Taking Tea in the USA

[English]

Sometimes a tea bag makes perfect cup of tea.

Sometimes loose leaf tea makes a perfect cup of tea.

I don't think one is better than the other. However there can be a sort of snobbery or elitism that surrounds leaf teas.

Today in England, loose leaf tea is often cheaper to purchase than a good blended tea bag, which to me at least always makes me smile.

You can buy tea bags that only contain a specific type of tea but normally the tea bag is a blend of different tea types.

Historically, tea was blended in its loose state advantage. The tea bag offered the advantage of less mess.

Certainly if you try loose leaf teas, make sure you buy some of the real high quality Indian teas. The tastes can be amazing.

 

[Pricklycactus]

If you ever have to drink bagged tea again, Mighty Leaf is the best out there. I love their African Nectar. Stocked it when it was being discontinued by a store.

It has a pyramid shape and is made of silk so it brews much better than the paper ones and has no aftertaste. You can even get two cups out of one bag depending on the blend. It's pricier than other bagged but you are getting great quality.

They also have loose teas too but I have to order them online so I haven't tried those.

 

[English]

If you come to England, you can buy tea bags at whatever price bracket your budget can afford.

IT IS NOT A MATTER OF IF I HAVE TO DRINK BAGGED TEA AGAIN, it s a matter of choice.

The blenders who make OUR ENGLISH TEA know what they are doing and you get a consistant satisfying drink.

One day, you will appreciate these simple facts. Or then again, maybe you won't.

Not my problem.

 

[Pricklycactus]

If you come to England, you can buy tea bags at whatever price bracket your budget can afford.

IT IS NOT A MATTER OF IF I HAVE TO DRINK BAGGED TEA AGAIN, it s a matter of choice.

The blenders who make OUR ENGLISH TEA know what they are doing and you get a consistant satisfying drink.

One day, you will appreciate these simple facts. Or then again, maybe you won't.

Not my problem.

I am not sure why you are shouting and took offense to my suggestion...and also being insulting.

 

[English]

I am not sure why you are shouting and took offense to my suggestion...and also being insulting.

It's because of the words you chose to use. I found your comments to be demeaning and offensive and I am not easily annoyed.

But if you meant no offence I accept that, but please be more careful in the use of your mother tongue in future.

 

[Pricklycactus]

It's because of the words you chose to use. I found your comments to be demeaning and offensive and I am not easily annoyed.

But if you meant no offence I accept that, but please be more careful in the use of your mother tongue in future.

I am still not sure how you found my words offensive and it was meant more for the OP. For me, using tea bags is the only option at times but its not the best tasting and I suggested Mighty Leaf because it is very good tea. How that is offensive I don't know. I was merely trying to be helpful.

I explained why it was good and mentioned it was pricey because compared to other teas it is almost twice the price.

 

[English]

"If you ever have to drink bagged tea again".

65 million people in England drink bagged tea every day of there lives.

But thanks for your knowledgeable advice. I'm sure you are correct in everything you say.

 

[Pricklycactus]

"If you ever have to drink bagged tea again".

65 million people in England drink bagged tea every day of there lives.

But thanks for your knowledgeable advice. I'm sure you are correct in everything you say.

I can see why that can be misinterpreted. I meant that if the OP was wanting to drink bagged tea as he mentioned wanting to try loose, ML was a nice alternative if he wanted to have bagged tea again.

But there is no need to continue to be snarky as I have been trying to understand if there was a different way to reword it what I said.

 

[English]

OK, I take back my snarky comments.

 

[Phog Allen]

Maladoca's instructions are very good*. Two points though - you should warm the pot between steps one and two using hot water, poured out, before adding tea/water. Warm pot helps "loosen" the leaves up and reduces thermal shock when you add boiling water. More flavour comes out. This is especially important for green/white teas.

Second point is a bit more personal. For me - I don't like tea made in a press. The action of the press knocks extra tannin (bitter taste) out of the leaves. Some people like that though. Swings and roundabouts.

If you want to leave tea in a pot without it brewing further, in my opinion you need a pot where you can remove the leaves - something like this Bodum Assam Tea Pot I don't use the press bit of mine, I just lift the whole assembly out and put another lid on. For just one cup, incup infusers are excellent.

Leaf tea is to teabags what wetshaving is to an electric razor. I buy my tea from a proper tea merchant, although finding one of those in the US might be a challenge! Wilkinsons may well ship internationally if you ask them nicely though. [edit: I notice now, looking at their page, Wilkinsons actually have a US branch. I go their shop, not their website, is my excuse for not knowing that!]. Some good info on that site as well, worth a look around.

Green and white teas have one very important caveat - never, ever, ever, ever pour (near)boiling water onto green/white tea. Water should be - at maximum - 80C. The difference in taste is night and day. Green tea made with boiling/near boiling water can be very bitter. Made with water of the correct temperature, it's sweet and floral and delicious. Quality green/white tea leaves can be re-used in a single drinking session up to eight or nine times, each brew (or "flush") exposes different parts of the tea's flavour. The difference between the first and last flushes can be quite marked. Black/red teas should be replaced for each brew.

But - again like shaving - tea is very personal. Experiment, you'll find out what you like.

Some teas I like include (all should be available from Wilkinsons above):

Kenyan - very strong, astringent flavour. Often works best blended with something softer, like Ceylon. A good "English Breakfast" blend will include a little Kenyan for extra body.

Assam - beautiful, coppery tea from India. Superb colour, strong but subtle flavour. Again, important part of traditional English blends.

Morrocan mint - not just mint leaves. Also black tea. I serve it in tall glasses without milk and with a spoonful of sugar and a slice of lemon.

