How to Brew Loose Leaf Tea
It’s easier than you think.
A bag or tin of loose-leaf tea might seem intimidating. Maybe you got some tea as a gift and have no idea what to do with it. Or perhaps you’ve been wanting to try some high-end tea but don’t want to invest in a lot of fancy special equipment. If so, read on!
Making tea is simple.
You don’t need fancy specialized equipment or training to make a great cup of tea. When it comes down to it, tea is just leaves + water (hot or cold) + time. So don’t feel like you need to invest money in a bunch of high-end teaware. That said, if you like collecting teaware, join the club!
Some of my cute tea tools.
I love collecting tea things, but most days I just throw some tea in a strainer and set it in a cup.
There’s no right way to enjoy your cup.
Drinking tea is a very personal experience. The only right way to brew it is the way that you like. It’s always a good idea to start out following some standard guidelines, but you should feel free to play around with time, temperature, and amount of tea to find your sweet spot.
Each of our teas comes with brewing guidelines to get you started. From there, you can see if you like it stronger or weaker. Water temperature also plays a role, so I include guidelines for that, too. But as with anything, make it your own.
Water quality matters.
One thing that often gets overlooked in making tea is the importance of using good quality water. Filtered or spring water is best. I personally use a Pur filter pitcher that I keep on the kitchen counter. Tap water tends to have a high calcium content and can smell of chlorine, which will dull the flavor of the tea. Fancy mineral waters and alkaline waters may taste great on their own, but they can affect the flavor of tea in unexpected ways.
Hot tea
There are a lot of options for brewing a cup of hot tea. The absolute easiest is just adding hot water to loose tea in a cup and drinking it as-is. But most people prefer to strain out the leaves before drinking. For that, I find these little mesh tea strainers to be the best option. Just add leaves, pour in the water and steep, and then remove the basket when it’s ready.
A simple cup of tea
These individual cup strainers are perfect for everyday tea drinking.
You can also use reusable or single-use teabags, a small teapot with a built-in strainer, or just a regular kitchen strainer.
The only thing I do not recommend using is the ball-type tea strainers or any other tool that severely restricts the leaves’ ability to unfurl. They also tend to damage and crush whole leaf tea, which will greatly impact the final flavor.
Don’t squeeze the leaves. Give them space to breathe and relax.
Cold brew and iced tea
Sunrise on the Hudson makes a great iced tea.
I’ll probably write a whole other post on this topic, but the basic difference is that cold brew tea is never heated up, while iced tea is first brewed hot and then chilled.
To make cold brew, simply place your tea in a jar or pitcher, fill it with water, and put it in the fridge overnight. Cold brew is super forgiving, so even if you forget about it for a couple of days, it will still be delicious.
To make iced tea, brew an extra-strong cup by using 1.5 to 2 times the amount of tea you normally would, since you will dilute it with ice. After steeping for the normal amount of time, pour it over ice. Quick and refreshing!
What’s your favorite way to make a cup of tea? Are there any tea-brewing tips you’d like to see here? Let me know in the comments!