A scientist’s guide to life: How to make the perfect cup of tea

Avoid disposable Styrofoam cups. They will absorb some flavour compounds and affect the taste of what you’re drinking. If you’re on the go, opt for reusable cups made from inert materials like ceramic or glass or ceramic mugs made from ceramics or glass.

Psychology

There’s a huge amount of psychology involved in the way we perceive taste.

• For example, hot drinks taste sweeter if they’re in an orange or red mug, compared to if they’re in a blue or white mug.
• Similarly, if you were to drink from a fine bone china cup, you would probably associate that with being special, and would be more likely to taste and appreciate the flavours.

Need to know…

If you use reusable cups, opt for ones made from ceramic or glass

• Oat milk is a good dairy alternative to add to your tea and coffee
• Let your tea brew for a little longer to get the best flavour profile and an antioxidant hit

Milk or hot tea first?

If you’re making tea in a mug, add the milk after the tea, at the last possible moment before drinking, so the tea stays as hot as possible for as long as possible.

• Make sure you use freshly boiled water.

Water quality is important

If the water is too soft and doesn’t contain any minerals, the tea can taste soapy

• If it’s too hard and contains a lot of minerals, such as calcium and magnesium ions, it can cause scum to form on the tea’s surface

Non-dairy milk is also good

Oat milk tends to have a good flavour profile for mixing with teas and coffees.

Loose leaf gives more flavour than tea bags

Leaves have more space to move around and distribute flavour

• Over 90% of tea in the U.S. is drunk from tea bags, but loose leaf tea is more popular
• Tea makers go to great lengths to ensure the quality of their tea bags

Let it brew.

Most people let their tea brew for around two minutes, but five minutes is ideal. It’s too hot to drink before then anyway, and the extra time means your tea will have more flavour and antioxidants.

• Warning – if you leave the bag in for too long, you’ll also end up with more tannin molecules, which can make the tea taste bitter.

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