How to Make Black Tea Properly
Updated Mar 12, 2025
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Get step-by-step instructions and expert tips on how to make black tea properly from a Tea Sommelier.
Black Tea
Black tea is the most popular and common type of tea. Black tea, green tea, oolong tea, and white tea all come from one plant called the Camellia sinensis and they naturally contain caffeine.
To make black tea, the leaves are plucked from the Camellia sinensis plant and left out to dry and oxidize, a natural process that darkens the leaves. Oxidation is what gives black tea its dark color when brewed, along with a stronger, more robust flavor.
Black tea is mainly produced in China (where it originated) and India. Each variety of black tea has its own distinct taste, ranging from malty and full-bodied to delicate and sweet to smoky and earthy.
Note from Jee
I had to drink A LOT of black tea during the time I was studying to be a Tea Sommelier. The final test to get certified was to identify different types of tea, including a few black teas.
If you’re interested in this, what I recommend to you is to select one black tea to brew and drink every day for a week. After a week, you should be able to taste the tea again later and recognize it.
Then, restart the process with a new black tea the following week.
Different Black Teas
The following teas are all black teas.
- English Breakfast tea: A blend of black teas. Each tea company makes their own blend to create their own English Breakfast tea. It’s usually had with milk and sugar.
- Earl Grey tea: Black tea with bergamot, a citrus fruit.
- Chai: Black tea with a blend of spices like cinnamon and cloves.
- Assam: A bold, robust black tea that’s usually found in Earl Grey and chai.
- Darjeeling: Also known as the “Champagne of teas” because of its delicate fruity aroma.
- Ceylon: A versatile tea from Sri Lanka, formerly known as Ceylon, with bright, citrusy flavor that’s great hot or cold. (See how to brew Ceylon properly.)
- Lapsang souchong: This Chinese tea has a unique earthy, smoky flavor.
- Keemun: A Chinese black tea that’s used in a lot of black tea blends like English Breakfast tea.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Boil water. To get the most accurate water temperature, use an electric kettle with temperature setting. Boil more than needed since you want extra to warm up the teapot.
Step 2: Warm up teapot by swirling hot water around in the teapot, then discard.
Step 3: Put black tea into the teapot and add hot water. Cover teapot and steep.
Step 4: Strain black tea solids and pour hot tea into a teacup.
Tea Sommelier’s Tips
Don’t oversteep the tea.
Steeping black tea for longer will make the tea bitter. The general rule of thumb for black tea is to steep for no longer than 5 minutes but look at the tea package for steep time recommendations.
Water quality is important.
Clean filtered water makes the best tasting tea because it won’t add any unwanted flavors.
Black tea can be had with or without sugar or milk.
You can drink black tea with or without sugar. Black tea is also commonly enjoyed with milk but you can drink it without milk. It’s totally up to you how you like it.
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How to Make Black Tea Properly
Ingredients
- 1 cup water, + more to warm teapot
- 1 ½ teaspoons black tea, or 1 tea sachet or tea bag
Instructions
- Boil water.If using an electric kettle with temperature setting, set it to the water temperature listed on the tea package. Black tea is usually steeped in water that's 212ºF. Heat a little more water than needed so that it can be used to warm up the teapot.
- Warm up teapot.Pour some hot water into a teapot and swirl it around. Discard the water.Warming up the teapot is an extra step that all tea professionals take the time to do, so that when the tea steeps, the water temperature won't drop drastically.
- Put black tea into the teapot and add hot water. Cover teapot and steep for 5 minutes.Check the tea package to check your specific black tea's steep time.
- Strain black tea solids and pour hot tea into a teacup.
Notes
- Every type of tea has its own ideal brewing temperature. When it comes to black tea, that range typically falls between 200°F to 212°F. Check the tea package to find the right temperature for the tea you’ve purchased.
- Steeping black tea for longer will make the tea bitter. The general rule of thumb for black tea is to steep for no longer than 5 minutes but look at the tea package for steep time recommendations.
- Clean filtered water makes the best tasting tea because it won’t add any unwanted flavors.
- You can drink black tea with or without sugar and with or without milk.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
