How to make the perfect cup tea
- Fill the kettle with fresh water. Do not reuse water that has been boiled before: it will have lost most of its oxygen, which helps in the brewing process. It is better if you have soft water (with little calcium in it). Hard water tends to encourage a 'film' or 'scum' to develop on the surface of the tea.
- Warm the teapot by pouring in some boiling water, then poruing that away.
- A small to medium sized pot only requires a single heaped teaspoon of loose tea leaves to be added – not one spoon for each person and one for the pot!
- Immediately add the boiling water to the pot. The temperature of the water is critical in releasing the various chemicals from the leaves.
- A brisk stir of the mixture (infusion) is recommended. Then it should stand for about three minutes. This allows the tea to release polyphenolic (tannins and other chemicals) compounds these add colour and taste to the brew. If the tea brews for a long period of time, more bitter substances are released. Tea, like coffee contains caffeine; this too is released in the first few moments of the infusion process.
- Add some cold milk to your cup or mug in advance of pouring the tea, as this helps cool the tea and is less likely to damage (denature or curdle) the milk proteins.
- Lastly, add sugar or artificial sweetener according to personal taste. Both sugar and milk tend to reduce the 'bite' or astringency of the tea.
The above procedure is taken from the investigations of Dr Andrew Stapley. He conducted these under the auspices of the Royal Institute of Chemistry, which decided to have a look at the advice of George Orwell, who had declared that tea was 'one of the mainstays of civilisation' and there were 11 rules for the making of the perfect cup of tea!
