Drinking nice teas are equivalent to drinking fine wines, once you do it, there’s no going back. But preparing a nice cup of tea is far more complex than pouring a glass of wine. With wine, it’s important to store it at the proper temperature. With tea, the same applies. It’s important to consider a few factors when preparing a cup of tea.
The water temperature and quality are important, and most teas can be prepared with a temperature between 185 to 212 degrees. Absolutely use of filtered water. Recently I was visiting a friend and did not have my electric water heater. I will admit that I was a little uncomfortable not knowing the temperature of the water. If you boil your water on the stove, keep in mind that the boiling point is usually 212 degrees.
The next factor to consider is how much of the tea is required. Some teas recommend a teaspoon where others recommend a tablespoon. If you are not sure, as a rule of thumb, I usually look at the size of the leaves. For example, my Sleep tea, an herbal blend with rose petals and chamomile, the petals are larger than the typical tea leaves, therefore a tablespoon would be appropriate.
How long should the tea steep is the final step to consider. Steep time is usually 3-5 minutes. With green tea, I pay close attention to steep time because I don’t want the tea to taste bitter if steeped too long. But for some of the other teas, I may allow it to steep under tea light for a while because it gets better with time.
My hope is that you will enjoy every cup of tea.
