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Even the more casual tea drinkers know these days that loose leaf teas provide a better quality cup of tea, lacking in that "paper bag" taste that can often be experienced when drinking bagged tea. More and more companies are providing nylon mesh tea bags that impart less of that flavor, but there is still the issue of the tea leaves having little room to unfurl.One of the most common excuses for not jumping into the realm of loose leaf tea is that most people who've been making bagged tea for the entire span of their tea-drinking existence don't know how to conveniently and easily make a cup of loose leaf tea, which is all about knowing what equipment you need.
Traditional teaware varies, depending on the type of tea, but basic teaware to start off a journey into quality tea is less complicated. Many start with a tea infuser (often called a tea ball or sometimes a tea egg), but really, the typical tea infuser is still quite small and confining, and will likely hinder the proper diffusion of the tea leaves as they try to properly expand in the hot water.
My recommendations would include the following (itallics indicates what I used starting out):
1. Heating water:
- A regular tea kettle (just remember to take the water off the heat before boiling for green tea!)
- An electric tea kettle (if you'll forget to take the water off the heat before boiling)
- Water + mug + microwave (for the in-a-pinch-at-work method, undesirable but sometimes the only option)
2. Steeping loose tea leaves:- A teapot (just dump in the proper amount of loose leaf and pour in the hot water)
- A teapot with a large infuser inside (put tea in infuser, pour in hot water)
- An IngenuiTEA (just dump in tea and pour in hot water)
3. Separating tea from the leaves:
- Tea strainer over a mug
- Remove the infuser, if you chose to use one
- Place IngenuiTEA over mug, pressing down to release the tea through the built-in filter.
Once the tea is made, no special teaware is needed for the loose leaf novice, although finding quaint or quirky tea sets is always a lot of fun, and you may want to venture into the various traditional sets that are often used with different types of tea as your new love for unfettered tea grows.
These are not by any means the only options available for making loose leaf tea, but they are good options to start with that won't break the bank, so put away the tea bags and (if you haven't before) go make your first cup of bagless tea!
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6-17-2008 @10:35AM Christine said... Once you get hooked on loose green tea, this teapot is amazingly convenient:
http://www.adagio.com/teaware/utiliTEA_kettle.html?SID=0f2546a0f84d02e2c2234cfc91621354
It has a temperature control so you can set it to the optimal temp for green tea (140-180F, depending on the tea) and it'll automatically shut off. I have the 1.0 version, the 2.0 version on their web site looks pretty sleek, too.
Green tea junkies always have a $2 thermometer to test the water temp too. Or this fancy one from Upton Tea which is color coded for the type of tea you're using.
https://secure.uptontea.com/shopcart/item.asp?UTid=126-10-3300803&afterCart=/shopcart/item.asp&itemID=AR2
How 'bout another story on the best online tea purveyors? Upton Teas? Adagio Teas? Teasource? Ten Ren? Republic of Tea?
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6-17-2008 @12:38PM Melissa A. said... Can you use a french press to make tea? It might end up tasting like coffee though.
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6-23-2010 @5:38PM Michele said... You can buy a tea press. Some are cylindrical while others look like tea pots. Place the loose tea in the press. Once you add the boiling water and the tea is brewed long enough for your taste, it is time to press the leaves. Not hard at all.
6-17-2008 @12:42PM Brandice Schnabel said... Christine - great product links and great suggestions for future tea-related blog entries. :)
Melissa - You certainly can use a french press for making tea and some people do, although I'm not sure that they use the same french press they would normally use for coffee. I'm guessing it would be good use of a french press given as a gift to a non-coffee drinker. :)
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6-17-2008 @2:28PM Sean said... I used to have one of the lovely glass tea cups they sell at www.xiuxiantea.com. It was great for drinking loose tea at work, and just looked really cool (both the cup and the tea leaves unfurling inside it). Sadly, I knocked it over on my desk one day and the interior glass lining broke. I've since been too cheap to buy another. Still, I'd recommend one so long as you're careful with it.
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6-17-2008 @2:29PM Brandice Schnabel said... Sean, those ARE lovely teacups! :)
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6-18-2008 @9:45AM Will K said... I love loose leaf tea, but putting up for that IngenuiTEA goes against my inner cheapness, so I just use a covered tea cup to keep the leaves out of my mouth.
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6-18-2008 @10:51AM Christine said... Will K - you may like to try a gaiwan:
http://www.imperialtea.com/classroom/GaiwanPrep.asp
I first tried one at a Republic of Tea tasting class, they're really nice. Imperial Tea sells them too.
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6-18-2008 @11:41AM allVishal said... This may be a bit more 'brutal' than the methods described above, but the only things I need to make Indian chai is a saucepan, a tea strainer and some cups* to pour the results into.
*(or, to be more authentic, tiny 100ml clear glasses.)
Into the saucepan goes cold water and milk, loose black tea and sugar (I reserve the spices for later). Bring it to a boil, lower the heat, add in the spices and let it brew for a little longer, then turn off the heat and cover. Let it sit for a minute or two, then strain into glasses and enjoy.
The resultant drink is a lot stronger and perhaps inelegant compared to a carefully prepared green tea, but it's the best way to get an authentic roadside stall chai.
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6-18-2008 @11:53AM Brandice Schnabel said... Will - I agree with Christine... you might enjoy looking into gaiwans. :)
allVishal - great instructions for chai! :)
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