How to make loose leaf tea?

Get the answers to the basic questions about brewing tea.

Tea Brew FAQ
What temperature should the water be? Most black teas do best in boiling water. Green and white teas prefer hot, but not boiling, water. It all comes down to how oxidized the leaves are: black teas are more oxidized and can handle the hot, hot heat.

How long should the tea stay in the water?

Anywhere from one to five minutes, based on personal preference. For bracing black teas, two to three minutes is the recommended time for this process, called “steeping.” Too much steeping can produce a mouth-puckeringly bitter brew. But, hey, maybe that’s the way you like it!

Does it matter what I steep the tea in?

Your tea cup will work fine, though the steeping will be affected by the type of cup and the temperature of the room. If you’re getting serious about tea, consider investing in an unglazed earthenware teapot. These brew the tea faster and more consistently.

The Three Types of Tea
Tea is the processed leaves (along with twigs and buds) of the tea plant Camellia sinensis, a bush native to warm, rainy climates. Processing freshly harvested tea leaves begins the same for all types of tea. Fresh leaves are sorted out, cleaned, and allowed to wither. From there, a few nuances come into play.

Black—English Breakfast, Earl Grey, Darjeeling, Assam

The most common kind of tea, black tea leaves are allowed to ferment before being dried. Westerners call it “black tea” because of the dark color of the leaves. The Chinese know it as “red tea” because of the reddish color of the liquid. Black tea tends to have depth of flavor and lack bitterness.

• Most teas from India (Darjeeling, Assam) are black.
• Earl Grey is black tea scented with bergamot.

Green—Gunpowder, Tencha

From the same plant as black tea leaves, green tea leaves are steamed and dried directly after being picked to prevent fermentation, which develops a light, gently bitter flavor much like the fresh leaves themselves. Japan is a leading producer of green tea.

Oolong—Formosa Oolong

Partially fermented large-leaf tea, oolong tea is delicate in flavor, occasionally scented with rose petals, jasmine, or gardenia. Formosa, Taiwan, is an important producer of oolong tea.

Loose-Leaf Tea
Until the middle of the 20th century, there were no tiny cloth bags of individually parceled tea. For thousands of years, the leaves and buds were either placed in a tea pot or were held in a tea infuser (a tea ball, for example). For tea-making perfectionists, there is no comparison: it is loose-leaf tea or nothing.