointment Peter still took the time to sit down and prepare several oolong teas for my tasting - and what teas. With reference to all the discussion about tea pots etc., Peter steeped the tea in the Chinese manner in a small covered bowl which he then strained into a small glass tea pot and poured into the small ceramic cups. After all its the water (if you have a lot of minerals in your local water use bottled water) and the quality of the leaf that produces a great cup of tea. Although they don’t retain heat very long I personally like a glass pot so I can study the tea leaves as they unfurl as they steep. Also Peter told me that he thought oolong should be steeped in water at 195 degrees which is lower than boiling and that green teas should be prepared in even cooler water. And of course never cover the taste of a good tea with milk or sugar.
Posted by Nickolas on January 26th, 2006.
First, all who have written on this sight, save for the last entry by Nicklolas, have presupposed there is only one type of tea, black. Very little subtle flavor remains of the essence of the beautiful bud when processed to death. Try some of the Oolongs and greens out there.
Second, the “Brown Betty” is named so because the popular brown, cilindrical-style teapot found in England in the 18th and 19th centuries was seemingly in every home. It’s named “Brown” because of its color and “Betty” because that was the most common name of another item found in so many homes, the housekeeper/maid.
Posted by Michael on February 2nd, 2006.
Coffee is by far a superior beverage. Tea, even when of the highest quality, is minimally flavorful. Also, coffee is significantly more stimulating than tea. I predict that Britain will consume more coffee than tea within the next century or so. London already has more Starbucks locations than New York. The entire globe is becoming little more than a corporate campsite.
Posted by American Revolution on February 16th, 2006.
Mr American Revolution…
Tea rocks! Without tea where would we be?
It contains antioxidant which are very good for the human body.
and it’s cheaper than coffee.
Onto the subject of the vast amount of coffee shops there are, we may have that many in London but like most things it doesn’t mean they are any good.
Long live tea!
Posted by Kerry on February 28th, 2006.
I shall reply to American Revolutions post in a like mind set:
Shut up you arrogant yank pig!
Coffee is not superior, just because thousands of morons want to all be little Alley MqSqueals drinking their “orgasmic” coffee doesn’t make it better.
Tea is more varied, you have fruit teas, jasmin teas, lemon teas, strong, weak you name it. All Coffee has is variations that image concious muppets care about, skinny mocha latte??? What the fuck is this? What happened to black or white with or without suger, its the same watered down nasty shit that its always been just these pricks are conned into paying top dollar. If you need the stimulation this liquid ciggarette gives you then your life needs some substance!
So instead of posting here I’d recommend that your time is better spent licking and kissing the corporate ass of starbucks. Enjoy!
Posted by Jon on February 28th, 2006.
My dear Jon, although it is fashionable to denounce Americans, your response need not be so acidic. First, I have nothing against a good cup of tea. I simply prefer coffee. Second, in no manner do I wish to insult my British brethren. Although I was spawned in the United States, my heritage is primarily English, and I adore the UK beyond expression. I apologize if I have inflicted unintended offense.
As a point of clarification, I should like to add that I am not a patron of Starbucks. On the contrary, I mourn its popularity. It is overpriced, and its coffee is exceedingly strong. I prefer to take coffee at home.
Posted by American Revolution on March 1st, 2006.
mrben–you sound like you know a little bit about making and drinking tea. Personally, I like to use unbandaged (loose) tea in the pot, boiling water (gotta be boiling), and steep it. Half a teaspoon of sugar, bu no milk. Milk ruins the taste of the tea.
Posted by Linda on March 9th, 2006.
Why all the fuss about tea bags? No self respecting Brit would make “tea” with a bunch of bandaged crap called “tea.” Use a Brown Betty pot and BOILING water, and let it steep until it’s the strength you want. Sweeten it if you must, but for God’s sake don’t ruin it by putting milke in it.
Posted by Linda on April 21st, 2006.
A blanket statement of “Use boiling water to make tea, not water that has been boiled,” is wrong. The optimum temperature of the water at which to brew tea is not the same for all tea types. Black, oolong, green, and white teas all have varying optimum temperatures. Maybe when brewing black tea boiling water is appropriate, but for others it’s ‘just steaming’ and for another it’s ‘right before boiling’.
Posted by Ching Lee on April 24th, 2006.
Ching Lee: I don’t care about oolong or green or white teas for the purposes of this post. While I drink and enjoy all the above, what I’m trying to tell people about here is how to just make me a cup of tea when they offer one. Anyone who even knows what oolong *is* will know that these rules may be broken in certain cases.
Posted by sil on April 25th, 2006.
use tea bags ONLY when you absolutely have to (ie when you’re traveling) and if you do have to use a bag, choose a good brand like PG Tips. Otherwise, explore the wonderful world of loose tea. Tea bags vs. loose tea is like black & white vs. technicolor. Do a word search on “how to make a proper cup of tea” or something similar to learn how to do it up right. The finest tea is a waste of time and money if not prepared properly. Find a knowledgable loose tea vendor online. My favorite is thebeanon41.com. in Punta Gorda Florida. The wife is native Scottish and they truly love tea. They have about 80 teas in stock. Learn to prepare great tea and truly embrace your teatime, and in no time you won’t be able to live without it. My day just doesn’t feel right if I haven’t had tea. Just for the record, alas, I’m American :)
Posted by pittz on May 2nd, 2006.
