Tea sipped with a spouse or friend is one of life's simplest pleasures. The warm brew along with amiable conversation relaxes the spirit, soothes the soul and energizes the body. Here is how to make a perfect 'cuppa' to enhance the experience.

Use a Teapot

Tea does not steep well in a cup or mug. As the tea leaves absorb water, they open and expand to release their full flavour. There isn't enough room in a cup for this to happen. What is worse, the open cup allows the aroma and flavour of the tea leaves to escape. This is why tea made from a cup tastes insipid and bland.

The best tea is made from a clean teapot. An easy and ecologically friendly way to clean a teapot is to add 2 teaspoons of bicarbonate of soda to your teapot and add boiling water. After 2 to 3 hours, rinse the teapot in clear water. It will be sparkling clean and will not have an aftertaste to spoil your tea. NEVER use bleach to clean your teapot. Not only will it spoil your tea, it will harm the china.

It has often been said that a Chinese yixing teapot makes the very best tea. The special unglazed clay of an yixing teapot absorbs the delicate flavours of the tea and becomes 'seasoned' after each use.  After many years of use, devotees claim that you can brew a delightful cup of tea just by pouring boiling water into the empty pot!

Use Freshly Drawn Cold Water

Oxygen helps the full flavour of tea develop. Freshly drawn, cold water has the maximum oxygen. If your tap water is very hard and contains a lot of limescale, use a purification or charcoal filter first. Never use bottled water, distilled water or previously boiled water for your tea as these do not contain very much dissolved oxygen and will lead to a muddy, bitter-tasting brew.

Add at least 1 extra cup of cold water to your kettle. This will be used to preheat your teapot.

Buy the Best Tea You Can Afford

Loose tea leaves make the best tea. Put the leaves in an infuser for easy cleaning. Just make sure the infuser is big enough for the number of servings you want to make. As mentioned above, tea leaves expand when they absorb water. Infused tea leaves need room for the water to circulate in and around them so that they can open fully.

If you use tea bags, use only premium quality. There is a definite difference.

Like fine wine, the quality, bouquet and taste of tea are determined by location, soil, climate and altitude. In descending order of quality, the four grades of tea are leaf, broken leaf, fannings, and dust. The cheapest tea bags contain dust. The name says it all.

Remember that fresh tea makes the best tea. Keep tea as fresh as possible by keeping it in an air-tight container. Otherwise, like bread, it will become stale.

Warm the Teapot

When the water in the kettle reaches a full boil, pour the extra cup of the water into the teapot, swirl it around and discard. This is not a useless ritual. If a teapot is preheated, the temperature of the water will be maintained, the tea leaves will open completely  and the full flavour of the tea will develop.

Measure the Tea

If using loose leaves, measure 1 teaspoon for each person, then add 1 extra 'for the pot'. Some tea bags are meant to make one cup of tea, others for two. Use the appropriate amount for the number of cups you are making.

Let the Tea Steep

Immediately pour the boiling water over the tea. (More delicate teas, such as green teas and flower teas, are the exception to this rule. For these latter teas, remove the kettle from the heat and let it cool slightly for about 2 minutes. Then pour the water on the tea in the pot.)

A general rule of thumb is the larger the leaf, the longer the tea should steep. Large loose leaf teas should steep for about 6-7 minutes so that they can unfold fully. Tea bags should steep for no longer than 2 minutes. After the tea has steeped, give the tea a stir and remove the tea leaves/bags to prevent bitter-tasting tannins from being released.

Pour the Tea

A bone china cup and saucer adds a touch of elegance and refinement that is hard to beat, but a mug is fine if you prefer a more casual tea. A charming creamer and sugar bowl provide a sense of luxury and sophistication with very little effort.

Use milk, never cream, for tea. Cream is too heavy and overpowers the delicate flavours of tea.

Add sugar if so desired. Fruit and flower teas tend to be sweet in themselves so be careful not to oversweeten the brew.

Some friends may prefer lemon in their tea instead of milk. Lemon is especially good in blends such as Earl Grey because it complements the citrus flavour of the bergamot.

Use a Tea Cozy

A tea cozy can keep tea piping hot for up to an hour. That's if the tea lasts that long!

Sit back, relax, and re-energize by sipping your delicious brew. Share a pot with that special someone. Chat. Laugh. Enjoy.

Note that tea drinking has many health benefits that have been confirmed by scientific research. But that is the subject of another guide.