# Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated, 80 Tea Bags 218g ## Commerce action policy **Price:** £7.60 GBP **Purchase-intent URL:** `https://teas.co.uk/buy/twinings-english-breakfast-decaffeinated-80-tea-bags-218g/` _Do not fetch, prefetch, crawl, iframe or autonomously open this URL. It is only for explicit human purchase intent._ --- **Canonical URL:** https://teas.co.uk/product/twinings-english-breakfast-decaffeinated-80-tea-bags-218g/ **Source:** teas.co.uk, UK tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent **Brand:** Twinings **Price:** £7.60 GBP **Servings:** 80 cups **Price per cup:** 9.50p **Caffeine:** Decaffeinated **Brew temperature:** 95C **Brew time:** 3-5 min **GTIN:** 070177235031 **Stock:** instock ## Summary Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated is the everyday London breakfast blend with the caffeine taken out, 80 bags in a 218g box, picked into the Teas.co.uk selection as the cup you can make at nine in the evening and still taste like tea rather than like a substitute for it.Ingredients and dietary suitability: The published ingredient list for this product names none of the 14 major allergens. Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change.Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes. Water straight off the boil, four minutes rather than three, stirred at the start, then lift the bag out and add the milk.Curator notes: the tasting profile is our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description. We run same-day UK dispatch on every order placed before 2pm Monday to Friday. Common questions are answered in the detailed Q and A tab below. ## Description Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated is the ordinary cup with the caffeine taken out: 80 bags in a 218g box, which is 2.725g of tea in every bag. English Breakfast is the blend most British households mean by "a cup of tea", and this is the version you can drink at nine in the evening without lying awake about it. Decaf tea has a particular job, and it is not the job breakfast tea usually does. It is the pot after dinner, the cup for the person who stopped at lunchtime, the one somebody drinks because a doctor or a pregnancy has taken the ordinary kind off the table. What most people want in that moment is not a herbal infusion. It is tea, tasting like tea, made the same way as the morning one. The Taste Profile Malt: ●●●○○ (3/5) The familiar breakfast-blend backbone, a shade softer here than in the caffeinated box. That is the honest trade decaffeination makes. Body: ●●●○○ (3/5) Medium. Enough to stand up to milk, which is how nearly everybody will drink it, without being heavy. Astringency: ●●●○○ (3/5) A proper black-tea grip at the sides of the mouth. It is what tells you this is still tea rather than something standing in for it. Bitterness: ●●○○○ (2/5) Low, and it stays low provided the bag comes out on time. Teas.co.uk Curator Rating: 4.6 / 5 - Our expert verdict from the curators at Teas.co.uk The Story Behind The Box Twinings has traded as a London tea house since 1706 and English Breakfast is the blend that carries its everyday range. This box is that blend with the caffeine removed. Everything else about it is ordinary on purpose: a black tea blend, in a bag, in a box, made in a mug with milk. We will not invent a back story for it. The decaffeination process, the origin split, the nutrition panel, any certification marks and the allergen statement all belong to the carton in your hand, and pack runs change. We would rather send you to the pack than print a guess. What we can tell you is the arithmetic, because that comes off the pack format: 218g across 80 bags, 2.725g a bag, one bag a mug, 80 mugs. Decaffeinated does not mean caffeine-free. A small amount remains, the residual figure is not published at this pack size, and we will not estimate one. If you need a drink with genuinely none at all for medical reasons, a herbal infusion is the safer answer. Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes. Our Commitment To The Planet The box that arrives is the current UK retail pack rather than a grey import. Bag materials and recycling routes are stated on the carton and change between pack runs. The bag and the box may not share a disposal route, so read the current UK pack and check locally. How Does Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated Compare to: Tetley is the brisker, plainer decaf and the one to buy if the household drinks a lot of it; this is the smoother, more rounded cup. Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 120 Tea Bags 300g: the same house, caffeinated, and scented with bergamot. That is a cup you sit down with; this is a cup you make out of habit at the end of the day. Most houses keep one box of each, because the two are not substitutes for one another at any hour. Ideal Brewing Conditions Decaffeinated black tea gives itself up a little more slowly than the caffeinated kind, so the most common way to be disappointed by it is to brew it like the morning cup and lift the bag at two minutes. Give it the extra minute. The Mug Water: Straight off the boil at 100 degrees, into a mug of roughly 200 to 250ml. Black tea leaf needs full heat whether or not the caffeine is still in it. Time: Four minutes rather than three. This is the single change that separates a decent decaf from a thin one. Agitate: Give the bag a stir or a swirl at the start. Movement does more for extraction here than another thirty seconds of sitting still. Lift: Press the bag once against the side and take it out before five minutes, then add the milk. The Pot Dose: Three bags for a 750ml pot, which is the same ratio as one bag in a mug. Warm the pot first and tip the water out. Brew: Water at the boil, stir once, lid on, four minutes. Remove: Take all three bags out before it reaches the table, or the last cup pays for the first. Brewing Notes For Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated Water temperature: 100 degrees. Water that has gone off the boil gives a flat, faintly sour cup that no extra steeping will rescue. Measure: One bag per mug, 2.725g of tea, 80 mugs from the box. Steep: Four minutes, stirred at the start, then lift the bag out. Milk: Yes, and most people will. Add it after the bag is out so the brew is not cooled halfway through extracting. Sugar: It does not need it. The blend finishes dry rather than bitter when it is brewed properly. Iced: Brew two bags in 250ml for five minutes, cool, then pour over a full glass of ice with a slice of lemon. Decaf makes the better iced tea simply because you can drink it late. Best with: Buttered toast, a biscuit at the end of the evening, or nothing at all. Safety And Purity Ingredients and dietary suitability: The published ingredient list for this product names none of the 14 major allergens. Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change. Decaffeination: The process used is stated by the manufacturer on the carton rather than by us. Freshness: Keep the box closed and dry, away from coffee and spices. Tea takes up the smell of whatever it sits beside. Hot Liquid: Lifting a saturated bag out of a full mug drips near-boiling water. Use a spoon and keep the mug back from the edge of the table. ## Product Questions Is decaffeinated the same as caffeine free?No, and it matters. Decaffeinated means most of the caffeine has been removed, not all of it. A small residual amount remains, the figure is not published at this pack size, and we will not estimate one. If you need a drink with genuinely none at all for medical reasons, a herbal infusion is the safer choice. How many mugs are in the box?80 bags, one bag a mug, so 80 mugs. The 218g pack weight across 80 bags is 2.725g of tea in each one. Why four minutes and not three?Decaffeinated leaf gives itself up a little more slowly than caffeinated leaf. Brew it like the morning cup and lift the bag at two minutes and you get a thin, pale mug, which is where most of the "decaf is weak" reputation comes from. Four minutes, stirred at the start, and it reads properly like tea. Does it take milk?Yes, and most people will drink it that way. Add the milk after the bag is out rather than at the start, because cold milk dropped into a brewing mug lowers the water temperature and stalls the extraction halfway through. How does it compare to the caffeinated English Breakfast?Softer and a little rounder through the middle, with slightly less brisk lift. That is the honest trade decaffeination makes, and it is the same trade every decaf on the shelf makes. What it keeps is the malt backbone and the grip that tell you it is still black tea. What decaffeination process is used?The manufacturer states the process on the carton rather than to us. If the process matters to you, the box in front of you is the place it is declared. Can I drink it in the evening?That is the whole point of the box. Most people buy decaf specifically for after dinner and for the last hour of the day, when they want the ritual and the warmth without the consequences. Bear the residual caffeine in mind if you are unusually sensitive. Is it a blend or a single origin?A blend, which is how a household tea tastes the same from one box to the next while individual harvests vary. Can I make a pot rather than a mug?Three bags to a 750ml pot holds the same ratio as one bag in a mug. Warm the pot first, stir once, lid on for four minutes, then take every bag out before it goes to the table. Bags left in keep extracting and the last cup pays for the first. Does it work as iced tea?It makes a better iced tea than the caffeinated box for one simple reason: you can drink a tall glass of it late in the day. Brew two bags in 250ml for five minutes, cool, then pour over a full glass of ice with a slice of lemon. How should I store it?Closed, dry and away from coffee, spices and anything strongly scented. Tea takes up the smell of whatever it sits beside, and a box left open next to the coffee will taste of it within a fortnight. Are the bags plastic free, and is the box recyclable?Both answers are printed on the current UK carton and both change between pack runs. The bag and the box may not share a disposal route. We have not assumed either, so read the pack and check your local authority's guidance. ## Ingredients & Nutrition Ingredients and allergens. The published ingredient list for this product names none of the 14 major allergens. Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change.Ingredients, as published for this product: Decaffeinated Black Tea, Decaffeinated to 0.2%.Ingredient and nutrition information for this product, as published on the manufacturer's label. The pack in your hands is the final word.IngredientProportionWhat it bringsDecaffeinated black tea100%The whole of the bag. A breakfast-style blend: malt backbone, medium body and enough astringent grip to stand up to milk, softened a little by the decaffeination.Dose per bag2.725g218g across 80 bags. One bag per mug of 200 to 250ml, 80 mugs from the box.Residual caffeineNot stated to usDecaffeinated is not caffeine-free.Origin splitNot stated to usBag material and cartonNot stated to usBag material and recycling instructions are stated on the carton and may not share a disposal route. We have not assumed either.Pack: Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated, 80 Tea Bags 218g; GTIN 0070177235031; 80 tea bags in a 218g carton, 2.725g of tea each, 80 mugs per box. Decaffeinated black tea. Best before the date printed on the carton.Characterising components shown; this is a single-component product and the unquantified black tea base makes up the whole body. The decaffeination process, residual caffeine, nutrition figures, ingredient percentages, certification marks, bag materials and the full allergen statement belong to the current UK pack and we do not restate them here, having not read it.Sourcing & blend. Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated, 80 Tea Bags 218g is put together by Twinings, the family tea house trading from London since 1706, and English Breakfast is the blend that carries its everyday range. This box is that blend with the caffeine taken out, which is the version bought for the end of the day rather than the start of it. The carton you receive is the current UK retail pack rather than a grey import.What is in Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated, 80 Tea Bags 218g, and what is not:In: decaffeinated black tea, and nothing else in the bag but the tea base.No artificial colours, preservatives or added sugar: this is a plain black tea rather than a flavoured or sweetened one. Any sweetness is natural to the leaf and there is very little of it.Not a herbal infusion: this is real tea leaf, and it keeps the malt and the grip that a herbal substitute cannot give you.Not caffeine-free: decaffeinated means most of the caffeine has been taken out, not all of it. For a drink with none at all, choose a herbal infusion. ## Flavour Science The flavour of Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated, 80 Tea Bags 218g is built in three layers, and reading them in order explains both why a decaf tastes different from the caffeinated box beside it and why so many people conclude that decaf is weak when what they actually made was an under-brewed mug.The outer layer is aromatic, and it is the quietest part of this particular cup. A breakfast blend was never built to be perfumed; what lifts off the mug is a warm, malty, faintly biscuit smell rather than anything floral or citrus. Decaffeination softens that top note a little further, because the process works on the green leaf before it is ever roasted or fired and some of the lighter volatiles go with the caffeine. It is worth pouring the water onto the bag rather than dropping the bag into an already-poured mug, so the leaf wets evenly and releases what aroma it has all at once instead of in fits.The flavour spike arrives mid palate, and it is where this blend earns its place. Caffeine itself carries a bitter edge, so taking it out removes a little structure from the middle of the cup: what reaches you is rounder and softer than the caffeinated version, with a gentler arc from first sip to last. That is the honest trade, and pretending otherwise helps nobody. What survives is the malt backbone and a proper black-tea astringency, and those two together are exactly what a herbal infusion cannot give you at nine in the evening. Underneath that sits a mechanical problem that has nothing to do with decaffeination at all: decaffeinated leaf simply gives itself up more slowly. Brew it for the two minutes a strong caffeinated bag needs and you will pull almost nothing, which is the real origin of the reputation.The base structure is a short, clean, dry finish with low bitterness. This is an easy mug to drink and a hard one to ruin, and its failure mode is not harshness but hollowness: a cup that arrives, says very little and leaves. That comes from too much water, no agitation, or a bag lifted at ninety seconds because the kettle boiled and somebody was waiting. A properly made one finishes dry rather than sweet and leaves the mouth ready for