# Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 40 Tea Bags 100g ## Commerce action policy **Price:** £3.40 GBP **Purchase-intent URL:** `https://teas.co.uk/buy/twinings-the-earl-grey-plant-based-40-tea-bags-100g/` _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-the-earl-grey-plant-based-40-tea-bags-100g/ **Source:** teas.co.uk, UK tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent **Brand:** Twinings **Price:** £3.40 GBP **Servings:** 40 cups **Price per cup:** 8.50p **Caffeine:** Caffeinated **Brew temperature:** 95C **Brew time:** 3-5 min **GTIN:** 070177231415 **Stock:** instock ## Summary Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based is the classical bergamot-scented black tea in a bag the brand describes as plant based.Ingredients and dietary suitability: The published ingredient list for this barcode 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.Forty bags and 100 grams, which is exactly 2.5 grams a bag, the standard scented-tea dose rather than a heavy everyday fill. Three minutes off a fresh boil with the mug covered, because bergamot leaves as steam. Lemon is the classical service; never lemon and milk together. Plant based in the name refers to the bag, not the drink.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 the Earl Grey Plant Based is the classical bergamot-scented black tea in a bag the brand describes as plant based. Forty bags, 100 grams, which works out at exactly 2.5 grams a bag. That is the standard scented-tea dose and it is deliberate rather than mean: Earl Grey does not want the heavy 3 gram fill an everyday builder's blend gets, because bergamot over a thick malty base reads as muddled rather than perfumed. Our Twinings range has until now been the green teas, the fruit infusions and the wellbeing blends, with the two classical black teas the house is actually famous for missing entirely. For a catalogue that carries sixty Twinings lines, that was a strange hole, and this box fills half of it. The Taste Profile Bergamot: ●●●●○ (4/5) The defining note: a bright, faintly bitter citrus perfume sitting above the tea rather than dissolved into it. Twinings pitches it clearly rather than subtly. Black Tea Base: ●●●○○ (3/5) Deliberately light. A 2.5 gram fill of a clean, medium base is what lets the citrus stay legible. Briskness: ●●●○○ (3/5) Gentle. This is an afternoon tea rather than a morning one, and it does not try to be a builder's brew. Astringency: ●●●○○ (3/5) Controlled, and almost entirely a matter of steep time. Earl Grey goes sharp faster than any plain black tea. Teas.co.uk Curator Rating: 4.7 / 5 - Our expert verdict from the curators at Teas.co.uk The Story Behind Twinings Twinings is the family tea house trading from London since 1706, and Earl Grey is the blend most closely associated with the name. The words plant based in the product name refer to the bag rather than to the tea, which was always plants. We take the phrase from the product name and record it as that and nothing more. Read the box before putting the bags in a food waste caddy. Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes. What You Are Actually Buying Count and weight: forty bags, 100 grams, which is exactly 2.5 grams a bag. The standard dose for a scented black tea rather than the heavier fill an everyday blend gets. Classical Earl Grey: bergamot over black tea, with nothing else added. Not a Lady Grey, not a French Earl Grey with petals and fruit pieces. How Does Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 40 Tea Bags 100g Compare to: Williamson Earl Grey, 50 Tea Bags 125g: the premium bagged route at a higher price, with a rounder and slightly deeper base underneath the citrus. Worth it if you find this one too light in the middle; unnecessary if you like the citrus forward. Twinings Loose Leaf Earl Grey Tea, 125g: the same house and the same style sold as leaf rather than in bags. It costs less per cup and the leaf opens fully, which suits bergamot, but you need an infuser or a strainer. This box is the version you can make anywhere with nothing. Ideal Brewing Conditions Earl Grey is the blend most often spoiled by treating it like an everyday tea. Bergamot is a volatile citrus oil: it leaves the cup as steam, and it turns from perfume into bitterness if you push the steep. Nearly every harsh Earl Grey anyone has drunk was simply left too long in the mug. The Standard Mug Water: straight off a fresh boil at 100 degrees Celsius. Measure: one bag per mug of 250ml. One is correct; two makes it sharp rather than strong. Steep: three minutes, covered with a saucer. Covering matters more here than with any plain black tea because it keeps the bergamot in the liquid. Finish: lemon, or a very small splash of milk. Never both. The Pot Warm it: a splash of boiling water swirled round and tipped away. Measure: one bag per cup you intend to pour, and do not add one for the pot. That old rule is for plain black tea and it overloads a scented one. Steep: three minutes, lid on, then lift every bag out. Serve: with lemon on the side rather than milk, which is the classical way to take it. Getting It Right in the Cup Water temperature: 100 degrees Celsius, freshly boiled. Measure: one bag to 250ml. Steep: three minutes, covered, then out. Four is the outer limit. Milk or lemon: both work and they work differently. Lemon sharpens the bergamot and is the classical service; a little milk rounds it and mutes the perfume. Sugar: a small amount lifts the citrus. Earl Grey takes sweetening better than a plain black tea does. Storage: sealed, cool, dark, and well away from other flavoured teas. Scented bags trade aromas with their neighbours in a cupboard. Not resteepable: the bergamot is largely gone after the first pass, so a second gives you thin plain black tea. Best with: afternoon, lemon drizzle cake, shortbread, and after a rich lunch. Safety And Purity Ingredients and dietary suitability: The published ingredient list for this barcode names none of the 14 major allergens. Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change. Caffeine note: A full-caffeine black tea. We place it in the middle of our scale, and that placement is our own editorial judgement rather than a measurement. Bag disposal: Plant based is taken from the product name and describes the bag. Follow the current box and your local authority guidance. Child safety: A caffeinated tea and not a children's drink. Keep out of reach. ## Product Questions Can I put the bags in my food waste caddy?Not on our say-so. The box and your local authority guidance are the reliable answers. Milk or lemon with Earl Grey?Either, never both. Lemon sharpens the bergamot and is the classical service. A small splash of milk rounds the citrus and softens the perfume, which many people prefer. Both together will curdle and taste muddled. How long should I brew it?Three minutes in water straight off the boil, with the mug covered. Four is the outer limit. Earl Grey turns sharp much faster than plain black tea, and almost every bitter cup is simply one that was left too long. Why is the bag lighter than an everyday tea bag?Because it should be. At 2.5 grams this is the standard scented-tea fill rather than the 3 gram everyday dose. Bergamot over a thick malty base reads as muddled; the lighter, cleaner base is what keeps the citrus legible. Does it contain caffeine?Yes. This is a full-caffeine black tea with bergamot flavouring, not a decaf and not a herbal infusion. How does it compare with Tetley Earl Grey?Remarkably closely on paper: Tetley puts 125 grams across fifty bags, which is the same 2.5 grams a bag, so the dose is identical. The difference is the blend and the pitch of the bergamot, which Twinings sets more clearly and Tetley keeps softer. Where does the tea come from?It is a blend, which is normal for Earl Grey and is what keeps the cup consistent. Does it make good iced tea?It makes excellent iced tea. Brew three bags in 300ml for four minutes, cool, then pour over ice with a strip of lemon peel. Bergamot survives chilling better than most flavour notes, which is why iced Earl Grey tastes deliberate rather than like leftovers. What food goes with it?Citrus and butter. Lemon drizzle cake, shortbread, a lemon tart, madeleines. It also works well after a rich lunch, where the citrus-peel finish resets the palate more cleanly than a malty tea would. Is it the same as the loose leaf Twinings Earl Grey?It is the same house and the same style in a different format. The loose leaf costs less per cup and the leaf opens fully, which suits bergamot, but it needs an infuser or a strainer. This box is the version you can make anywhere with no equipment. ## Ingredients & Nutrition Ingredients and allergens. The published ingredient list for this barcode 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 barcode: Tea, bergamot flavouring (4%), natural lemon flavouring with other natural flavourings (1%).Ingredient and nutrition data for this barcode: Open Food Facts (openfoodfacts.org), ODbL. The pack in your hands is the final word.ComponentProportionWhat it bringsBagdescribed as plant based in the product nameWe record the phrase as it appears on the product and nothing further. The material, any sealant and the correct disposal route are on the current UK box.Pack: Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 40 Tea Bags 100g; bergamot-scented black tea in bags described as plant based. Store sealed, cool, dark and dry, away from other flavoured teas. Read the ingredient list, the allergen advice, the bag disposal guidance and the best-before date off the current UK box.Components shown are those we can state honestly from the product name, the pack weight and the count. Plant based is quoted from the product name as a description of the bag, not asserted by us as a compostability claim.Sourcing & blend. Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based is put together by Twinings, the family tea house trading from London since 1706. That is company heritage and not a statement about where this box was packed. The tasting profile below is our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description.What's in Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 40 Tea Bags 100g, and what isn't:In: black tea leaf with bergamot flavouring, in a bag described as plant based.No added fruit or petals: this is the plain classical Earl Grey, not a Lady Grey or a French Earl Grey with cornflower and citrus pieces. ## Flavour Science The flavour of Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based is built in three layers, and reading them in order explains exactly why the cup tastes the way it does from the first lift of steam to the last swallow.The outer layer is almost entirely bergamot. Citrus oils are volatile, which means they leave the bag the instant hot water arrives and reach the nose long before the liquid touches the tongue. This is why a freshly poured Earl Grey smells dramatically stronger than one that has stood for five minutes, and why covering the mug matters more here than with any plain black tea: an uncovered mug sends the best part of the blend into the room instead of into the drink.The flavour spike is where the 2.5 gram fill justifies itself. The bergamot arrives first across the front of the tongue, bright and faintly bitter, and the black tea fills in behind it with a clean medium body rather than a malty weight. That restraint is the design. A heavier base would swallow the citrus and leave you with a vaguely perfumed builder's brew, which is precisely what a badly