How to Brew Tea with a Teapot

Brewing well-balanced, nice tasting tea is more than merely nuking hot water and throwing in a tea bag or two. This article will show you how to brew a proper spot of tea using the old, tried and true method of a tea pot.

Things You'll Need

• Tea Pot
• Heating Source
• Tea Ball (optional)
• Loose Tea or Tea Bags
• Water
• Measuring Spoon
• Strainer (optional)
• Second Pot (optional)

Instructions

Water Preparation

1. For the best results use artesian water and not tap as good water is crucial to great tasting tea.

2. Fill an empty kettle with cold water.

3. If you are using tap water instead of artesian water than allow the water to run from the faucet for 30 seconds so that it is fresh.

Preparing the Teapot

1. While your kettle of water is heating, fill your teapot with hot tap water to preheat the teapot is preheated.

2. You can also hold the teapot over the steaming water in the kettle.

3. Once the pot is warmed up you may discard the water.

Measuring the Tea

1. If you are using loose tea use approximately one teaspoon of tea leaves per cup into the pot.

2. If you are using an infuser the same rule applies so make sure your infuser is large enough for the amount of tea you will be using.

3. If you don't have loose tea, use one tea bag per 1-2 cups, depending on the size of the bag and personal preference.

Boiling the Water

1. As soon as the water comes to a boil, remove it from the heat. Overheating the water reduces its oxygen content and causes the tea to taste flat.

2. Immediately pour the water into the pot, cover, and let stand.

3. If using green or white tea, allow the water to cool slightly before pouring onto the leaves.

Steeping Your Tea

1. Small leaves brew more quickly and are usually ready in two to three minutes; medium leaves in three to five minutes; large leaves in six.

2. If you have used an infuser or tea bags, remove them from the pot when the tea has reached the desired strength.

3. If you placed loose leaves directly into the pot, you may want to pour the tea into a second warmed pot through a strainer to separate the tea from the leaves. This will prevent the tea from becoming bitter. But if you plan to pour all the tea into cups soon, simply place a strainer over the cup and pour slowly from the original pot.

Tips & Warnings

• Warming your teapot prevents cracking that can occur when boiling water is placed in a room temperature pot, and it helps the brewed tea maintain the proper temperature.

• At an altitude of 5000 feet, water boils at 202°F instead of 212°F, so you don't need to cool the water much.

• How long to steep depends on how strong you like your tea and the type of tea you're using.

• If you add lemon and sugar to your tea, add the sugar first, since the citric acid from the lemon will prevent the sugar from dissolving.

• Milk is often used in full-bodied teas such as India and Ceylon teas.

• Milk should be placed in the cup first.

• Cream interferes with the taste of the tea.

• Tea bags steep more quickly because the leaves are finely cut, so don't let them steep too long.

• Most teas will taste bitter if you steep longer than six minutes.

• Do use a cozy if tea leaves remain in the pot. The added heat will make the remaining tea taste bitter.

• Do not judge steeping time of tea by color because some teas brew light while others brew dark.