Brewing 101 - How to Brew Loose Leaf Tea

Step 1

Measure 1 Teaspoon for Each 6oz Cup of Water

Using a regular measuring spoon, measure one full teaspoon for each 6oz of water. A 6oz cup is not necessarily the standard cup size so you will need to adjust your amount of tea to your cup size. For example, if you are using an 8oz cup, start with 1-1/2 teaspoons; for a 12oz-16oz cup try 2 teaspoons; and a 20oz cup, try 3 teaspoons. This can always be adjusted based on your flavor preferences, so don’t worry if your initial cup is a little light, or too strong. Just adjust it with your next cup. If you are using one of our perfect teaspoons (link), this will equate to a standard 1-1/2 teaspoons if you are using a baking measuring spoon. This means that you would only need 1 perfect teaspoon for an 8oz cup of water.

Some teas which have a larger leaf or are fluffier, may require twice as much as outlined above, and other teas such as Jasmine Pearls, or Gunpowder, may require less than outlined above. Always check your label for any special instructions.

Step 2

Place Tea in Brewing Device

You can use a silicone infuser, a mesh ball infuser, a personal tea bag, a magic tea infuser, an infuser cup, or you can simply place your tea leaves in a cup and strain them out later. Whichever method you decide to use, place the tea leaves measured out in the previous step into your selected device and place in your mug/cup.

Happy Turtle Tip: Pre-warm your Mug/Cup

Pre-heating your mug/cup or tea pot can prevent a rapid temperature change when you pour your heated water into your mug/cup. start in the steeping. It also has the added bonus of allowing your tea, once it is steeped, to stay hot a bit longer. To pre-heat, simply pour hot water into your mug/cup for 30 seconds, then pour it out. Give it a try both ways and see which you prefer.

Step 3

Bring Brewing Water to the Correct Temperature

The correct water temperature is so important when brewing loose leaf tea. This is probably the most difficult part of this entire process. Each package of Happy Turtle Tea is labeled with the recommended water temperature, so you never have to guess. If you are by chance not brewing one of our blends, below is a list of types of tea and the recommending brewing temperatures. Keep in mind that this is only a starting point, as some tea blends depending on the ingredients will require a slightly altered temperature from what you see below:

  • Black & Pu-erh Tea: 208°F-212°F
  • Oolong Tea: 195°F
  • Flavored Green Tea: 175°F
  • Traditional/Unflavored Green Tea: 160°F-165°F
  • White Tea: 175°F
  • Herbal/Fruit: 208°F-212°F
  • Rooibos/Honeybush: 208°F-212°F
  • Matcha: 165°F

If you don’t have a variable temperature kettle, or a thermometer, here is a safe and easy way to obtain a temperature that will work:

180°F – Bubbles will begin forming on the bottom of the pot. To get the water down to 175°F, let it stand for 15 seconds. To get the water down to 165°, let it stand for 1 minute. Alternatively, you can try 1 part cold water to 4 parts water at this temperature.

195°F – At this temperature, you will see the first bubbles begin to rise to the top of the water line. If your water is already boiling remove it from the heat, and let it stand for 30 seconds.

212°F – This is where water is at a full rolling boil. You will notice that most of Happy Turtle Tea blends state 208°F vs. 212°F, this is because some tea can be scorched when the water is just slightly too hot. So, in this case, you can always pull it from the heat and let it stand for 30 seconds before pouring over your tea leaves.

Happy Turtle Tip: Use Filtered Water

We recommend using Filtered Water for all your loose leaf tea. This will help to ensure that you get the best quality tea without any impurities impacting your favorite flavors.

Step 4

Add Heated Water and Steep Your Tea

Pour you heated water over your filled infuser/bag, or over your tea leaves. Ensure that the infuser or tea leaves are completely covered with water. Steep your tea for the amount of time stated on your tea label. When the required time has elapsed, remove the infuser/bag, or strain your tea leaves (or wait until the tea leaves have fallen to the bottom of your mug/cup).

Don’t make the mistake of steeping your tea for a longer time because you are looking for a stronger/bolder flavor. This will only result in burning or scorching the tea leaves and you will be left with a bitter mess. Instead, add more tea leaves next time around.

Steeping Times Based on Tea Type

As a rule of thumb, if your tea does not have specific steeping times listed, use these:

  • Black & Pu-erh Tea: 4-5 minutes
  • Green Tea:  2-3 minutes
  • White Tea: 2-3 minutes
  • Oolong: 2-4 minutes
  • Herbal/Fruit: 5-7 minutes
  • Rooibos/Honeybush: 5-10 minutes

Happy Turtle Tip: Re-steep Your Tea Leaves

Generally speaking, Happy Turtle Tea blends can be steeped more than once. Use the same tea leaves in your infuser/bag and re-steep as desired. Increase the time slightly with each re-steeping (in 10-15 second increments).