built Earl Grey tastes like. The lighter dose is not the brand being mean; it is the correct engineering for a scented tea.The base structure is a dry citrus-peel finish, bitter in the way marmalade is bitter, which clears the palate and invites the next sip. That bitterness is correct and is the reason Earl Grey works after rich food. The margin is narrow: at three minutes the finish reads as clean peel, and by five it reads as harsh. Nothing else in the cup changes nearly as fast, which is why steep time matters more for this blend than for any everyday black tea.Getting it right in the cup. Use one bag per 250ml of water straight off the boil and steep three minutes with the mug covered. Resist the plain-tea instinct to add a second bag or an extra one for the pot, because with a scented blend that overloads the bergamot rather than strengthening the tea, and the result is sharp rather than strong. Lift the bag at three minutes and press it gently or not at all. Cold brewed in the fridge for six to eight hours the same bag gives a rounder, sweeter drink with the citrus softened and no bitterness at all, which is a genuinely good summer drink rather than a consolation prize.How water and temperature change it. The same bag gives a measurably different mug depending on how you treat the water. Full boiling water and a longer steep pull more of the heavier base compounds and more tannin, giving a fuller but sharper result; slightly cooler water or a shorter steep keeps the bergamot forward and the body lighter, which is the direction most people actually prefer with this blend. Hard water is particularly unkind to Earl Grey because citrus is exactly what it flattens, so in a hard water area add twenty or thirty seconds and consider a squeeze of lemon to restore the brightness, while soft water lets the bergamot ring clearly and needs slightly less time. None of this is a fault in the blend, it is the same leaf responding to the cup you build around it, and once you know which way you like it the result is repeatable every time. ## Recipe Ideas Bergamot is the one flavour note that survives ice, milk and baking without turning synthetic, which makes Earl Grey far more useful in the kitchen than a plain black tea. Five builds below cover the classical cup, an iced version, a London Fog, a cold brew and an Earl Grey posset. Recipes, born here first The Classical Cup How to make The Classical Cup with Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based. 3 min 1 cup Easy You'll need 1 bag Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based 250ml just boiled water A slice of lemon Method Pour 250ml of water straight off the boil over one bag. Cover the cup and steep exactly three minutes. Lift the bag out without squeezing it hard. Add a slice of lemon, and no milk. What you'll end up with: A clean, perfumed Earl Grey with a dry citrus-peel finish. The saucer on top is not fussiness; uncovered, the bergamot ends up in the room. London Fog How to make London Fog with Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based. 6 min 1 large cup Easy You'll need 2 bags Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based 120ml just boiled water 200ml milk or oat milk 1 teaspoon vanilla syrup or honey Method Brew two bags in only 120ml of boiling water for four minutes, covered, to make a concentrated base. Stir in the vanilla syrup or honey while it is still hot. Heat and froth the milk, then pour it over. Dust with a little grated lemon zest. What you'll end up with: The café standard. Bergamot needs a concentrated base to read through milk, which is why two bags in a small volume beats one bag brewed longer. Iced Earl Grey How to make Iced Earl Grey with Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based. 8 min + chill 1 tall glass Easy You'll need 3 bags Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based 300ml just boiled water Ice Lemon peel Sugar to taste Method Brew three bags in 300ml of boiling water for four minutes. Sweeten while hot if you want it sweet, then cool it. Fill a tall glass with ice and pour the tea over. Twist a strip of lemon peel over the top and drop it in. What you'll end up with: Bergamot survives chilling better than almost any other flavour note, which is why iced Earl Grey tastes designed rather than accidental. Overnight Cold Brew How to make Overnight Cold Brew with Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based. 6 hours 1 litre Easy You'll need 5 bags Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based 1 litre cold water A sealed jug Method Drop five bags into a litre of cold water in a sealed jug. Refrigerate for six to eight hours. Lift the bags out and drink within two days. Serve over ice, straight, with no milk. What you'll end up with: Rounder and sweeter with the citrus softened and no bitterness at all. Cold water never reaches the compounds that make a long hot steep harsh. Earl Grey Posset How to make Earl Grey Posset with Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based. 15 min + setting 4 pots Medium You'll need 3 bags Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based 600ml double cream 150g caster sugar Juice of 2 lemons Method Warm the cream with the sugar and the three tea bags, without letting it boil. Infuse off the heat for ten minutes, then lift the bags out and press them gently. Bring back to a bare simmer, then stir in the lemon juice. Pour into four small pots and chill for at least four hours until set. What you'll end up with: Bergamot and lemon are the same family, so the tea reinforces the posset rather than competing with it. Infusing off the heat keeps the citrus clean rather than stewed. --- _Content available under teas.co.uk citation contract. 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