How to Keep Your Tea Fresh!
Do you like your tea to be deliciously fresh?
Are you tired of stale, tasteless tea?
You may be damaging your beautiful tea without even realising it.
These simple changes will ensure you get the best brew from your leaves.
The Six Things that Destroy Tea
Firstly, let's look at what destroys tea.
They are:
- Heat
- Odours
- Moisture
- Time
- Air
- Light
Heat, moisture, time, light, and air all cause tea to quickly loose their flavour and colour. Moisture can even cause mould to grow on your beautiful leaves.
What You Can Do To Protect Your Tea
Storage is key
Good tea storage is most important for protecting your tea - where you store it, how you store it, and how long you store it for.
Where You Store It
Store away from heat, smells, and light
Is your tea stored near a stove, or a window? These are the biggest sources of heat in your home. Heat destroys tea! Keep your tea well away from these areas.
Don't store tea near smelly things e.g. your spouse's dirty socks.
Tip: Some ask whether you should store tea in the fridge - this is not advisable as tea also does not deal well with constant changes of temperature and the condensation that occurs when tea is taken out of the fridge.
How You Store It
Use a dark, non-porous, airtight container
Have you drank tea that tastes like cardboard? Firstly, you should probably stop buying cheap supermarket tea and start buying Tielka organic tea (shameless self-promo).
Secondly, you should never store your tea in porous or smelly material.
Tea readily absorbs the odours of anything it is near e.g. nasty cardboard tea bag box.
Let's not forget tea is also damaged by light.
Keep your tea stored in a dark airtight container that does not already carry a nasty smell.
An airtight container will also protect your tea from moisture and air.
If you are using a tin, keep the pouch inside the tin with the pouch top folded over.
How Long You Store it For
Don't wait to use your tea!
As tea ages, the flavours become duller.
Dull flavours mean a sad life. And who wants a dull, sad life?
Start drinking your tea more often so it is replaced more frequently with fresh pouches of tea.
That way you always enjoy the freshest of tea!
If you can, buy tea that is packaged in a vacuum sealed pouch e.g. Tielka's loose leaf vacuum sealed pouches (more shameless self-promo).
You'll notice tea, particularly green tea, and Earl Grey, are not as bright and punchy after a couple of months.
So get drinking more tea more often and having a wonderfully vibrant life!