Loose leaf tea or tea bags – which is better?
Loose leaf tea is generally higher quality, has a larger leaf and therefore requires longer brewing, achieves a brighter flavour and has fewer impurities giving a clearer liquor and has fewer chemical addatives reducing toxic residues. Gourmet teas are high-grade loose leaf teas with no impurities, no chemical preservatives, no artificial colours or flavours, some use added natural flavours. Gourmet tea bags are becoming popular in the hospitality industry because they combine the benefits of quality loose leaf tea with ease of leaf disposal. Some commercial mass market tea bags contain a high percentage of low quality tea dust, many impurities, added artificial colours and flavours and brew almost instantly to achieve an inferior flavour. Some tea bag materials contain bleaching chemical residues. When brewed, these tea bags are the tea equivalent to cask wine.
