I love a good cup of tea. With the colder temperatures on their way, there is no better time to drink tea. I do not enjoy coffee, so I have to look elsewhere for my morning dose of caffeine. Here is my advice for brewing the best cup of tea this winter.
1. Have a good mug.
Having a good mug to drink tea from is just as important as the tea itself. My personal favorite mug is a Star Wars one that will stir my drink for me (thank you Elise). If you want to achieve the two handed mug hold, you are going to need a mug that is thick or very insulated because hot tea is hot and will burn. You can also let it cool too, but I find that most tea is better hot.
2.Don't be afraid to try something new.
Tea is all about experimentation. Like coffee, you have to figure out what ratio of sugar/milk/creamer works for you. Personally, I stick with two teaspoons or two sugar cubes and maybe a little bit of milk depending on the tea. Tea is also infinite. Rooibos, Darjeeling, green or black, no two teas are exactly alike, even the same type of tea from two different brands. You may hate Earl Grey, but you may love chamomile.
I personally love most teas made by Tazo. Their green teas are some of my absolute favorites, but you really can't go wrong with name brand teas like Celestial, Twinnings, Bigelow, or Teavana.
Every store sells some type of tea, so just keep a look out for a flavor that interests you.
3. Follow the instructions
Most tea boxes come with instructions on the side of how to properly brew the tea. These are crucial to making the tea perfect. I used to think to that one set of instructions worked for all tea, but as I bought more, I discovered that to not be true. Certain teas require specific brewing temperatures to ensure optimum taste. Brewing tea with a Keurig is okay, but using an kettle is better because you can measure the temperature yourself with a thermometer. For green tea, this may help make it taste better since they require a temperature that is cooler than boiling.
Also, never leave the tea bag in. This is an absolute no-no. No matter how cool it looks, once the tea is done steeping, remove the tea bag. Leaving it in too long will cause the tea to become bitter, and no amount of sugar or cream can fix it. In the instructions, they typically list a steeping time. I have never seen a steeping time more than five minutes.
Also, don't squeeze the bag.
4. Enjoy
At this point, the tea is ready to be consumed and enjoyed. All you have to do is drink up and relax. Tea isn't hard to brew, but brewing tea just right requires attention or it could end up bitter.
