Tea infuser: ball, tube, paper filter or filter teapot, which to choose

Which tea infuser should you choose for your cup?

The right tea infuser depends first on the vessel: a ball for the cup, a tube for a tall mug, a paper filter for nothing to wash, a teapot with a filter to serve several cups, a bottle with a strainer to take your tea with you. They all do the same job: they hold the leaves in a cage immersed in the water, then you remove them, which stops the infusion.

If you are new to loose leaf tea and are looking for the full list of useful items (kettle, measuring spoon, sand timer, caddy), our guide to essential tea accessories provides it. Here, we compare only the ways of holding the leaves.

The tea ball: for which teas?

The tea ball suits teas and infusions whose leaves do not swell too much. The Infuseur à Thé Rond Inox is a stainless steel ball available in two diameters, 50 mm and 65 mm. It goes into the cup or the teapot, and stainless steel, being neutral, imparts no taste. Its round shape offers a large surface in contact with the water.

For whole leaves that open out a great deal, choose a paper filter or a teapot with a filter instead: the leaves have room to unfurl. With the ball, the method is simple: fill it with leaves, close it, immerse it, then remove it at the end of the time given on the tea's page. The leaves stay inside.

Paper tea filter: disposable, with room for the leaves

The paper tea filter lets the leaves spread out in a large volume, and there is nothing to wash. The Filtre à Thé Teeli is a disposable double-fold paper filter with a fine mesh: it holds back even finely cut teas, and suits broken leaves such as Uva Highlands BOP, whole leaves and loose leaf herbal infusions. Pour the measure into the filter, place it in the cup or teapot, then remove it and throw it away.

It comes in four sizes, from cup to large teapot: S (155 × 76 mm), M, L and XL (102 × 195 mm). The boxes contain 100 filters, and 60 for size XL. To prepare your tea bags in advance, for example before a trip, the Filtres Sachet Papier+Ficelle can be filled with the leaves of your choice and closed with their string.

Prefer a reusable filter for the cup? The Filtre Teeli-Click is an infuser with a mechanism: fill it, steep, and a press releases or holds the contents, without handling a scalding filter. A rinse is then all it needs.

The tea tube, for the mug and the office

The tea tube is made for mugs and tall tumblers: its elongated shape fits them. The Tube à Thé Napoli avec Micro-filtre and the Tube à Thé Pisa avec Micro-filtre 0.6 mm are two elongated stainless steel infusers. Their micro-filter holds back the finest particles: they take whole leaves as well as broken leaves, or a green tea such as Sencha Uji.

Compact, they accompany your tea at the office as well as when travelling. Fill the tube with the measure given on the tea's page, pour the hot water into the mug, immerse the tube, then remove and rinse it. The long shape of the Napoli fits the mugs in the Dunoon range, and the other items for drinking tea away from home are gathered in the bottles and on-the-go section.

Taking your tea with you: the infuser bottle

The infuser bottle combines preparation and transport: you steep the tea in a strainer, then carry it in the same object. The Gourde Leeza by Eigenart holds about 500 ml: its double-walled stainless steel keeps hot drinks hot for several hours, and its two-part strainer is laser-perforated. Its sports cap opens with one hand.

The Thermos Flowtea · Gourde en Verre, from the same brand, is made of double-walled borosilicate glass, for about 350 to 400 ml, with a stainless steel strainer, a screw cap and a neoprene sleeve that protects the glass. For both bottles, only the strainer is dishwasher-safe: the bottle and lid are washed by hand. The Leeza also keeps cold drinks cool, and our guide to homemade iced tea gives the cold brew method.

As a small Christmas gift, these items slip easily under the tree: the Flowtea comes in a gift box, and the Leeza is available in five designs (Cherry Blossom, Geo Blue, Komorebi, Rustic Flower and Linnea). A tube or a ball also goes very well with a first bag of loose leaf tea.

For a teapot, the built-in filter

To serve several cups, the simplest option is a teapot supplied with its filter: put the leaves in, steep, then remove the filter. The Théière en Verre 'Finn', 0,9 l has a stainless steel microfilter and a transparent wall through which you can watch the leaves unfurl. The Théière en Verre 'Anne' avec Filtre, 800 ml has a removable filter that holds back the leaves and makes cleaning easier.

In cast iron, the Mariage Frères Théière 'Drape' · 80 cl is also supplied with its filter. If your teapot has none, a large Teeli filter or a tea ball completes it. Choosing the material and capacity has its own guide: choosing your teapot.

How to use and care for your infuser?

Whatever the model, the method comes down to four steps, and the steeping time plays a central part: removing the leaves at the right moment prevents an over-strong tea.

1. Put the measure given on the tea's page into the infuser.

2. Pour the water at the temperature that suits the tea into the cup, mug or teapot.

3. Immerse the infuser, or place the filter, and start the steeping time.

4. Remove the infuser, then rinse it, or throw away the paper filter.

The temperatures and times for each type are gathered in our guide to steeping times and temperatures. As for care, the stainless steel of the balls and tubes needs only a rinse, and all these models can be found in our filters and infusers section.