The big rivalries of history: David vs Goliath, Michelangelo vs da Vini, Tesla vs Edison and Mcgregor vs Mayweather. But since the invention of the first, hand sewn silk tea bags in 1903, one rivalry exists to top them all.
LOOSE LEAF VS TEA BAGS.
For us, this is an easy one. We're totally unswayed by the suggestion that making loose leaf is somehow a complicated process, we've laid this on the line before. So, any arguments for tea bags made in terms of their relative simplicity are invalid. Quashed. Kaput.
The first argument in favour of loose leaf is that it just tastes better. If you're using whole, rolled leaves, then the more room you can give them to impart their flavour, the better. You'll get a smooth, full bodied flavour and not a spot of bitterness - even if you leave it brewing for a solid 6 minutes. Flavour aside, loose leaf's got another thing in its arsenal of awesome.
The thing is, it just entails a better experience. Give us a mug with a proper tea bag in it and we're happy. Give us a pot, a cup and five minutes to while away and we're beaming. Taking the little bit of extra care and time that goes into brewing a pot of loose leaf makes all the difference.
So it's settled. Loose leaf takes the biscuit. That's not to say that tea bags don't have their place, we'd never get somebody to stock loose leaf for their takeaway. That'd just be silly.
The trick is getting your tea bag choice right. Go for whole, rolled leaves - because nothing else cuts the mustard. Go for pyramids, because they're the roomiest, go for LOTS of leaves, because in this case - less is definitely not more. Finally, make sure you use the right amount of water. A fixed amount of tea = a fixed amount of water. *
*That's 12 Oz, in case you're wondering.
