How to Make a Proper Builder's Tea with Loose Leaf

In short: a proper builder's tea is a strong black tea brewed hot and long, with a splash of milk and, if you like, a sugar or two. With loose leaf, use a heaped teaspoon (about 3 g) per mug, pour on water just off the boil, brew for 4 to 5 minutes, then add milk. The result should be a deep orange-brown cuppa with plenty of body.

Builder's tea is the everyday mug of the UK: strong, milky, quick to drink between jobs. Most people make it with a tea bag squeezed against the side of the mug. Loose leaf gives you a fuller, rounder cup that still has the strength you want, and it is easy once you know the numbers.

What makes a builder's tea

There is no official recipe, but most people agree on four things:

• Strong black tea. It has to taste of tea even after the milk goes in.
• A big mug. Usually 300 to 350 ml, not a dainty cup.
• Milk. Enough to turn it a rich orange-brown, not beige.
• Sugar is optional. One or two is traditional; many drink it without.

The name is thought to come from the tea brewed on building sites, where it was made strong, sweet and in big quantities. Today it simply means a proper, no-fuss cup.

Which loose leaf tea to use

You want a malty, full-bodied black tea. Broken leaf grades brew strong and fast, which is exactly what a builder's tea needs.

Browse our black tea range for Assam, Ceylon and breakfast blends. A loose leaf breakfast tea is usually the easiest place to start. Three good picks for a strong mug: Assam Khagorijan Strong, English Breakfast and Orange Pekoe Ceylon.

Step by step: the proper builder's brew

For one large mug (300–350 ml):

1. Boil fresh water. Use freshly drawn water from the tap. Reboiled water tastes flat.
2. Measure the tea. One heaped teaspoon, about 3 g. For a really strong mug, use 4 g.
3. Use an infuser or teapot. A mug infuser or a small teapot keeps the leaves out of your drink.
4. Pour water just off the boil. Black tea likes 95–100°C, so pour as soon as the kettle clicks off.
5. Brew 4 to 5 minutes. Do not rush this. Builder's tea is about strength, and loose leaf needs time to open up.
6. Remove the leaves. Lift out the infuser or pour from the pot so it does not stew.
7. Add milk. Start with a splash and stop at a deep orange-brown.
8. Sugar to taste. Stir in one or two if that is how you take it.

Brewing for a crowd

Making a round for the whole site or the family? Use a 1 to 1.2 litre teapot with 4 heaped teaspoons (12–14 g) of tea for four mugs. Brew for 5 minutes, then pour everything off the leaves into the mugs or a second pot so the last cup is not bitter.

Common mistakes and quick fixes

Hard water is common across much of England, and it can dull a brew. If your kettle has scale, a simple filter jug makes a real difference to how your tea tastes.

Milk first or tea first?

It is the oldest argument in British tea. For loose leaf brewed in a mug, add the milk after brewing. Cold milk lowers the water temperature, and black tea needs heat to release its flavour.

In a teapot, it matters less. Pouring the milk into the mug first and the tea on top is a matter of habit, as long as the tea has had its full brewing time in the pot.

Make it your own

• Extra strong: use 4 g of Assam and brew for 6 minutes. Add plenty of milk.
• Smoother: an English Breakfast blend with 4 minutes of brewing.
• A bit of comfort: a builder's tea with a digestive or a rich tea biscuit is hard to beat.

For more on choosing the right strength, see our guide to how much loose leaf tea to use per cup. And if you fancy a change from black tea now and then, our Earl Grey teas also take milk well.

Frequently asked questions

What colour should builder's tea be?

A deep orange-brown once the milk is in, often described as the colour of a digestive biscuit. If it looks pale beige, it needs more leaf or a longer brew.

Milk first or tea first?

For loose leaf in a mug, add milk after brewing so the water stays hot enough to draw out flavour. In a teapot it is down to habit, as long as the tea has brewed fully.

How many sugars go in builder's tea?

Traditionally one or two, but plenty of people take it without. Strong tea with milk already tastes rounded, so try it without sugar first.

Can I use green tea for builder's tea?

Not really. Builder's tea needs a strong black tea that stands up to milk. Green tea turns bitter if you brew it this hot and long.