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I used to keep tea in thermos container after preparing. But i want to know how to keep it hot when serving within 5-10 minutes.

  • When I reboil it as-is, then it becomes tasteless: it's like drinking boiled sweet-bitter water not a cup of tea.
  • When I reboil it after adding some more milk to it, still i didn't tasted good enough (the flavor lost its strength)
  • When I added hot milk to it before reboiling it did not come to the desired results

No matter how I reheat it, what I get is a waste and it doesn't taste good. If I am only serving after 5-10 minutes,it seems unnecessary to use a thermos. What measures i can take while boiling again, if I want a rich and full cup of tea? Should i use thermos? Or am I missing some other method?

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Your second and third bullet point state exactly the same. Did you mean that you tried adding milk before and after boiling? –  Mien Mar 5 '13 at 9:48
@Mien its not tha same, in first i simply added milk(room temperature) and then reheated. While in second i added hot boiled milk to the tea before reheating. –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 5 '13 at 9:50

6 Answers 6

Much of the flavor and aroma of tea comes from volatile oils/compounds.

The heat applied to tea leaves while steeping them is key to releasing those volatile compounds but when you reboil the tea, a large portion the flavor compounds in the water are likely just going to be vaporized. The end result is the reheated tea will have very little 'tea' flavor left. The tannins however are less volatile and remain in the re-heated tea hence the bitterness.

A pre-warmed ceramic teapot would probably due the trick for keeping your tea warm for 5-10 minutes.

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+1 for your help. Answer is good enough regarding the taste of tea, the trick you shared of pre-warmed ceramic pot didn't worked out. –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 10:34
@SunishthaSingh As requested in http:/a/32421/14401: Although I am not a tea drinker... my best guess is that this answer--to pre-warm a ceramic pot--so that the tea loses the least heat possible is your best approach. Liquid in contact with a large surface (like tea in a teapot) will transfer heat fairly quickly due to convection in the liquid and the large surface area to do it. Also, note that that physics here favors large batches--they will cool more slowly. So make a larger pot of tea, not just one or two cups. As a non-tea drinker, I cannot speak to the flavor issues. –  SAJ14SAJ Mar 5 '13 at 4:48
Also: use a tea cozy. Its like a blanket for your teapot :-) –  SAJ14SAJ Mar 5 '13 at 4:49

Cast-iron teacups hold heat for quite some time. Similarly, a cast-iron teakettle can have the leaves removed and still keep the tea hot. I always use a cast-iron pot when I'm making multiple cups to drink in sequence.

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do you use to keep lid on while preparing in multiple cups to drink in sequence to regulate the vaporization of its volatile compounds and flavor as mentioned by Glenn Stevens –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 10:44
@SunishthaSingh I'm not sure I understood your comment correctly but yes, I keep the lid on the pot, it holds in more heat that way. –  Yamikuronue Mar 3 '13 at 14:46
does it affects to the taste of tea? –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 14:47
@SunishthaSingh Not significantly in my opinion. Certainly nowhere near as much as reheating –  Yamikuronue Mar 3 '13 at 14:48
ty for your help, m going to try it out. :) –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 14:50

Is there a particular reason you do not want to use a Thermos? I'm not quite sure I understand the question, but steeping one cup at a time with water warmed in an electric kettle could solve the problem.

If you'd rather steep one kettle at a time instead of per-cup, steep in a thick ceramic teapot other vessel that is more likely to hold the heat over time.

Adding milk will always cool your tea.

I use one of these guys to make a single cup of hot tea and let it steep just as long as I'd like depending on the leaf at hand:

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what i follow before reheating is either adding milk, then reheating tea or adding hot milk then reheating. This process is also changed the taste of tea and its flavor affected by it. –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 10:35
i don't want to use thermos just for a single cup of tea that's it nothing else. And that too for 5-10 mins. –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 10:38

You could use a tea cosy for your teapot. Put the tea cosy on the teapot as soon as you've water is boiling, and it will keep the teat warm for the next 10-15 minutes. It won't be boiling, but it doesn't need to be.

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You should try to make up your tea and keep the tea bag / herbs (or whatever you used to make it) in the thermos and reboil it with all the ingredient and just filter for serving. I have never tried but it MAY work, i will be curious if it works or not

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This cute problem is centuries old.

Put your teapot on top of a simmering kettle on the stove. The steams from the kettle keep it at the perfect temperture and steep it properly.

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how to manage temperature and taste perfectly balanced that is for what i am seeking here, i know the problem is centuries old. But i am a newbie in tea making. –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 10:40
@SunishthaSingh for taste, use quality tea leaves. Many tea bags are essentially tea dust. For temperature, use the method above. Each tea blend will need its own timing (5-15mins) which will be determined by how you like it. –  MandoMando Mar 3 '13 at 13:38
i m using taj mahal tea hope you have heard –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 13:40
i know tea quality is good enough. –  Sunishtha Singh Mar 3 '13 at 13:46

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