Key to steep the perfect tea- tips and tricks

Making tea may seem a simple and easy task but to brew the perfect cup, one needs to take care of some key details.

Kausshal Dugarr, founder and CEO - Teabox elaborates how:

» The quality and freshness of tea defines a good tea experience. Buying fresh whole leaf teas is key to savoring delicate tastes and aromas.

» When you've acquired the best loose leaves, then the quality of water plays a very important role in bringing out the best flavors. Water should be as fresh as possible.

» Temperature plays a crucial role in steeping tea. Use water just when it starts to boil (around 85 C - 95 C). This will effectively bring out all the right flavors and curb the unwanted bitterness.

» Avoid boiling water. It scalds the leaves and affects the flavors adversely.

» A tablespoon (2.5 gm) of leaves is recommended for every cup of water (180 ml).

» Choose a clean tea-maker/pot, ideally porcelain, glazed ceramic, or glass to avoid unwanted peculiarities of taste.

» Pour hot water over the tea leaves and not the other way around. A lot of people overlook this simple step. Leave the infusion covered for 2-5 minutes according to the instructions provided. Your tea is ready to drink.

» For cold brews, you'll need 1.5 times more leaves than a regular hot brew for every cup of water. Add leaves into a flask/jar and pour cold fresh water over it. Depending on the type of tea let it steep for 4-10 hours. Steep white, Oolong, green teas for shorter duration and blacks, flavored fruit/floral infusions for longer.

» You can also refrigerate the brew if you prefer colder drinks.

Rishav Kanoi, Tea Expert and Founder at Tea Trove also has some tips to share:

» One shall understand the four different types of tea: White, Green, Oolong and Black.

» One shall not call it brewed; tea is steeped.

» One shall steep tea as per suggested steeping time of 5 minutes for Black and White teas, 2 minutes for Green tea and 4 minutes for Oolong Tea.

» One shall use filtered or bottled water to make tea.

» One shall use a proper teaspoon for every 180 ml of water.

» One shall not use a tea bag but shall only use loose teas.

» One shall steep loose tea leaves 2-3 times by adding hot water and increasing the steeping time with each infusion.

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