I just make sure the kettle has just boiled in the last few seconds and if I am in the mood I warm the pot fisrt!

john

I'm very monogamous in my tea love; I only ever drink 'ordinary' tea (black tea with milk) I would be very careful that the water is as close to boiling as possible.

Great group by the way!

I normally am so engrossed in Zooomr that I have to drink it cold

Water should be just boiled, but it cools down anyway with the milk.. I'd never heard of a tea thermometer before...

Yes, just off the boil to make it.

No milk! :)

I might be weird, but one of my favorite teas is Gen Mai Cha (sp?) over ice. If it is cold outside, I drink it hot and it is really good too.

To make my ice tea, I use a recycled glass bottle. A wide mouth bottle is the best. I fill the bottle with fresh clean water and put in 3 or 4 tea bags depending on what kind I'm making. The bottle is then left in the sun until it looks dark enough, or can be left in the fridge over night.



For hot tea, at work we have a hot water spigot, but I don't know the temp. At home, I drop the tea into a cup of just boiled water.

I generally get my hot water out of the hot water spout on a coffee maker. Not really sure what temperature that is, but I tend to make the tea either too strong or too weak. I haven't gotten it quite right. Then again when measuring the amount of loose tea I put into my tea maker, I only eyeball it and don't use a consistent method.

The hot water spigot on the coffee machines at my office put out at 195 F. Not hot enough for black tea. These days I bring in my own RO water (made at home) and boil it in the microwave (3 minutes). I use one teaspoon of tea in my Finum tea strainer. I preheat my mug with the hot water from the coffee machine spigot. I usually am drinking Harney and Sons Darjeeling, or occasionally their Tea Quan Yin (oolong). Either way, the water is still boiling in the mug from the microwave when I pour it. Steep 4 (oolong) or 5 (darjeeling) minutes. A perfect cup every time.