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I don’t always want the best tea. Not too long ago, I opened a box of tea bags, dropped one into a cup of hot water, waited a few minutes, and voila! I will take a cup of hot tea in my hands and drink it, and everything in the world will be fine.
Then I met and became friends with a tea taster named James Rabe (yes, that was the case) – a passionate, student who was at the dawn of things. Led to tea fame – my tea drinking life changed forever.
James taught me that in order to brew (much) better tea, you need to learn some simple searching and brewing techniques, as well as knowing how to brew it properly. I went from buying tea in boxes to brewing loose leaves in nanoseconds. Green, black, herbal, oolong, and rooibos all made it into my cup.
Friends noticed my newfound passion and gave them themed gifts, often in the form of soakable gear. I have tried different models, from tea balls and tea baskets to filter papers that you fill with tea yourself. Ultimately, I went back to James’ advice: The best tea brewers are simple, inexpensive, and most importantly, the design details follow the basic principles of proper brewing.
A good teapot should be large enough to allow maximum interaction between tea and water, with an ultra-fine mesh to keep leaves and sediment from escaping when the tea is brewed. If your brewer is too small, it will not allow the water to circulate freely and the tea leaves will expand enough to make the drink bland and unsatisfactory. You’ll also need an infuser to keep your cup, mug, teapot, or thermos closed during brewing to help keep your tea warm and flavorful.
In my quest to find the best tea infuser, I put together a collection of 12 models for testing, looking at options with balls, baskets, and paper. Read on for the winners. For more information on the testing process and what to consider when choosing the best tea brewer, scroll down the page.
Best tea infuser overall Best travel tea infuser
The Finum Stainless Steel Mesh Tea Infuser Basket won gold in my testing and in many other tea infusion ratings I found online. It outperforms the best brew machine I have ever used and meets all my tea brewing needs. It fits perfectly in mugs of various sizes, and its shape and size allow water and tea leaves to mix in full flow.
No matter what type of tea I use – from very finely chopped tulsi leaves to flowers like chrysanthemums – Finum is the only tea I’ve tested that prevents leaves and deposits (no matter how small) from getting into my mug’s brewer .
The Finum Basket Infuser is made from durable micro-mesh stainless steel with a heat-resistant BPA-free plastic frame and is available in medium and large sizes to fit cups, mugs, as well as teapots and thermoses. It comes with a lid that completely covers the infuser and doubles as a lid for the infuser vessel so my tea stays hot and flavorful while brewing. Once brewed, the lid flips over to become a handy brew stand while it cools.
After brewing the tea, I tapped the nozzle on the side of the compost bin and the used tea leaves easily fell into the bin. I mainly clean this macerator by rinsing it in warm water and letting it air dry quickly, but I also run it in the dishwasher and when I feel like it needs a deeper clean, I try to lightly brush it with a drop of detergent. washing dishes. Three Both cleaning methods are simple and work well.
Finum disposable paper tea bags deserve my vote for the best brews on the go (air, car and boat trips, camping trips, overnight stays and trips to the office or school). Although these tea bags are a single use product, they are made from FSC certified biodegradable paper and can be composted with your used tea leaves. The convenience of throwing them away makes them a better option to take with you than a basket or ball that needs to be cleaned and put away.
Finum paper tea bags are easy to fill and well constructed; their adhesive-free edges ensure a secure seal during and after use. The small size, which Finum calls “thin”, is perfect for brewing a cup of tea. It has a nice wide opening that makes it easy to fill the bag without spilling tea, and it’s thin but roomy enough for water and tea to mix well. Its folded bottom opens up when filled with water, which also helps provide enough room for foliage and water to interact. The top flap folds neatly around the edge of my mug, which keeps the bag closed and is easy to pull out of the mug once my tea is ready to drink. Although the paper filter doesn’t have a lid, I can easily cover the mug to keep the tea hot and flavorful while it’s brewing. In order to carry these bags with me, I folded the flap several times and stuffed the bag full of tea into a small airtight bag.
Finum bags are made in Germany and come in six sizes. They primarily offer chlorine-free oxygen bleaching options (the process is considered safer than chlorine bleaching). The large size, which the company says is perfect for pots, is made from chlorine-bleached and unbleached natural materials. I find tea tastes cleaner after using non-chlorinated tea bags.
For this test, I chose a straight basket, a ball, and disposable soak bags. Infuser baskets are suitable for cups, mugs or jugs and usually have a lid to help keep the tea hot and flavorful while brewing. They are a great reusable option. Ball brewers, also reusable, are usually filled on both sides open and then secured with screws or latches. Disposable soak bags are single-use products that are usually, but not always, compostable and biodegradable. They are typically made from a variety of materials, including chlorine-bleached and chlorine-free paper, and natural paper. Some bags are made from other materials such as polyester, and some use glue, staples, string, or other non-compostable and/or biodegradable materials.
I ruled out any cool novelties. They are usually made of silicone and come in many shapes and weird and funny names like Octeapus, Deep Tea Diver and Teatanic. While they are fun, cute, and functional on a basic level, they don’t fit the bill to make great tea.
