How to Make a Proper Pot of Tea

Tea being poured from a china teapot into a cup

Britain drinks an extraordinary amount of tea, most of it made quickly with a teabag in a mug. There is nothing wrong with that. But a pot of loose leaf tea, made with a little care, is something else: fuller in flavour, more fragrant, and a small daily ceremony that slows the day down. This guide explains how tea came to Britain, the main types of tea, and exactly how to make a proper pot.

How Britain fell for tea

Tea arrived in Europe from China in the early seventeenth century, carried by Dutch and Portuguese traders. In Britain, its popularity is often linked to Catherine of Braganza, the Portuguese princess who married Charles II in 1662 and brought her love of tea to the English court.

For much of the following century, tea was a luxury. It was heavily taxed, and in wealthy households it was kept in locked wooden tea caddies, with the mistress of the house holding the key. High taxes made smuggling widespread until the duty was cut sharply in 1784, after which tea became affordable to far more people.

In the nineteenth century, the British began growing tea in India, first in Assam and later in Darjeeling, and then in Ceylon, now Sri Lanka. Strong, malty Indian and Ceylon teas, drunk with milk and often sugar, became the national drink. Teabags became common in Britain only in the second half of the twentieth century.

The main types of tea

All true tea comes from the same plant, Camellia sinensis. The differences come from where it is grown and how the leaves are processed.

Black tea is fully oxidised, giving a dark, robust brew. This is the everyday British cup. Assam is strong and malty; Ceylon is bright and brisk; Darjeeling is lighter and more delicate.
Green tea is not oxidised, so it stays fresh and grassy.
Oolong is partly oxidised, somewhere between green and black.
White tea is the least processed, very delicate and pale.
Flavoured teas such as Earl Grey add natural flavourings, in this case bergamot, a citrus fruit.

Herbal infusions, such as peppermint and chamomile, are not strictly tea at all, as they don't come from the tea plant.

Why loose leaf?

Most teabags contain small pieces of leaf, called fannings and dust, which brew quickly and strongly. Loose leaf tea is usually made from larger pieces of leaf. Given room to unfurl in a teapot, larger leaves release a fuller, more rounded and more complex flavour. Loose leaf tea can often be brewed a second time, too.

You will need

A teapot, ideally earthenware or china, which hold heat well.
Good loose leaf tea.
Freshly drawn cold water.
A tea strainer, or a teapot with an infuser basket.
Cups or mugs, a milk jug and a sugar bowl.

The water

Water is most of what is in your cup, so it matters.

Use fresh, cold water. Water that has been boiled repeatedly loses oxygen and makes tea taste flat.
Hard water, common in much of southern and eastern England, can leave a scum on top of black tea. A water filter helps.
Temperature: black tea needs water just off the boil. Green and white teas prefer water that has cooled for a few minutes, around 70 to 80°C, or they turn bitter.

How to make a pot of tea, step by step

Fill the kettle with fresh cold water and put it on to boil.
Warm the pot. Pour a little hot water into the teapot, swirl it round and tip it away. A cold pot cools the water and stops the tea brewing properly.
Add the tea. The old rule is one teaspoon of loose tea per person and "one for the pot". Adjust to taste and to the strength of the tea.
Pour on the water as soon as it boils, for black tea.
Put the lid on and cover the pot with a tea cosy if you have one.
Brew. For black tea, three to five minutes. Three gives a lighter cup; five a stronger one. Brewing for longer extracts more tannins, which makes tea bitter rather than stronger.
Stir once, then pour through a strainer.
Decant any tea that won't be drunk straight away into a second warmed pot, so it doesn't stew on the leaves.

Brewing times at a glance

Strong black breakfast tea: 4 to 5 minutes.
Afternoon blends and Earl Grey: 3 to 4 minutes.
Darjeeling: 2 to 3 minutes.
Green tea: 2 to 3 minutes, in cooler water.
White tea: 3 to 5 minutes, in cooler water.

Milk first or milk after?

This question has divided households for generations. One explanation for milk first is that it protected delicate porcelain cups from cracking when hot tea was poured in. The international standard for tasting tea, ISO 3103, actually puts the milk in first, though that standard was written for professional tasters rather than for the kitchen table.

In practice, when making a pot, most people pour the tea first and add milk afterwards, because it lets you judge the strength and add just the right amount of milk. There is no wrong answer, only strongly held opinions.

Earl Grey and lighter teas such as Darjeeling are often drunk without milk, or with a thin slice of lemon. Green and white teas are always drunk without milk.

Choosing a tea for the time of day

Morning: a strong, malty black tea, such as Assam or a breakfast blend, which stands up to milk.
Afternoon: something smoother and lighter. Our Prince of Wales blends Assam and Ceylon with a hint of blackcurrant.
Something fragrant: Earl Grey with Cornflowers, Ceylon black tea scented with bergamot and scattered with blue cornflowers. Earl Grey is generally said to be named after Charles Grey, the 2nd Earl Grey, Prime Minister in the 1830s, though the exact origins of the blend are disputed.
Evening: a herbal infusion, which is naturally caffeine-free.

Storing tea

Tea is easily spoiled by air, light, heat, moisture and strong smells. To keep it fresh:

Store it in an airtight tin or canister, away from light.
Keep it in a cool cupboard, away from the cooker, kettle and spice rack.
Don't keep it in the fridge, where it picks up moisture and smells.
Buy in quantities you will use within a few months.

Our Black Enamel Tea, Coffee and Sugar Set keeps tea dry and to hand by the kettle.

Looking after your teapot

Rinse the teapot with hot water after use and leave it to dry with the lid off. Many tea drinkers avoid washing-up liquid inside the pot, believing the gradual build-up of tannin improves the tea; others prefer a clean pot. If stains build up, a soak with bicarbonate of soda and warm water will lift them.

The ceremony of it

Part of the pleasure of a proper pot of tea is the ritual: warming the pot, waiting for it to brew, pouring for others. It is a moment to stop. A good mug helps too. Our handmade stoneware mug in oatmeal holds heat well and is comfortable in the hand.