Hello everyone,
As someone, that has just left the beautiful country of “England”. Some other gents as well as my self got the pleasure of having some true home made “EARL GREY” tea. And I have to say, there is no place in the US; that can make a cup like true tea drinkers!
This is my little way of preparing a cup!
1. Fresh distilled bottled water brought to a boil
2. Pre warm, your tea pot with boiling water then empty
3. If you use bags the quality is not the same but oh well,
1 bag per cup.
4. Put your bag(s) in the pot then pour the freshly boiled
water (caution not to let it boil to long) over the bags
as fast as possible
5. Let stand for 3-5 mins then serve.
Hopefully every on will enjoy this post,
Thanks for the time,
Earl
“Fair Winds Be To Ye”
Posted by Earl on July 13th, 2006.
i will vomit this tea.
Posted by ishita on August 7th, 2006.
[...] Boiling! Boil the water! How hard can this be? [...]
Posted by as days pass by » Search Query Theatre on September 12th, 2006.
milk is last u limp wristed tea drinker
Posted by Mr. Caffy on December 9th, 2006.
who actually cares about this!! you people are seriously crazy…
Posted by YOURALLFREAKS on January 6th, 2007.
There’s no such thing as one proper way to make tea. It depends on the type of tea, the water, what’s added and, most of all, personal preference. There’s plenty of advice, of course, for those new to tea-making but everybody eventually hits on their own personal brew and that’s it - nobody else’s tea will ever come up to scratch. If you’re British and have been drinking the stuff all your life then odds on your preference was fixed as a child, though you might experiment a bit in later years. I drink my black tea sometimes with milk, sometimes with fruit juice added (apple is lovely) and I like green tea too, always with fruit juice (otherwise I find it too bitter and I don’t like to add sugar).
As for coffee, well, it’s ok but has nowhere near the refreshing quality of tea, IMO. Also coffee has a very distinctive taste and smell, but for me that’s part of the problem - it’s taste tends to overpower anything you might be eating at the same time, where tea is more inclined to complement food. Tea and a salad sandwich - lovely! Coffee and a salad sandwich - nope, not in the same league.
Posted by Dimsie on January 21st, 2007.
The reason for heating the teapot before making the tea was to prepair the old type of pot years ago to stop it cracking now days this is not necessary. Is this right?
Trev.
Posted by Trev on May 2nd, 2008.
Trev: nope. A taste test will help here; simply try making a pot of tea in a warmed pot and a pot of tea in an unwarmed pot. The unwarmed one tastes different; not quite as nice, a bit more tannin-ish. To be honest, I’m not worried about why this is the case: it just is the case, so warm the pot. Try it yourself; if you can’t tell the difference then feel free to ignore advice about pot-warming.
Posted by sil on May 2nd, 2008.
Hi!
Great article. I enjoyed reading this since tea making is a big interest of mine.
I grew up in the faroe islands where almost all people drink black typhoo tea or sometimes Tetley. The water is very soft, no calc or lime scale.
In Denmark where I live now we suffer from hard water and get lot of lime scale in the cup.
Furthermore Typhoo tea, pg tips, yorkshire tea, and tetley is not obtainable in Denmark, just in special stores. In stead a dutch brand called Pickwick is dominating the market, and they have hundreds of different tea’s that are all awfull and taste terrible.
So I missed my good cup of typhoo for years, but then I found it in a special store, but I was disappointed it did not taste the same. I blamed this on the water. For years I experimented but still could not get it to taste like I remember it.
But I never gave up, somehow Yorkshire tea, and Tetley (has a lot of assam tea, which tastes great in hard water), and Pg tips taste slightly better. Somehow Typhoo is for soft water.
So I thought. Now I have begun to wonder, because if this is the case then why is it so popular in UK where there is alot of hard water???
This is beyond me.
Another mystery is that yorkshire tea which tastes fantastic is available in a hard water version. Why on earth do they sell a hard water version when there are some many areas in the UK with hard water, and only few with soft water?
So they sell soft water tea for hard water regions?
Another mystery is that typhoo tea makes a version of their for wales (granite mountains) for soft water.
The latter prooves to me that typhoo tea was designed for hard water, but in the faroes it it the best sold tea and as explained earlier we only have soft water in the faroes.
I hope someone can see my point.
I am drinking a cup of pg tips now and it tastes fine but there is a lot of lime scale in the cup.
Posted by Fridrikur Ellefsen on July 2nd, 2008.
Guess I was wrong about the hard water. Makes more scence to me.
From this website I learned that soft water is more common in the uk:
http://www.yorkshiretea.co.uk/content.asp?storyid=%7B4F9CC54B%2D9E8B%2D4093%2D8850%2D1435FC3C6E41%7D&from=ourteas
Posted by Fridrikur Ellefsen on July 2nd, 2008.