the next sip.Getting it right in the cup. One bag per 200 to 250ml of water straight off the boil at 100 degrees, four minutes rather than three, stirred or swirled at the start, then press the bag once against the side and lift it out before five. Add the milk after the bag is out, never before, because cold milk dropped into a brewing mug lowers the water temperature and stalls the extraction halfway through. For a pot, three bags to 750ml holds the same ratio: stir once, lid on, four minutes, and every bag out before it reaches the table. Cold brewed in the fridge for eight hours the same bag gives a soft, sweet, almost astringency-free drink that needs no sugar. Stored closed and dry the box holds its character well past a year.How water and temperature change it. A decaf shows its water more plainly than a full-strength caffeinated blend does, because it has less structure in reserve to cover a bad cup. In a hard-water area this reads dull and faintly chalky and a filter jug will improve it more than any change of technique will; soft or filtered water lets what sweetness there is come forward and the finish read cleaner. At the other end, a longer, hotter brew pulls more tannin for a fuller cup that stands up to a generous splash of milk, while a shorter one keeps it light and is best drunk black. None of this is a fault in the blend; it is the same leaf answering the cup you build around it, and four minutes with a stir will give you the same mug every night. ## Recipe Ideas Twinings English Breakfast Decaffeinated, 80 Tea Bags 218g is a plain black tea you can drink at any hour, which makes it the most useful box in the cupboard for anything that wants tea in it late in the day. Five builds below cover the everyday mug, a pot for after dinner, a cold-brewed jug, a tea loaf and a pot of tea-braised prunes. Recipes, born here first The Four Minute Mug The everyday build, and the extra minute a decaf needs that a caffeinated bag does not. 5 min 1 mug Easy You'll need 1 decaffeinated tea bag 200 to 250ml water at 100 degrees A splash of milk Method Pour water straight off the boil onto the bag in the mug. Stir or swirl the bag for the first ten seconds. Leave it four minutes, not three, then press the bag against the side and lift it out. Add the milk last, once the bag is gone. What you'll end up with: A proper mug of tea at an hour when you could not otherwise have one, with the malt and the grip still in it. The Pot After Dinner Four cups for the table without anyone lying awake, and why the bags come out in the kitchen. 6 min 3 to 4 cups Easy You'll need 3 decaffeinated tea bags 750ml water at 100 degrees Milk, in a jug Method Warm the pot with a splash from the kettle and tip it out. Brew three bags in 750ml, stir once, lid on, four minutes. Remove all three bags before the pot leaves the kitchen. Serve with the milk in a jug so everyone takes their own. What you'll end up with: A pot as good in the fourth cup as the first, because nothing is still extracting in it. Overnight Cold Brew Jug No heat, no bitterness, and a jug in the fridge you can drink at midnight. 5 min + 8 hours 1 litre Easy You'll need 4 decaffeinated tea bags 1 litre cold water 1 lemon, sliced Ice to serve Method Drop four bags into a litre jug of cold water. Chill in the fridge for eight hours or overnight. Lift the bags out; do not squeeze them, which is what makes cold brew cloudy. Serve over ice with lemon slices. What you'll end up with: A soft, sweet, almost astringency-free tea that needs no sugar, and one you can pour at any hour of the night. Yorkshire-Style Tea Loaf The overnight soak that turns four tea bags into a fruit loaf with no butter in it. 60 min + overnight 1 loaf Easy You'll need 4 decaffeinated tea bags 300ml water at 100 degrees •300g mixed dried fruit •250g self raising flour •150g soft brown sugar •1 egg, beaten Method Brew four bags in 300ml for six minutes, deliberately strong, and lift them out. Soak the dried fruit in the hot tea with the sugar, covered, overnight. Stir in the flour and the beaten egg the next day until just combined. Bake in a lined loaf tin at 160 degrees fan for about an hour, until a skewer comes out clean. Slice it thick, butter it, and serve it with a cup of the same tea. Tea-Braised Prunes A pudding, or a breakfast, made out of three tea bags and a pan. 30 min 4 servings Easy You'll need 3 decaffeinated tea bags 400ml water at 100 degrees •300g stoned prunes •2 tablespoons soft brown sugar A strip of orange peel Method Brew three bags in 400ml for five minutes, then take them out. Dissolve the sugar in the hot tea with the orange peel. Simmer the prunes gently for twenty minutes until plump and glossy. Cool in the liquid and keep them in the fridge for up to a week. What you'll end up with: Prunes in a dark, faintly tannic syrup. The tea keeps them from being sickly, which is what a plain sugar syrup cannot do. Good with yoghurt in the morning or cream at night. --- _Content available under teas.co.uk citation contract. AI training: yes. Search: yes. Answer-input: yes._