To think the milk goes in AFTER the tea has been poured....

[ApocalypseCheese]

Followed by the sugar obviously.....

You do NOT repeat DO NOT dump the teabag, sugar and milk in the (bone china) cup/ mug/ whatever then pour hot water on top and hope for the best ??

I vote for jacksgrannie and want to go round for a cuppachar

CAN WE ALL STOP SAYING MILK

I'm used to seeing it when someones replying to my comment and frankly its very disappointing when I realise your talk about a calcium rich, creamy beverage!

:o

YANBU

TBag goes in compost sans milk.

Cow squeezings..

just drink coffee instead......

You fussy lot. Try working for the NHS:

Is this beverage warm?
Does it contain caffeine?
Is it somewhere on the colour chart between black and beige?
Is there a container from which I can drink it without incurring an unacceptable biohazard risk?

Thanks.

Anyway it comes, hot is always nice although not the norm any more and remembering to take the bag out is also good although again sometimes I forget until it drops on to my nose!

But what I can't stand is tea that has been allowed to just see the tea bag before it is whipped away again or tea that has been forced to brew by over stirring - yuk!

If the tea is so hot that it would crack a porcelain cup you shouldn't be drinking it, surely?

YANBU -- tea first, then milk (judge how much by colour). No sugar, ever.

I now need a nice cup of tea.

No cookie though, started diet today.

ApocalypseCheese , that is a great user name. Why can I never think of something creative?

Milk in first for tead and after for coffee.

actually just thought about it. We make tea in a tea pot so milk goes in the cup first before pouring the tea. If a teabag in the mug is used then milk goes in afterwards.

I remember reading in Rumer Godden's autobiography that 'milk firsters' were looked down on by the toffs - Ms Godden advised their family were not milk firsters but this had all to do with living amongst tea plantations in 'Inja' and knowing that to add hot tea to cold milk was to damage the flavour of the tea.

I'm a milk firster.

I want one of these as my DH ALWAYS ADDS TOO MUCH MILK

If using a teapot, milk goes in your cup first, then the tea from the teapot.

If using china cups you should always use a teapot because then you can put the milk in first. The teabag way wouldn't work because the boiling water would shatter the china cup.

If not using a teapot or china cups, teabag first, then water, then milk because tea needs boiling water to brew properly.

Those that say they only like PG Tips or Tetleys have you tried Twinings Breakfast Tea? Loose tea tastes so much nicer than bags.

Also you should always boil fresh water from the tap eachtime and remove the kettle as soon as it starts boiling (you know when it starts doing that sort of rolling, bubbling thing). Allow the tea to brew quietly - do not stir the tealeaves or dunk the teabag. This releases more of the bitter compounds in the tea.

I have heard that you shouldn't use a metal teapot but I don't really know why.

Jacksgrannie - but if earthenware can never be used, won't Emma Bridgwater go out of business??!!

Really want a decent cup of tea now but having cleverly taken the milk/teabags/kettle out of the kitchen while a man puts floor screed down (that won't be dry enough to walk on for 4 hours) I realised I left the mugs in the cupboard. Doh! Wonder if the ELC plastic cups from DD3's room would melt, definitely a need for MIF there I think...

MILK LAST YOU MILKYFIRSTFREAKS!

Otherwise you run the risk of OVERMILKING :shudder:!

Milk first means that the water doesn't reach the teabag boiling, which EVERYBODY knows is vital to good tea.

Milk first is GRIM!!!

YANBU. Milk always goes in after the tea has been poured. But YABU to have sugar makes the tea much to sweet.

Tea first for me, regardless of receptacle, then milk to the correct colour. An absolute necessity in my parents' house as tea usually resembles dishwater and more than a drop of milk would be too much.

I do understand the "bone china would shatter if hot tea hit it directly therefore put milk in first to protect your Dresden" but the flavour of the final combination is more important, IMO.

argh!

you have to put the milk in first regardless of whether you are using a cup or a pot.

This is why:

The milk will help to cool the water down so that the cup doesn't break. This is definitely more important in a bone china cup, as they're more delicate.

If you are using a bag and a cup instead of a pot, put the milk in, then pour the boiling water straight onto the BAG, not the milk. It shouldn't hit the sides.

leave the bag in the cup for the statutory 5 minutes to mash it properly.

I'm with you Spider :) Milk in after (but then, I'm posh )

if you are using tea leaves and using a tea pot then the issue of over-hot water becomes a non-issue. The water has already cooled down sufficiently in the tea pot (even with a tea cosy) so there is no risk to even bone china recepticles.

I have been using bone china for over twenty years and have never once had a breakage from thermal shock (from dropping, yes ) - despite (mebarassingly) multiple cups of tea throughout the day.

Milk in first to protect the china is the most ridiculous thing I've heard! If boiling water will break your cups, you need stronger cups, or use a teapot.

Have you not heard the saying,

"Before the kettle boiling be, filling the teapot spoils the tea!" Same goes for water onto a teabag. If there is milk in there it won't be boiling! Result.. gacky tea.

yeah, but yeah, but, you pour the water onto the bag - the bag isn't sitting in the milk - the stuff hits the milk afterwards.

It all depends. If I make tea at home:

Tea Bag
Water
Milk
(NO sugar)

However, if I'm in work, I put the milk in first then leave it on the side of my desk and forget about it for at least 30 minutes before drinking the semi cold tea.

Personally, I think the biggest crime in the tea world are those machines that produce a urine like substance a labels it tea.