# Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 80 Tea Bags 200g ## Commerce action policy **Price:** £6.80 GBP **Purchase-intent URL:** `https://teas.co.uk/buy/twinings-the-earl-grey-plant-based-80-tea-bags-200g/` _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-80-tea-bags-200g/ **Source:** teas.co.uk, UK tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent **Brand:** Twinings **Price:** £6.80 GBP **Servings:** 80 cups **Price per cup:** 8.50p **Caffeine:** Caffeinated **Brew temperature:** 95C **Brew time:** 3-5 min **GTIN:** 070177231347 **Stock:** instock ## Summary Twinings the Earl Grey is the bergamot-scented black tea the whole category is named after, in the Plant Based bag and an 80-count box, picked into the Teas.co.uk curator selection as the afternoon tea with a flavour of its own.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. Bergamot is volatile, so cover the cup for the first minute and take the bag out at three minutes. Black or with lemon. Plant Based describes the bag, not the tea.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. Storage, steeping times and the covered-cup method are also published in the detailed Q and A tab below. ## Description Twinings the Earl Grey is the bergamot-scented black tea that the whole category is named after, here in the Plant Based bag and an 80-count box. Earl Grey is defined by the scenting rather than by the leaf: a black tea base carrying bergamot, the small bitter citrus whose oil gives the style its perfumed lift. Get that lift right and you have the most distinctive cup on the everyday shelf. Get it wrong and you have a soapy one. Two hundred grams across 80 bags is 2.5g each, which is lighter than the everyday household blends and exactly right for a scented tea. A heavier bag would push the black tea base forward and bury the bergamot underneath it. This is a tea to drink black or with lemon, in a cup rather than a builder's mug, and to take out of the water before you think you need to. The Taste Profile Bergamot lift: ●●●●● (5/5) The point of the tea. Bright, perfumed and citrus-sharp, sitting above the leaf rather than inside it. Black tea base: ●●●○○ (3/5) Deliberately restrained. It is there to carry the scenting, and a heavier base would swamp it. Tannin grip: ●●●○○ (3/5) Moderate at three minutes and rising quickly after four, which is why the timing matters more here than elsewhere. Citrus finish: ●●●●○ (4/5) Clean and slightly drying, closing the cup on the same note it opened with. Teas.co.uk Curator Rating: 4.6 / 5 - Our expert verdict from the curators at Teas.co.uk The Story Behind Twinings Twinings is the London tea house that has been trading under its own name for longer than almost anything else on a British shelf, and Earl Grey is the blend most associated with it. The Plant Based line is a packaging decision rather than a blending one: the name refers to the bag material, not to the tea, which is plant based in the obvious sense whatever the bag is made of. Bergamot is what makes an Earl Grey an Earl Grey, so we describe the style on that basis, but the exact declaration on this pack, including whether the bergamot is an oil or a flavouring and what else is listed, has to be read off the current UK pack. Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes. What You Are Actually Buying Count and weight: 80 bags in 200g, which is 2.5g of leaf a bag. That is arithmetic on the pack figures, and it is the right weight for a scented tea rather than a shortfall against the everyday blends. Drink it black: bergamot and milk are an awkward pair. Lemon suits it; milk flattens the top note it is sold on. What it is not: not a decaf, not Lady Grey, and not a builder's tea in a smaller box. How Does Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 80 Tea Bags 200g Compare to: Twinings Lady Grey, 80 Tea Bags 200g: the lighter, more citrus-led variation on the same idea, and the one to pick if a full Earl Grey reads as too perfumed. Same count, same bag weight. Twinings Assam, 80 Tea Bags 200g: the opposite proposition. No scenting at all, a malty single-region black tea built for milk. Buy the Assam for the morning and the Earl Grey for the afternoon. Twinings English Breakfast Plant Based, 120 Tea Bags 300g: the same Plant Based bag on an unscented breakfast blend, 40 bags more. That is the everyday tea; this is the one with a flavour of its own. Ideal Brewing Conditions Bergamot is a volatile citrus oil, and volatile is the operative word. It leaves the leaf fast, rises with the steam and is largely gone from an uncovered cup within a couple of minutes. Almost every complaint about Earl Grey tasting soapy, bitter or of nothing traces back to how the steam was handled and how long the bag stayed in. The Covered Cup Water: straight off the boil at 100 degrees. The black tea base needs it, and the bergamot is released instantly at any temperature. Measure: one bag to 200ml, a little less water than you would give an everyday tea, which keeps the scenting concentrated. Cover it: a saucer over