How to brew a good cup.

Good tea forgives a lot, but three things matter: how much leaf, how hot the water, and how long you wait. Here's how I make each kind at home.

Jasmine pearls opening in a glass teapot

01 Use whole leaf
A heaped teaspoon, about 2.5g, for a 200ml cup. More for iced tea, less for a second steep.
02 Mind the water
Fresh, filtered water if you can. Boiling for black and herbal, cooler for green and white.
03 Time it
Too short and it's thin, too long and it's bitter. A timer helps the first few times.
04 Taste, then adjust
Every leaf is different. Trust your own cup over any chart, including this one.

By the kind of tea

Tea	Leaf per 200ml	Water	Steep	Steeps	My note
Black	2.5g	95°C	3 to 4 min	2 or more	Just off the boil. Strong enough for milk, and a minute longer if you add it.
Green	2.5g	80°C	2 to 3 min	2 or more	Let the kettle rest a few minutes. Boiling water makes green tea bitter.
White	3g	80°C	4 to 5 min	3 or more	Cooler water and a longer steep. The quietest teas need patience.
Oolong	3g	90°C	3 to 5 min	4 or more	Hot water, then steep again and again. Every cup changes.
Matcha	1.5g	75°C	Whisk 20 sec	Once	Sift, add a little water and whisk in a quick zigzag until it foams.
Rooibos	2.5g	100°C	5 to 6 min	Once	Boiling water. It never turns bitter, so you can leave it in.
Herbal	2.5g	100°C	5 to 7 min	Once	Boiling water and a long steep. Flowers and roots need time to open.

Iced, cold brewed and with milk.

Iced. Double the leaf, steep as usual, then pour straight over a full glass of ice. The ice dilutes it to the right strength.

Cold brewed. Two teaspoons of leaf in a jar of cold water, into the fridge overnight, then strain. Softer and sweeter than hot tea, and lovely with green teas and fruit tisanes.

With milk. Black teas and chai only. Steep a minute longer so the tea holds its own, then add warm milk. For masala chai, simmer the leaf in milk and water together.

Keeping tea well

Tea's enemies are air, light, damp and strong smells. Keep it in its tin or sealed pouch, away from the stove and the spice shelf, and use it within the year. That's why our tins are made to be refilled.

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