Insulated / double walled teapots
I was thinking – for all the fuss over water temperatures, there are surprisingly few insulated teapots to keep tea at the right temperature as it brews. Tea cozies are a cute but inelegant solution IMO. Doing a Google search brings up a $60 Teavana double-walled glass pot, a few even more expensive ones, and some cheapo plastic pots.
Does anyone here know of any good steel or glass ones that aren’t so pricey?
Not all tea cozies are equal. I’ve got this set up and it works fantastic.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fleurdog/4338073191/
The felted interior is snug against the teapot to keep it very warm.
Mighty Leaf Tea retails a “portable” type french press thermos pot, that doubles as a drinking mug.
http://www.mightyleaf.com/teaware_teapot/french-press teapot-portable-/
It’s designed by an Italian company I think, who also sells other thermos products.
IMO, I find that keeping tea warm for extensive periods of time is reserved only for black teas. Oolongs seemed “baked” when kept warm, and greens get sharper with more heat, whites are usually not even hot enough to begin with.
Assuming I don’t take forever to drink my tea, a cast-iron pot almost never disappoints me for keeping the temperature right
cast iron teapot + tea warmer stand and teacandle = a very long warm time in kettle
I’ll have to be another supporter of the warmth-retention power of the cast iron teapot. I have a fairly little guy (which before using I figured would loose heat quick because of the small volume), and drinking at a steady but not fast rate I can generally empty him before the tea has left the hot/hot-warm stage.
I’ve been eying a teapot warmer as well to use with my bigger ceramic teapot. Maybe an option to consider.
Perhaps in addition to the starting water temperature for brewing, and the brewing time, the optimal ending temperature should also be noted. Tea can be kept too hot while steeping – but how hot is too hot?
Knowing your teapot is somewhat helpful. I did an experiment with the half dozen teapots I own to see what the temperature change was during a 5 minute steep. Size made quite a difference, as did teapot type. My large Bodum lost heat the slowest, a small glass teapot the fastest. The large Chatsford was surprising in that it seemed to suck the heat out of the water (despite serious prewarming).
I concluded that the Bodum is going commando while steeping; and the Chatsford will be having some cozy help.
It would be helpful to know what temperature I’m shooting for though - anybody have an answer???
i don’t’ know the answer but i pull the leaves out at the end of the steep and then am just keeping it warm for my convenience – you know how sometimes twoard the end of your cup it tastes better? those i put in glass
Those Hobs you make are actually really attractive. My pots are all too small for them, otherwise I’d consider it.
AmazonV’s comment about the tea tasting better at the end of the cup brings up ANOTHER tea temperature question: What temperature to DRINK it at???
… sooo… at the risk of sounding obsessive about it ( lol – I think I’m in the right crowd ), should each tea have four figures attached to it? Start steep temp, end steep temp, steep time, drink temp?
Annelise, here’s a thread you may find interesting:
http://steepster.com/discuss/298-cooling-flavors
My ‘utility’ tea tastes wonderful hot, degrades to dishwater when lukewarm, then resurrects itself to half decent when iced. MUST invest in better tea!
thanks Cofftea; just read the other posts; must conclude that there are infinite nuances in every tea – no wonder lifetimes are spent learning about it.
I have a 12 oz Chatsford. I use a Thistledown tea cozie with her. Keeps the tea warm for the better part of an hour. The last cup of tea is always the hottest:)
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