There are so many variables when it comes to making the perfect cuppa.
But while milk, sugar, and steeping time are all a matter of personal taste, it turns out that how you remove your tea might be genuinely important (and it’s bad news for squeezers).
Yup ― it turns out that if you press your teabag against your cup with the back of a spoon to squeeze it instead of allowing the brew to, well, brew, you’re probably ruining your tea’s flavour.
Why?
It’s all to do with tannins.
Tea is rich in tannic acids, which have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects ― but which are also pretty bitter. They’re partly responsible for that astringent “stewed” taste you get from letting a teabag brew for too long.
Experts at Ringtons Tea say that “most tea aficionados would agree that you shouldn’t squeeze your tea bags after it has steeped.”
“The liquid that remains trapped inside the tea bag has even higher instances of tannic acid than what is able to steep out of the bag on its own,” they add.
“By squeezing the tea bag, you inadvertently release these tannic acids into your tea and in turn create a far more bitter, sour, and acidic cup of tea.”
What if I like the flavour anyway?
Well, okay. But there’s not just a question of flavour here.
Ringtons Tea warns that squeezers run a mechanical risk, too ― there’s the fact that you can rip the bag more easily when you squeeze it to consider, leading to loose tea leaves floating in your cup.
“Overall this makes for a more cloudy tea and of course a much less enjoyable cup of tea,” they say.
Okay, I’ll stop rushing my morning cuppa soon, I swear...