Hit Me With Your Best Pot

Loose leaf tea is known for being higher quality tea that's fresh and flavourful. Did you know that the 4 main types of tea, white, green, black and oolong, all come from the same plant called Camellia sinensis, which is a warm- weather evergreen? These teas are different in taste based on the parts of the plant being used and the way the leaves have been processed.

Each type of tea has unique instructions for preparation. When buying loose leaf tea there will be a label on the product that states the optimal temperature of the water, amount of tea used per cup and the steeping time to ensure your tea turns out great.

An example of a tea label and an amazing Teavana tea 

I suggest you follow these guidelines if you are just starting to use loose leaf tea. Tea can turn out bitter, too weak or too strong if the instructions aren’t followed and can ruin your opinion of a wonderful tea. I can’t count how many times I have forgotten to take my tea infuser out in time and ruined my tea. Once you start to make it more often and know how strong you like certain teas, it gets easier. The Tea Association of Canada has come out with a general steeping chart for you to refer to if you are ever unsure of how to steep a type of tea.  

Steeping Instructions

Tea Type	Preparation
White	80°C / 185°F	(Steep 2-5 min)
Green	80°C / 185°F	(Steep 1-3 min)
Oolong	80°C / 185°F	(Steep 2-3 min)
Black	100°C / 212°F	(Steep 4 min)
Herbal	100°C / 212°F	(Steep 3-6 min)

For those of you without a programmable kettle, there are other ways of determining the temperature of the water. The Traditional Chinese method being the most extensive and comprehensive method. There are 5 different stages of boiled water which are: Shrimp Eyes, Crab Eyes, Fish Eyes, Rope of Pearls and Raging Torrent. Golden Moon Tea has an article with helpful pictures of each of the stages.