How to separate the tea from the tea leaves? This question has been answered with various ingenious inventions. Most of them are inexpensive tools, and with some experimentation, you will find your favorite one.

Filter Bags
They can be made of paper, cotton or hemp. I don’t generally recommend these for the same reasons I don’t recommend tea bags. Though, we have found some unbleached hemp bags that are quite excellent. You fill them with your choice of tea and then dispose of the tea and the bag after use. They are biodegradable as well.

If you use a non-disposable cotton or hemp cloth bag for the same variety of tea each time, it may not affect the flavor of the tea as long as you use a gentle, fragrance free detergent to wash it.

Baskets, Tea Balls
If they are used at all, they should be large and made from stainless steel. Tea must have full contact with the water to steep properly and produce a great cup of tea. Often these tools constrict the tea leaves and inhibit the steep. The leaves expand greatly once infused in hot water and they need room to fully open.

Strainers
This is my favorite invention for separating the tea from the tea leaves. I have about six of them. Place the strainer strategically over the decanter or cup, pour the tea through it and voila: perfectly steeped tea. The strainer keeps the leaves out of your cup, and the leaves are then in the pot are waiting for another round of hot water.