How to make the perfect pot of tea

The best way to make tea is to use boiling water. The important point is for the water to be boiling when you pour it over the tea, either in a cup, mug  or best of all, a teapot. By doing this you obtain the most flavor from the tea. The longer that you leave tea to brew, the more bitter tasting tannin will be enter into the water.  Using a microwave to heat your water is slower, can be dangerous and produces a lower quality tea and is not advised. 

Best results are obtained using loose tea in a teapot rather than teabags. I appretiate that tea bags are simple and convienient to use but loose tea is not ground as fine as the tea in tea bags so it has more room to circulate in the pot. In addition, the finer ground tea used in tea bags allows for more bitter tannin to be released - so for a perfect cup of tea - loose tea wins every time. But don't forget to use a tea strainer to avoid getting tea leaves in your cup.

1. Use one teaspoon of loose tea per person plus one for the pot. 
2. Use fresh water because when water is re-boiled it loses oxygen which prevents the full flavor of the tea being released.
3. We suggest warming the pot first! This helps the brewing process by maintaining the brewing temperature for longer, to extract more flavour from the tea. It is very important to use boiling water to make the tea. Water which is not boiling does not allow the tea to brew properly.
4. Brew for 4-5 minutes as using a shorter time will not allow the full flavor to develop. Longer brewing will result in a bitter tasting tea as Tannin will start to be extracted from the tea leaves.
5. Stir the tea in the pot once while it is brewing. Note about using tea bags – the same basic rules apply as for loose tea. But you will get best results brewing in a pot. If you must brew in a cup then brew for a much shorter time, say - 2 - 3 minutes.

Enjoy your tea!

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Drinking three or more cups of tea a day is as good for you as drinking plenty of water and may even have extra health benefits, say researchers.

The work in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition dispels the common belief that tea dehydrates.

Tea not only rehydrates as well as water does, but it can also protect against heart disease and some cancers, UK nutritionists found. Read more at the BBC article http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/5281046.stm