Re-Steep My Tea?

I often re-steep my loose leaf tea in order to get more tea from every teaspoon of leaves!   The ability to re-steep your tea leaves is one of the many benefits of purchasing high quality loose leaf tea.  Some things to keep in mind when you're re-steeping your leaves are:

* Re-steep your tea the second time at the same temperature and for the same amount of time as the first time around.
*The best leaves to re-steep are black, green, white and oolong.  Some of the herbal teas are delicate which makes them difficult to re-steep, but I do it anyways.  I like to keep a jug of iced fruit tea in my fridge at all times and I always re-steep my fruit teas 3 or 4 times when making it (adding a few fresh teaspoons each time).
*If you haven't re-steeped your leaves in 5-6 hours its best to throw them out, i like to keep a pot of tea with me all day so re-steeping during that time frame is not an issue.
*Some people think certain teas, such as the green tea Gyokuro, taste better the second time around!

Give re-steeping a try and play around with what works best for you!

Iced Tea Tips & Tricks

Summer is on its way, but you don't have to stop enjoying your favourite teas just because its hot outside!  Try brewing your favourite teas as iced teas instead!  Iced fruit tisane tea can also be a great healthy option for kids as it's caffeine and sugar free!

Tips & Tricks

1.  You can make iced tea a number of different ways:

a)  Option one is to brew your tea hot and strain it over ice.  If this is the method you choose, make sure to double up on the amount of loose tea you use to keep the flavour strong.  This method works best if you would like your iced tea instantly.

b)  Option two is to brew your tea using cold water overnight in the fridge.  If you choose option two, use the same amount of tea leaves you normally would.  Using cold water will keep the tea from getting bitter.  Place in the fridge at night and strain your tea in the morning!

c)  Option three would be to brew your hot tea the same way you normally would, but to then let it cool on its own.  If you use this method make sure you let the tea cool on the counter before placing it in the fridge or it may become cloudy!

2.  Fresh tastes best!  Brew your tea in small batches, enough for a day or two and then make more! Its easy and tastes better when its freshly brewed!

3.  If you would like to add sugar to your tea, do so when its hot so that the sugar has a chance to dissolve (when you add sugar to cold tea it tends to just sit on the bottom).  If you use the cold water brewing method, you can use this simple sugar recipe to sweeten your tea.

Simple Sugar Recipe:
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of water
Bring water to a boil, then add sugar, stir until dissolved.  Cool before using.  Makes 1.5 cups.

4.  When adding lemon to your tea, only use fresh lemons (and not the lemon juice you can buy pre-bottled at the store)!  Trust me, you will notice the difference!

Happy Tea Brewing!