I have brewed several cups of tea with each brewer using tea leaves that vary greatly in size and shape. This allows me to evaluate if the best leaves and sediment from the brewer seep into my finished drink and to check how the brewer handles larger leaves and herbal teas. I am researching the interaction of water and tea leaves during brewing. I also appreciated the cool design to see how easy it is to use and clean. Finally, I took into account the environmental friendliness of the materials used.
Shape and design ultimately determine the winning kettle. Three important questions: Does the infuser ensure maximum interaction between water and tea? Is the material tightly woven to prevent even the finest tea leaves and sediment from seeping into your tea? Does the steep slope have its own cover? (Or, if not, can you cover a cup, mug, pot, or thermos while using the brewer?) I have tested spherical, bag, and basket brewers in all shapes, sizes, and materials, including round, oval, stainless steel, steel mesh, paper and polyester, carefully consider these three factors to determine which infusor is best.
I tested products ranging from $4 to $17 looking for the best value for a fully functional well designed ramp.
The FORLIFE Brew-in-Mug Extra-Fine Kettle with Lid is a stylish stainless steel kettle. It has a large silicone bezel that is cool to the touch and can be flipped over to become a cool kickstand. The cup he brews in tastes good, but the mesh isn’t thin enough to keep the sediment from my finest tea leaves from seeping into my drink.
The Oxo Brew tea brew basket is exceptionally durable and includes some thoughtful design features such as silicone touch points under the two handles to keep it cool to the touch. Like FORLIFE, it also has a silicone rimmed lid that flips over to transform into a basket for a delicious cup of tea. Although this model doesn’t leak as much sediment as FORLIFE, it still produces some highlights when using very fine tea leaves.
The Oxo Twisting Tea Ball Infuser features a beautiful disposable design that pivots and opens for easier filling than the classic ball infuser design. However, the long handle of the brewer makes it difficult to cover the cup or pot during the brewing process. Also, since this ball is only about 1.5 inches in diameter, the tea leaves become narrow, which limits their interaction with water. It is also touted as the best for pearl, whole leaf, and large leaf teas. When I try to brew better teas, I have no luck – they swim through the holes of this teapot and get into my drink. On the other hand, larger teas such as chrysanthemum are not suitable for this type of brew.
The Toptotn Loose Leaf Tea Infuser features a classic two-piece design that twists together and has a convenient chain to hang from the handle of a mug, cup or teapot. This is the model you’re likely to find in the home improvement section of a hardware store, and it’s cheap ($12 for a pack of six on Amazon at the time of this writing. Who needs six of those, though?). But with just a few holes on one side of a steep slope, the water-tea interaction is the weakest of my rivals.
The HIC Snap Ball teapot is another classic. This has a strong spring handle that helps it stay closed once full but makes it difficult to open. The long stem prevents me from covering the cup while brewing tea. The small balls limit the amount and type of tea I can use.
The large size of the HIC Mesh Wonder Ball allows water and tea to mix to create a cup of divine tea. When you use this ball, it can cover any utensils you use to make tea. The fine mesh on this steep slope is nice and tight, but there is a big gap at the junction where the two halves of the ball meet. When I don’t use large teas, there is noticeable leakage.
Reminiscent of a test tube with a stirring handle, Steep Stir is a new design. The body opens to reveal a small chamber for the tea leaves. However, this case is difficult to open and close, and the small size and rectangular shape of the chamber is difficult to fill without spilling tea on the counter. The room was also too small for water and tea to interact properly and limited the type and amount of tea I could use.
Bstean tea filter bags are chlorine free, unbleached and biodegradable. They are tightened with something like cotton laces (so theoretically these ties can be composted, though the company doesn’t explicitly say so). I love that these bags have a drawstring closure, but I prefer the larger size and wider range of Finum bag sizes. I also prefer the Finum Forest Stewardship Council certification (meaning they come from responsibly managed forests) and clear proof that their products are compostable.
The T-Sac tea filter bags come second in design, almost identical to Finum’s filter bag offering. The bags are also made in Germany and are compostable and biodegradable, but they are made from unbleached cotton material only. T-Sac offers fewer size options than Finum and I found size #1 to be too narrow for larger teas. The size of the T-Sac 2 (equivalent to the “slim” Finums) is nice and roomy, allowing water and tea to mix freely without being too big for one cup or mug. While I prefer the taste of Finum’s oxygen-bleached tea bags, they also make a nice cup of tea.
Daiso disposable filter bags have won a lot of praise: they are easy to fill and have a hinged lid that completely protects the tea. Use them to create the purest and tastiest tea of all tea bags. Priced at $12 for 500 bags, this is the most affordable way to brew a cup or mug of tea. However, they are made from polypropylene and polyethylene, which are both plastic and non-compostable. Also, the product was shipped from Japan when we ordered it, and although it came with a lovely handwritten note, it took a few weeks for delivery.
Although I have tested several high quality tea brewers, the Finum stainless steel mesh brew basket is my top choice due to quality, versatility and environmental friendliness. Its spacious design fits all common tea brewing containers and ensures full interaction between tea leaves and brewing water. Its micro-mesh walls prevent even the smallest leaves and sediment from getting into your brewed tea. At only around $10, this is the most affordable premium tea infuser on the market. Finum disposable paper tea bags for on-the-go brewing are well designed and easy to fill. They are available in a variety of sizes, make a delicious cup of tea, and are made from FSC certified 100% compostable and biodegradable paper.
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Post time: Mar-16-2023