Loose Leaf Tea, Explained Without the Snobbery

I'm a certified tea sommelier and I still keep tea bags in the cupboard. Nothing in here is meant to make you feel behind. Most people who think they don't like tea have only ever had it brewed wrong: water too hot, leaves left in too long, or a tin that's been open since 2019. Every month I feature 1 blend and tell you what it actually is, and in between I answer what comes in through the shop. Caffeine, storage, brewing, and why yours tastes like regret. Everything I write about is in the tea shop.

Christmas cookie tray with gingerbread, shortbread and crinkles beside a teapot and Classic Chai
Know Your Tea

Tea and Cookie Pairings for the Holidays (From a Tea Sommelier and a Cake Master)

One rule sorts out your whole cookie tray: match the weight, then contrast the sweetness. Here is which blend goes with gingerbread, shortbread, crinkles and peppermint bark.

Know Your Tea

Tea and Cookie Pairings for the Holidays (From a Tea Sommelier and a Cake Master)

One rule sorts out your whole cookie tray: match the weight, then contrast the sweetness. Here is which blend goes with gingerbread, shortbread, crinkles and peppermint bark.

Rose tea latte and a glass of hibiscus lemonade on a pink and cream October tea table
Know Your Tea

Two Pink Drinks for October: Rose Garden Latte and Hibiscus Lemonade

A rose tea latte you can make in 8 minutes and a hibiscus lemonade the fridge brews overnight. Both Caffeine-Free, both pink, both scale to 8 guests.

Know Your Tea

Two Pink Drinks for October: Rose Garden Latte and Hibiscus Lemonade

A rose tea latte you can make in 8 minutes and a hibiscus lemonade the fridge brews overnight. Both Caffeine-Free, both pink, both scale to 8 guests.

Tea station set up for a large group with teacups, 3 teapots, milk, sugar and a tiered stand
Know Your Tea

How to Make Tea for a Crowd Without Losing the Flavor

Pots, not kettles. How many sachets per pot, how to stagger the brewing so nobody waits, and how to keep tea hot for a party without stewing it bitter.

Know Your Tea

How to Make Tea for a Crowd Without Losing the Flavor

Pots, not kettles. How many sachets per pot, how to stagger the brewing so nobody waits, and how to keep tea hot for a party without stewing it bitter.

Tea tasting at home: 3 matching cups of Rooibos, Apple Pie and Chai with a notepad
Know Your Tea

How to Do a Tea Tasting at Home: A Sommelier's 3-Cup Method

3 teas, 3 matching cups, one timer. How a tea sommelier runs a tea tasting at home, with a simple score card and a way to taste together on screen.

Know Your Tea

How to Do a Tea Tasting at Home: A Sommelier's 3-Cup Method

3 teas, 3 matching cups, one timer. How a tea sommelier runs a tea tasting at home, with a simple score card and a way to taste together on screen.

Three teapots on a table set for a tea party with mismatched teacups and a tiered tray
Know Your Tea

Which Tea to Serve at a Tea Party: Black, Herbal and Dessert Blends by Guest

3 teas for up to 10 guests, 6 for more, and always 1 without caffeine. Which blend to hand which guest, and how many sachets go in the pot.

Know Your Tea

Which Tea to Serve at a Tea Party: Black, Herbal and Dessert Blends by Guest

3 teas for up to 10 guests, 6 for more, and always 1 without caffeine. Which blend to hand which guest, and how many sachets go in the pot.

Apple tea recipe: an Apple Pie tea latte with cinnamon foam beside the tea box
Know Your Tea

Two Fall Harvest Tea Recipes: Apple Pie Tea Latte and Hot Spiced Cider Tea

Two fall drinks I make with 1 sachet and what is already in the pantry: an Apple Pie tea latte, and a hot spiced cider tea built on a Fireball sachet.

Know Your Tea

Two Fall Harvest Tea Recipes: Apple Pie Tea Latte and Hot Spiced Cider Tea

Two fall drinks I make with 1 sachet and what is already in the pantry: an Apple Pie tea latte, and a hot spiced cider tea built on a Fireball sachet.

Tea questions I get asked

How do I brew loose leaf tea properly?

1 heaping teaspoon of leaves per cup, water off the boil rather than at a rolling boil for anything green or white, and a timer. Black teas want 3 to 5 minutes, greens 2 to 3, herbals 5 or more. Then take the leaves out. Leaving them in is what turns a good cup into a murky mess.

Is loose leaf tea better than tea bags?

Usually, and here is why. A lot of bags hold the broken dust left over once the good leaf has been sorted out, and a flat bag gives the leaf no room to open up. Loose leaf gives you whole leaf and space to expand, and that is where the flavor is. A good sachet splits the difference, which is what I reach for when I am in a hurry.

Which teas are Caffeine-Free?

Black, green, white and oolong all have caffeine in them, because they all come from the same plant. Anything truly Caffeine-Free is an herbal infusion: rooibos, chamomile, peppermint, hibiscus, ginger, fruit blends. And decaffeinated is not the same thing as Caffeine-Free. It still carries a trace.

How long does loose leaf tea stay good?

6 months to a year for most blends if you keep it airtight, dark, dry and away from the stove. Tea does not spoil, it fades. If it smells like nothing when you open the tin, it is going to taste like nothing in the cup.

How much tea do I need for a party?

Figure 2 to 3 cups per guest across the afternoon, and always put out at least 1 Caffeine-Free option. For a table of 8, 1 or 2 ounces of a blend is plenty. Brew by the pot instead of by the cup, or you will spend your own party standing at the kettle.

Send Someone a Tea Party

I started packing these boxes so I could send my kitchen table to people I could not get to in person. Every one holds loose leaf tea and something to do while it steeps, because the part that matters is the hour you sit down for. Pick the one that sounds like the person you are sending it to.

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