Norwich Blend - specially blended for where I live. Works well with the hard water we have here. My "go-to" tea. A classical English blend with kenyan, assam and ceylon teas.

Sencha Dawn - Japanese green tea. Floral, light, refreshing. Less bitter than most Japanese teas.

White teas - the champagne of teas. Subtle, light, delicate. Usually expensive, but worth it. Needs time to prepare, but I'm sure we're all aware of the value of spending some time going through a good ritual.


* not quite up to ISO 3103 Standard though

Johnny, I think you are going to fit in very well around here. I agree with you about the white teas. I have a jasmine pearl white tea I got from Charles at QED and it is sensational. At least to me. Remember, you are speaking to a tea neophyte. I also like your idea of just removing the tea leaves without further extraction. I absolutely love Taylor of Harrogate's Tippy Assam. Unfortunately, a communication with that company reveals it is no longer available but they do have another estate Assam that I will try. Anyroad, back to the point at hand. I love the "thickness" of the Tippy Assam. It is almost like a big malted cup of coffee in the morning. Very robust and I like that. Yet if I let it steep to long or accidentally squeeze the leaves a bit after extraction, it can get a decided bite to it.

I suppose I am something of heretic since I don't take milk or sugar with my teas but I like the natural flavours better. I am afraid to delve too far into teas since this will likely lead to another acquisition disorder I cannot feed. We have a local Brit store that carries the good stuff. Brits


Regards, Todd

 

[Doc4]

Johnny, I think you are going to fit in very well around here. I agree with you about the white teas. I have a jasmine pearl white tea I got from Charles at QED and it is sensational. At least to me. Remember, you are speaking to a tea neophyte. I also like your idea of just removing the tea leaves without further extraction. I absolutely love Taylor of Harrogate's Tippy Assam. Unfortunately, a communication with that company reveals it is no longer available but they do have another estate Assam that I will try. Anyroad, back to the point at hand. I love the "thickness" of the Tippy Assam. It is almost like a big malted cup of coffee in the morning. Very robust and I like that. Yet if I let it steep to long or accidentally squeeze the leaves a bit after extraction, it can get a decided bite to it.

I suppose I am something of heretic since I don't take milk or sugar with my teas but I like the natural flavours better. I am afraid to delve too far into teas since this will likely lead to another acquisition disorder I cannot feed. We have a local Brit store that carries the good stuff. Brits


Regards, Todd

Thank you for getting the thread back on track after an unpleasant snarky sidetrack.

 

[Phog Allen]

No problem Ian. Glad to oblige. Besides, you can learn a lot from these postings. Someone always posts a nice blend or brand you never knew about or were afraid to buy untried.

Regards, Todd

 

[Solemnsaint]

I have since starting this post, collected 5 different types of bagged teas and three loose leaf "Ball" teas. The ball teas are fun to watch unfold. Through these wonderfull posts, I have learned to brew green the correct way and I had my first non-bitter cup of green tea. It was great!!! I also bought this Irish Breakfast that is all Ceylon and It makes a great tea day after day. But MY favorite so far has been a Lady Grey from Twinings. I know I am just getting started. You guys have helped me with a new hobby. Thanks folks!
-Mike

 

[mikromicke]

Am I the only person who simply puts the leaves in the cup and add water? They float around for a while but settle at the bottom of the cup when it is starting to get to drinking temperature. I usually leave 1/4 of the cup for the next infusion. The different infusions vary a lot in taste which I guess is caused by the simple method I'm using?

 

[Solemnsaint]

Am I the only person who simply puts the leaves in the cup and add water? They float around for a while but settle at the bottom of the cup when it is starting to get to drinking temperature. I usually leave 1/4 of the cup for the next infusion. The different infusions vary a lot in taste which I guess is caused by the simple method I'm using?

Does that effect drinkability throughout the drink?

 

[Gruder]

I discovered oolong last night (Adagio's #8) -- where the heck had that been all my life?

 

[mikromicke]

Not entirely sure what you mean but I think the answer is no. You get different flavors/combination from the first and the third/fourth infusion but everything tastes nice.

Does that effect drinkability throughout the drink?

 

[SliceOfLife]

It depends on the teas really. And preference.

Really I don't follow any form.

Right now I use a cast iron pot, and a SS mesh insert for the tea. In EVERY other pot I could not use SS mesh, as I detected off notes in the tea (though SS logically shouldn't affect the taste at all). I've used bamboo mesh inserts (work decent, but also affect taste until well used). Glass inserts (Not enough flow usually). Loose tea and just let it settle in the cup before you drink. (What I use at my folks house when I visit them).

There are also powdered teas (Japanese Tea Ceremony style). That obviously are left in. Blooming teas (fancy expensive mushroom-looking wads of tea that are individual leaves hand-tied with silk thread so that they open to look like a flower while brewing) that are typically used in a glass pot (to watch them bloom) and stay in the pot. And I'm sure there are many more methods.


IMHO the best method is to just get a wide-spouted pot and let the tea settle. I've gotten to like the cast iron tea, but it definitely imparts it's own character to the tea, and dulls subtle tones in many of the greens I drink.

 

[andrew98]

Whatever you do, don't read any posts with the word pu'er in it.

You have been warned.

Too late.

If white teas are the champagne of teas, then pu'er is the Domaine de la Romanée Conti.

See, it's statements like this one that lead to new hobbies and cause ADs.

That said, I've been searching for an inexpensive yixing-type pot and looking for a place to buy pu'er in the UK. Does anyone have a lead or two?

-Andy

 

[andrew98]

...I've been searching for an inexpensive yixing-type pot and looking for a place to buy pu'er in the UK. Does anyone have a lead or two?

-Andy

I found some pu'er in the UK. Jing Tea carries a few varieties.

-Andy