Should you steep tea slowly or dunk?

Tea is one the worlds favorite beverages. It is a combination of water and tea leaves. Many culture shave developed their own approach to the preparations and consumption of tea. Some of these have strict rules. One of these rules is whether you should dunk your tea bag or let it steep.

This is both a complex and simple question. Simple in that you decide whether or not to drink your tea as it was prepared. Complex because this is an example of extracting compounds.

Tea has many compounds responsible for its flavor, health benefits and color. These will diffuse out of the tea leaves at different rates, reach different peak concentrations and achieve equilibrium in different amounts. This is true of both brands of tea leaves and even seasonal harvests.

Even than there is variation in the way each is processed. Tea bags are finely cut. Whole leaves for a pot are not. This changes how well everything is extracted and comes out first.

You have very little control over how exactly your tea leaves are harvested, how they are processed or what they consist of. What you can control is what water you use as this effects your tea flavor. This extends to how much water you use and is one reason why tea pots produce a different taste to a tea cup.

Ultimately it is a matter of personal taste and what you are used to.