Perfect Cup of Tea

My partner got me stop drinking energy drinks almost a decade ago. They were very bad for me, expensive and increasingly worse tasting. So out of necessity I switched to coffee and other sources of caffeine to keep the lights on and make sure the ice cream didn’t melt.

Pot of tea in front of bookshelf
Literal thirst trap.

Over the last few years, I noticed I drink more tea (in addition to the coffee, the Coke Zero and the water people implore me to drink). I’ve tried to go off caffeine before (you can read about that adventure). Like most things, I quickly became obsessed with every detail, pots, kettles, strainers, styles of mugs, how tea is grown and the most effective brewing techniques. I spent a lot of money trying the most expensive consumer brands I could find, in search of the “good stuff”. Herbal teas, black teas and a few green teas quickly became favorites and things like chamomile and sencha and jasmine were ones I found to avoid. Living with someone who also loved tea has only fostered and encouraged this obsession.

Then I found it. The perfect cup of tea, or more accurately the best cup based on taste, cost and ease of brewing designed for everyday consumption. First we start with the classic PG Tips, a British tea company (which you can find in most American supermarkets). I prefer their standard black tea in their compostable pyramid bags served with a small amount of honey and lemon.

Recipe Details

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Squeeze lemon into the mug, removing the seeds.
  2. Deposit lemon and teaspoon of honey in mug
  3. Drop in teabag
  4. Pour water
  5. Steep for 3 minutes
  6. Remove lemon, squeeze again into the mug and remove tea bag.
  7. Stir and enjoy

There are other teas I like, I’m very fond of Earl Gray and this Black Tea with cherry but this recipe is my defacto.