New York merchant Thomas Sullivan accidentally invented the first commercially marketed tea bag in 1903. A coffee and tea seller, he sent samples of his teas to customers in porous fabric bags and the customers found that it was easy to brew a great cup of tea by simply leaving the leaves in the bag. Brewing a great cup of tea still takes know-how and an eye for detail though.
Just like coffee, tea requires a proper ration of leaves to water to brew a great cup. One teabag typically contains enough leaves to infuse eight to 10 fluid ounces of hot water. If your favorite mug is bigger, you might need to use two bags to enjoy the tea’s full flavor without over-steeping, which can yield a bitter taste.
While you can of course use tap water, steeping your leaves with filtered or spring water will yield a clearer flavored and overall better cup. Different types of tea also taste best when steeped at different temperatures. For example, the water temperature for green and white tea should be slightly cooler than for black tea.
If you use loose leaves or sachets, you’ll see them unroll and expand as they steep. If you use tea bags, you’ll see the water begin to change color. Depending on the type of tea, you should steep your tea for:
- Black tea – three to five minutes
- Decaf black tea – three to five minutes
- Flavored tea – three to five minutes
- Green tea – two to three minutes
- Herbal/tisane tea – five to seven minutes
- Oolong tea – four to seven minutes
- Scented tea – three to five minutes