> wrote in message
oups.com...
> My familly has recently installed a reverse osmosis system to purify
> the water. Immediately after installation, of course I was curious
> about how tea would taste with this water -- which tasted totally
> different from the tap water I usually use.

Both your curiosity and the difference in taste are totally understandable.

> I live in Toronto, Canada,
> which has moderately hard water. It's not as extreme as other parts of
> Ontario, but I often see scum on top of my tea.

I read somewhere that scum in tea is indicative of more calcium.

> When I'm just drinking
> the water by itself, I notice a distinct chlorinated taste, but when
> I'm making tea the chlorine is unnoticable.

Since chlorine dissipates when water is left standing (recommended for fish
and plants), I expect boiling releases chlorine from the water so it's not
comparable to drinking tap water straight.

> I made tea with the new water from the system, and to my surprise the
> color of the black tea I was brewing became much brighter than before.
> The aroma of the tea seemed sweeter and slightly more intense. But the
> color was a good indication of how the tea would be like -- much, much
> milder than usual. With my Torontonian hard water the tea was usually
> quite robust and astringent -- even robust after adding milk. With RO
> purified water, it was so mild that I thought I was using a different
> tea.

A change in water will do that especially when the water overpowers the tea.

> My question is if using RO purified water for tea desirable over hard,
> tap water. I'm accustomed to the tap water, so I can't really say if
> its better or not. What is the general consensus on purified water? The
> main reason my family got the system was to stop paying as much for
> bottled water and have better tasting water. Since bottled water is no
> longer an option for me what should I do? City water? RO purified
> water? Half n' half?

I'd go with the filtered water to let more of the tea's nuances through, but
since they're your taste buds, you're better off using whichever water suits
your taste, not someone else's. Personally, I don't like the taste of my
local water and use filtered or bottled distilled water for cooking and
drinking as well as for my tea.

My cat, OTOH, doesn't seem to care whether her drinking water is tap,
filtered, or sitting on the stove leftover from cooking pasta .

--
~~Bluesea~~who is much better at keeping Miss Kitty out of tea
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