I prefer to use a tea spoon infuser especially for single cups when on the
road or no infuser. I can swish the spoon easier than a tea ball on a
chain. For the big pots like a Brown Betty I use a tea ball with chain
which rests under the lid nicely. I like the tea balls that spring with the
rounded mesh end over the screw cap type but they're a precise match to the
tea pot with no chain and it doesn't take too much to crinkle the mesh. I
personally use this method with green tea over an open infuser if I expect
more than one infusion.

Jim

"Derek" wrote in message
...
On 17 Oct 2003, McLemore posted the following to rec.food.drink.tea:

I use an oversized tea ball for steeping tea so that the leaves
have plenty of room to expand and bloom.

I think this is the "key" point in the discussion of infusion.

An oversized ball or infuser that lets water get in and around the
leaves keeps the "tea goodness" (a technical term) from being trapped
by the leaves themselves. But the danged tiny little tea balls serve
to trap the "liquor" inside the ball when the leaves expand -
simillar to the way leaves can plug a downspout on a house.

On the other hand, when I travel, I usually prepare a supply of
disposable tea bags with my favorite loose leaf teas. That way I can
just steep, resteep and toss.

Derek