Tea is the ultimate soul soother which is always there to calm you down as a comfort beverage. The loose leaf tea comes in so many variations that it is almost impossible not to find one that suits you. But most of the time, because of their affection for tea, people often buy too much than they need and then often wonder how they can drink that tea in several different ways.
First of all, tea is one of the best alternatives for a sugary beverage if prepared without sugar. But transitioning to an unsweetened tea from a sugary beverage is not that easy, so the first preferred step to put into practice would be to start by putting honey in your tea rather than sugar.
Pro-tips on starting
There are many ways that you can drink your tea. If you’re starting, then you might go with the “buy it, brew it, drink it” method but end up not liking your tea. Finding the right type of tea for one’s is a voyage in itself and leads to the discovery of many different tea flavors until you find “the one”. That’s why custom tea pouches are the new way of making good old tea in the most efficient and easy way possible. Below are some tips if you’re starting on the journey of finding the right tea for yourself:
- Explore the related tea blends: all the real tea types, such a white, yellow, green, etc., all consist of their specific set of benefits. But they also share some of their expected benefits with each other too. These shared benefits give you, as a tea drinker, the ability to try different teas if one’s taste just doesn’t satisfy you, without compromising on its health benefits.
- Start easy
- Don’t judge a tea by its scent: It is rare for a tea leaf to have a scent that resonates with its taste 100%, so assuming a tea type based on its scent would not be the wisest decision. So don’t buy just the ones whose scent is likable to you, and don’t leave out the ones who don’t have a lot of smell in them as they can pack quite a powerful punch in them too.
But the fuss of putting tea leaves spoon by spoon without making it fall makes the process harder. Sustainable packaging is done for making efficient tea pouches so that their taste does not get affected.
Different ways to enjoy your tea
Many permutations and combinations can be applied to tea to make it resonate with your preferred flavor type. 6 of the different ways by which you can enjoy your tea are as follows:
1. Explore different water types
The type of water you use for making leaves a great impression on the end product, such as its texture, flavor, and many other aspects. For starting, you can try switching to spring water from regular tap water. Tap water and distilled water often make the tea taste too murky or too flat, respectively. Trying different types of bottled spring water can allow you to find the right one that makes your tea perfect for you. Experimenting with its water to leaf ratio can also help to regulate your tea’s strongness.
2. Try experimenting with water temperature
Different tea types react differently to the variance of temperatures that are provided to them while stirring. Flavored blends can hold their taste intact when there is a sudden constant change in temperature, whereas pure tea types tend to act their opposite. So try different temperature applications while making your tea to see what your body likes the most.
3. Look out for the steep time
The thing about tea leaves is that the longer you leave them in water, the more nutrients they will release into it. But having more is not always the best thing. On the contrary, if they are left in the water for too long, they can cause bitterness and astringency. To prevent this from happening, experiment with a shorter steep time and re-steep them if the taste is not satisfactory or the blend is not strong enough for you.
4. Experiment with lemon, honey, and milk
Many tea drinkers refrain from using milk or sugar in their tea, and some like both in their tea. But the most preferred way to enjoy your tea is by adding a bit of milk and lemon. But honestly, it depends on the tea type and your preference as there are tea types that are consumed with milk, and then there are tea types that are best enjoyed pure.
5. Try making a latte
For example, let’s take Chinese gunpowder. Not every tea lover enjoys this tea as it has a robust flavor, a bit smokey and bolder when compared to the cup of regular green tea. It makes it a perfect choice for creating a fantastic latte. Cold brewing can extract many more nutrients from it by brewing its leaves in the water for nearly 20-30 minutes. These nutrients include caffeine, EGCG, and chlorophyll. In addition, by adding a pinch of baking soda and a cup of cold water, a good cup of unique pink tea can be enjoyed by you.
6. Experiment by cold brewing
This is the best method for those who want strongness in their coffee without it being bitter. The process of cold brewing allows you to enjoy your strong cup of tea without worrying about the bitterness. To do cold brewing, pour 1-1.5 liters of lukewarm water along with 1-2 spoons of tea leaves and steep them overnight in a glass jar in your fridge. The flavor of the result might take you by surprise.
Wrapping up
No matter how you may like your tea, long brewed, short brewed, cold brew, the one thing that is common in all is your love for tea. Start the exploring process by choosing the teas that are easy to brew. Compared to pure teas, flavored lends are an excellent starting place as they can handle the temperature variation. Try Formosa Oolong if you prefer to start with a pure tea that tastes similar to black tea. Try TI Kwan Yin if you are more into green tea.
