English Breakfast Tea

Western style - 2-3 g per 250 ml at 95-100 degC. Soak for 2 1 / 2 -3 1 / 2 minutes, then strain. Add milk if desired.

Gongfu style: 4-5g in 120-150 ml; 95 degC; infusion 20-25 sec, followed by 10-15 sec each round.

Iced/Cold brew - 8-10 g in 1 L. Cold steep 6-8 hours in fridge (or hot brew 3 minutes with flash chill), strain and cool.

Blood pressure & vascular markers (human trials): Long-term black tea intake has shown small but meaningful improvements in ambulatory blood-pressure measures and reduced BP variation in randomised controlled trials (≈3 cups/day over 6 months). Dose–response meta-analysis also reports modest BP benefits, particularly with longer durations. American Journal of Clinical NutritionRSC Publishing

Attention & alertness (tea’s caffeine + L-theanine): Recent systematic reviews of RCTs in healthy adults find that tea, theanine, or theanine-with-caffeine can acutely support attention and task performance (effects are modest and task-dependent). Oxford Academic

Lower mortality risk (observational): In the UK Biobank cohort (~498k adults), drinking ≥2 cups/day of tea—predominantly black—was associated with modestly lower all-cause and cardiovascular mortality over ~11 years (note: association ≠ causation). Europe PMCNational Institutes of Health (NIH)

Gut interaction (mechanistic): Black tea theaflavins are transformed by gut microbes into smaller metabolites, a pathway thought to contribute to systemic effects; recent reviews highlight emerging gut-health relevance. MDPIScienceDirect

Evidence generally refers to black tea; Specific outcomes depend on individual/brew strength.

Contains caffeine; Unless you are sensitive, avoid late at night.

If needed - separate from iron rich meals - tea polyphenols may reduce non-haem iron absorption.

If you have reflux, use slightly cool water and shorter steeps. Seek medical advice in pregnancy or nursing, or if you have cardiovascular concerns or are on a medication affected by caffeine.