How to make loose leaf tea
Obvious statement incoming:
Tea is 99.9999% (ish!) water.
It will not surprise you to discover then, that the quality of this ingredient is important.
We are lucky in most of Scotland that our water quality straight from the tap is some of the best in the world. However if you do live in an area with hard water, or your tap water has chlorine added, you will need to at least filter your tap water. Bottled spring water is your best option in some dire cases (I’m looking at you London water).
From my experience trying various filters, Brita are the way to go.
On the go Brita bottle
I see there's a pink one, mine is purple and I have pink FOMO now.
Brita jug for the home
Yes it does fit in the fridge door 😉
Next obvious statement is: you need something to heat this excellent water!
In the UK we tend to all have access to an electric kettle, so we are ahead of the game. However to step things up a notch a temperature control kettle is something to look at.
Of course you can always heat the water over a stove or hob, there is a way to tell from the size of the bubbles roughly what temperature your water is.
In fact I used to use this technique with my glass kettle before I took the step into the world of temperature control kettles, and I wouldn’t go back if there’s a choice.
Swan Alexa Kettle
Gooseneck kettle
However, as the water runs through the long spout, it cools.
Dumb and large capacity
But what do I put the leaves in I hear you say…
These are the only infusers I would recommend to anyone (if you wish to use an infuser).
They are large enough to allow the herbs or tea leaves to completely unravel, and infuse their flavours into the water. They do actually make a better cup of tea than the ball infusers (more on this here).
If you don’t feel this is for you yet, then there is also the option of empty tea bags (essentially create your own tea bag!), these can be found here.
Oh I see you, the one that would like to explore the world of gongfu brewing…
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