Did you know that a single tea bag mostly contains dust and broken leaves?
These are the leftover fragments from processing whole leaf tea.
Drinking this would be like drinking wine made from grape scraps instead of whole fruit.
When you switch to loose leaf tea, you're not just changing how you brew tea - you're upgrading your entire experience.
In this guide, you'll learn everything you need to know about brewing the perfect cup of loose leaf tea, from selecting the right equipment to mastering techniques that bring out the full potential of every leaf.
Why Loose Leaf?
When you brew loose leaf tea, you're getting access to a wider variety of premium teas that simply aren't available in bagged form. From delicate white teas to complex oolongs, loose leaf gives you the freedom to explore tea's full potential.
Beyond the superior variety and caffeine content control you get with loose leaf tea, it provides a more authentic and enjoyable tea experience. The whole leaves can fully expand and release their flavours during steeping, unlike the broken leaves and dust often found in tea bags. You'll notice richer aromas and more nuanced flavours in every cup.
Without the packaging waste from individual tea bags, you're also reducing your environmental impact. The used tea leaves can even be composted, creating a zero-waste tea ritual.
At Fifth Ray, we're committed to bringing you the highest quality plant ingredients in their most natural form. By skipping the bagging process, we can iterate and introduce new tea blends more quickly, like our signature Cosmic Hue blend that supports your health and wellbeing.
Loose leaf tea provides better quality, more variety, and less environmental waste than tea bags, making it the superior choice for both taste and sustainability.
Brew Instructions
Get Your Tea
Choosing quality loose leaf tea is your first step toward a perfect brew.
Black tea provides a robust, full-bodied flavour with the highest caffeine content, while green tea offers lighter, more delicate notes. Oolong tea sits between these two, with complex flavours that evolve through multiple steepings.
Herbal blends like chamomile and peppermint combine natural ingredients that are not from the Camellia sinensis plant, unlike the previous three teas.
Our own tea blend, Cosmic Hue, combines seven powerful ingredients to support your gut health and wellness.
Get Your Equipment
The first tool you'll need is a kettle to heat your water. This is essential for achieving the right temperature for your chosen tea type.
For brewing, you'll need something to separate the leaves from water after steeping. The most traditional choice is a teapot with a built-in infuser. It gives your leaves plenty of room to expand and makes it easy to remove them once brewing is complete. If you prefer something more compact, tea balls work well but may restrict leaf expansion. You can also use a mesh basket, which sits on top of the tea cup while you pour the tea through it.
Getting a pack of empty tea bags to put your loose leaf tea in is another option. When you get Cosmic Hue, we include an organic cotton tea bag with your order so that you can do exactly this. This reusable bag combines convenience with sustainability, giving you everything you need to start brewing right away if you do not have an infuser.
Prepare Your Tea
Getting the right water temperature is crucial for bringing out the best in your tea. Each type requires specific temperatures to avoid burning the leaves or under-extracting their flavours. The best thing to do is to check your tea's packaging for the recommended temperature and brew time.
To measure your tea, start with a teaspoon per cup (240ml of water). You can adjust this amount based on your taste preferences. While using a scale can give you more precise measurements, consistency matters more than perfect precision. Find what works for you and stick with it. With Cosmic Hue, we provide a perfect-measure scoop in every pouch, taking the guesswork out of portioning.
Next, pour the hot water over your tea and let your it steep for 3-5 minutes for a standard brew. If you're looking to extract more of the beneficial compounds, you can steep for longer. The key is finding the balance between strength and flavour that suits your taste.
Quality loose leaf tea, proper equipment, and the right water temperature are the three essential elements for brewing the perfect cup.
Manny's Method
After overcoming Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis through the power of plants, Manny founded Fifth Ray to share his deep knowledge of herbal teas.
He prefers using a cast iron teapot with an infuser to brew his tea. Cast iron retains heat very well, ensuring his tea maintains a consistent temperature throughout steeping. This helps extract the maximum benefits from each ingredient while preserving the delicate balance of flavours.
