Loose-Leaf Tea 101: Temperatures and Steep Times

Loose-leaf tea is forgiving — but each family of tea wants different water. Pour boiling water on a delicate green and you will taste bitterness instead of the leaf. Here is the two-minute version, using about one teaspoon of leaf per 8 oz cup.

Black tea — 212 F, 3 to 5 minutes

Assam, Ceylon, Darjeeling, Earl Grey, and breakfast blends all take a full boil. Start tasting at 3 minutes; past 5 the tannins take over. Black teas stand up well to milk and honey.

Green tea — 175 F, 2 to 3 minutes

Gunpowder, jasmine, and most greens want cooler water — let a boiled kettle sit for about two minutes before pouring. Short, cool steeps give you sweetness and aroma; hot, long ones give you bitterness.

Oolong — 195 F, 3 to 4 minutes

Oolong sits between green and black, and it is the champion of re-steeping — good leaves will give you three or four infusions, each a little different. Add 30 seconds for each round.

White tea — 175 F, 2 to 3 minutes

The most delicate of the bunch. Cool water, short steep, no milk — white tea is all subtlety, so give it room to speak.

Rooibos and herbals — 212 F, 5 to 7 minutes

Caffeine-free rooibos, fruit blends, and herbal tisanes are nearly impossible to over-steep. Full boil, long steep, big flavor — and they make excellent iced tea doubled in strength and poured over ice.

One more tip: give loose leaves room to unfurl. A roomy infuser basket beats a cramped tea ball every time.