Making tea

I like my rooibos with milk. Don't drink any other tea.

I like weaker black tea but like my rooibos strong and milky - probably a hangover from childhood when my father made it entirely with milk and sometimes some vanilla essence and honey when I'd been out in the cold in the winter.

I suppose it depends on how you like your cup of tea. I'm another Rooibos fan. But I let the tea bag brew for at least one minute.
My late, oldest friend used the same tea bag multiple times in a day. She enjoyed very weak tea. One (wo) man's meat etc.

Juliet27

This has highlighted just how extravagant I am. I like strong tea and use two teabags in my mug first thing in the morning and sometimes a second cup with new teabags. It’s just one bag in my afternoon cup of tea.

You're my kind of girl Juliet27. Can't stand weak tea.

We don't have teabags apart from some builders' tea for guests who like such tea. I then use the tea bags in the bottom of flower pots. We do have teapots and loose tea and the used leaves go into the compost or directly to the base of my rose bushes.

CanadianGran

Thanks all... I drink Rooibos tea, since I find black tea bitter, so I buy it myself for work. It really needs about 30 seconds in the cup to make a nice brew, with a tiny bit of sugar, no milk.

I'll try the two-cup method, putting the wet bag in another cup for later, or try to find some loose tea. That somehow seems like more work (lazy me!)

I think most of us were thinking you meant an English Breakfast type of tea, not Rooibos without milk. I have found Rooibos too strong, although I like a strong tea. Why don’t you do as you’ve been doing and make one bag last for two cups. Put the used bag in a fresh cup and pour hot water over it when you want it.

I've never drunk tea but my husband used to make a bag last seven times. Never understood it nor got worked up about it. To each his own.

Thanks all... I drink Rooibos tea, since I find black tea bitter, so I buy it myself for work. It really needs about 30 seconds in the cup to make a nice brew, with a tiny bit of sugar, no milk.

I'll try the two-cup method, putting the wet bag in another cup for later, or try to find some loose tea. That somehow seems like more work (lazy me!)

If you’re at work-not at home-do they supply the tea bags? If they do use a fresh teabag everytime and enjoy your well deserved lovely cup of tea.

I drink ginger or camomile tea.
I just top up a large mug throughout the day The flavour seems to improve till it runs out of steam
Revolting I can hear some scoff

I drink a lot of tea .

I really love coffee , but it doesn't love me .
When I was younger , I ended up in hospital and nearly had a laparotomy due to drinking instant coffee .

So tea is my special drink and I prefer Yorkshire tea made with freshly boiled water and drunk immediately .
The milk has to be right as well - some supermarkets sell milk that doesn't taste nice in tea .
I keep a themos of tea for emergencies , but it doesn't taste nice .
I don't like using old tea bags .
They go on the garden .

I must add I have a lot of teapots.

Large pot,two teabags of twinings Assam .let it brew and fish out the teabags ,squeeze them over the pot. This gives me three to four cups in the morning reheated in the microwave. With tealeaves I use the Chinese mandarin method,let it brew,strain into pot number two and after the first cup reheat subsequent cups in the microwave. This I’d for me on my own as DH drinks coffee. If I have visitors I’m much more civilised.

I remember the shock, aged 10, of milky tea over bread( ?) with butter and jam at breakfast

When I was seventeen I went to stay with a German family for three weeks. I'd had a long train journey to get there so they let me sleep in.
I woke up to find they'd made a pot of tea in my honour and had been keeping it hot on the hob for hours. They served it to me with condensed milk...
They didn't drink any of it, I politely struggled some down 😖

The next morning I offered to make tea the English way, and they all tried some.
They were amazed how nice it was, they'd always thought they didn't like tea but realised they'd just been making it wrong!

RosiesMaw

Tea making - is it really the British secret weapon?
When I was on an exchange to France years ago I remember my host “mum” stressing about getting tea just right. She would heat the water in a saucepan and sought reassurance that she was on the right track when she asked “and of course you don’t let the water boil do you?”

I always take teabags to France with me.. theirs are so weak in my experience

petra

You could always unwrap the spent tea bag and use it as a fertiliser, then you haven’t wasted it. Sorted.

My mother used to put the contents of used tea bags around her azaleas. She always had a truly spectacular display of flowers, so they evidently liked it!

This is how to make tea.
www.yorkshiretea.co.uk/our-teas/how-to-make-a-proper-brew

The thing is, I don't like strong tea, so my use-twice method works well for me.

We always drank"Pit mans tea" our mines were so warm if cold tea was taken down with milk, the milk curdled", tea was always black with or without sugar and in a "Seasoned" pottery teapot so strong you could stand a spoon in it . The leftover tea was put in a flask for the men's bait the next day.
I worked with someone who drank hot chocolate out of a sachet and had two mugs she made one cup in the morning and a second at lunch the third was the dregs of both mugs. It looked like dishwater.
Cut loose as others have said and enjoy a fresh one every time, your working treat your self you've earned it.

We used to laugh at one of my old Yorkshire aunties because she re- used teabags. She was quite well off but as mean as muck . She also used to get tinned tuna and dye it pink to look like salmon. Actually she was quite nice as a person, she was always kind to me. This thread brought back memories of her. I have to say she was born around 1910 so probably remembered hardship.

Oh good, I’ve just seen I’m not alone flappergirl

This has highlighted just how extravagant I am. I like strong tea and use two teabags in my mug first thing in the morning and sometimes a second cup with new teabags. It’s just one bag in my afternoon cup of tea.

You could always unwrap the spent tea bag and use it as a fertiliser, then you haven’t wasted it. Sorted.

Oh dear always a separate bag and freshly drawn water-- throw out whatever is in the kettle especially if it has been boiled several times!!