Every morning, Manny adds two scoops of Cosmic Hue to his cast iron pot and lets it steep for five minutes. He finds this timing perfect for releasing the gut-supporting properties of the ingredients.
Alternative Methods
If you want to explore beyond traditional hot brewing, there are other ways to enjoy your loose leaf tea.
Cold Brew
To make cold brew tea, simply add your usual amount of loose leaf tea to cold water and let it steep in the refrigerator. The longer steeping time, typically 8-12 hours, creates a smoother taste with less bitterness. This method works particularly well for green teas and herbal blends like Cosmic Hue.
Iced Tea
You can use the hot-to-cold method to make iced tea. Brew your tea as normal with hot water but make it slightly stronger, then put it in the fridge to cool. Once cooled you can add ice and enjoy it as a refreshing cold beverage.
French Press
A French press can also be an excellent tool for brewing loose leaf tea. The plunger mechanism works just like it does for coffee, making it easy to separate the leaves from your drink when it's ready. Simply add your tea leaves, pour in hot water, and press down the plunger once it's finished steeping.
Beyond traditional hot steeping, tea's versatility shines through cold brewing, iced preparations, and alternative equipment like French presses.
Tips for the Perfect Cup
The quality of your water makes a significant difference to your tea’s taste. Filtered water will give you the purest flavour, as chlorine and other tap water additives can interfere with the delicate notes in your tea. However, don’t let this stop you from brewing a cup of tea if you only have tap water. As we said earlier, prioritise consistency over perfection.
Store your loose leaf tea in an airtight container away from direct sunlight, heat, and strong odours to preserve the flavours and beneficial properties of your tea. A cool, dark cupboard is ideal. The original Cosmic Hue pouch is designed to keep your tea fresh, but you can transfer it to a dedicated tea tin if you prefer.
Regular cleaning of your tea equipment ensures the best possible taste. After each use, rinse your infuser thoroughly and occasionally deep clean your teapot to prevent any buildup that might affect the flavour. For cast iron teapots, make sure to dry them completely to prevent rusting.
Common mistakes to avoid include using water that's too hot, which can burn delicate teas and create bitter flavours. Don't squeeze or press your tea leaves during steeping, as this can release bitter compounds. Finally, remember that more tea leaves don't always mean better tea - stick to the recommended amounts and adjust gradually to find your perfect strength.
FAQs
Can you put loose leaf tea directly in water?
Yes, you can brew loose leaf tea directly in water without any special equipment. Simply add your tea leaves to hot water, let them steep, then strain the tea into your cup using a fine mesh strainer or the lid of your cup tilted slightly to catch the leaves. While this method works in a pinch, using an infuser or filter will give you more control over the steeping process and make cleanup easier.
How to brew loose leaf tea without an infuser?
There are several easy ways to brew loose leaf tea without an infuser. The simplest method is to add your tea leaves directly to your cup, steep for the recommended time, then strain through a kitchen sieve or coffee filter. You can also use a French press if you have one, which works perfectly for loose leaf tea and gives you complete control over the steeping process.
What is the ratio of loose tea to water?
For most loose leaf teas, use one teaspoon (about 2-3 grams) per cup (240ml) of water. Adjust this ratio slightly for different types of tea - use more for larger, fluffier leaves like white tea or chamomile, and less for dense teas like gunpowder green. Remember that personal preference matters most, so feel free to experiment with these amounts until you find your perfect strength.
Conclusion
Brewing loose leaf tea doesn't need to be complicated. With just a kettle, an infuser, and quality tea leaves, you can create the perfect cup every time. Start with one teaspoon of tea per cup of water, pay attention to your water temperature, and steep for 3-5 minutes.
Remember that loose leaf tea offers superior flavour and more environmental benefits than bagged alternatives. Store your tea properly, keep your equipment clean, and don't be afraid to experiment with different brewing times and strengths until you find your perfect cup.
Ready to start your loose leaf tea journey? Try our signature Cosmic Hue tea blend, carefully crafted with seven powerful ingredients to support your gut health and overall wellbeing.