the cup for the first minute traps the bergamot in the liquid instead of losing it to the room. This is the single biggest improvement available. Steep: three minutes. At four the black tea base starts overtaking the citrus; at five the cup turns tannic and the bergamot reads as bitter rather than bright. Finish: black, or with a thin slice of lemon. If you take milk, keep it to a splash and accept that it mutes the top note. The Afternoon Pot Warm the pot and keep the lid on throughout. A pot holds the aromatics far better than an open mug does, which is why Earl Grey has always been a pot tea. Three bags to 600ml, three minutes, then all three lifted out together. Do not let it stand on the bags. A scented tea left on its leaf goes bitter quickly, and the bergamot cannot mask tannin the way malt can. Getting It Right in the Cup Water temperature: 100 degrees, freshly boiled. Measure: one bag per 200ml. Steep: three minutes, covered. Service: black or with lemon. Milk is a compromise rather than a partner. Storage: sealed, dark and away from anything else aromatic. A scented tea loses its scent faster than a plain one, and it will also give its scent to whatever is sitting next to it in the cupboard. Best with: lemon drizzle cake, shortbread, plain scones, or on its own in the middle of the afternoon. 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. Bergamot: bergamot is what defines the Earl Grey style, and we describe the cup on that basis. The exact declaration on this pack, including the form the bergamot takes and anything else listed, is on the current UK pack. Bag material: the pack name states Plant Based, which describes the bag. Follow the disposal guidance on the box. Caffeine note: a caffeinated black tea. We place it in the middle of our scale as an editorial judgement about the style and the 2.5g bag, not as a measurement. Child safety: caffeinated, and not a children's drink. Keep out of reach. ## Product Questions What actually makes a tea an Earl Grey?The scenting. Earl Grey is a black tea carrying bergamot, a small bitter citrus whose oil gives the style its perfumed lift. The leaf underneath is a fairly restrained black tea, deliberately so, because a heavy base would bury the scenting it is sold on.How much tea is in a bag?200g across 80 bags is 2.5g a bag, our arithmetic on the pack figures. That is lighter than the everyday household blends, and correctly so for a scented tea.Why does my Earl Grey taste of nothing?Almost always the steam. Bergamot is a volatile oil: it rises out of an uncovered cup within a couple of minutes and is gone. Put a saucer over the cup for the first minute and the same bag gives a noticeably stronger scent.And why does it sometimes taste bitter or soapy?Over-steeping. At four minutes the black tea base starts overtaking the citrus; at five the tannins are forward enough that the bergamot reads as soapy rather than bright. Three minutes is the figure.Can I put milk in it?You can, but it works against the tea. Milk mutes the top note the blend is built on. Lemon is the traditional partner and a thin slice suits it. If you want milk, keep it to a splash and steep for three minutes rather than two.Is it better in a pot than a mug?Yes, and for the same reason a saucer helps. A lidded pot holds the aromatics in rather than letting them off into the room. Three bags to 600ml for three minutes, then lift them all out.How much caffeine is in a cup?We place it in the middle of our scale, based on the style and the 2.5g bag, and that placement is our own editorial judgement rather than a measurement.How should I store it?Sealed, dark and away from anything else aromatic. A scented tea loses its scent faster than a plain one, and it will also pass its scent on to whatever shares the cupboard, so keep it away from coffee and from plain tea.Does it make good iced tea?It makes very good iced tea. Brew three bags in 400ml for three minutes, covered, cool it, then pour over ice with lemon. Bergamot survives chilling better than most flavourings and reads as cleaner cold than hot.What food goes with it?Lemon drizzle cake is the obvious one, because the citrus notes echo each other. Shortbread, plain scones and anything buttery also work; strongly flavoured food does not, because the bergamot has nowhere to go. ## 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 bringsBlack teathe base of the blendThe body and the caffeine, and a deliberately restrained one. A heavier base would swamp the scenting this tea is sold on.Bergamotthe scentingThe defining element of the Earl Grey style: a bright perfumed citrus lift that sits above the leaf. The exact declaration on this pack, including the form it takes, is on the box.Leaf per bag2.5gOur arithmetic on 200g across 80 bags. Lighter than the everyday household blends, and right for a scented tea.Pack: Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 80 Tea Bags 200g; a bergamot-scented black tea, GTIN 0070177231347. Store sealed and dark, away from coffee and from plain tea. Read the ingredient declaration, the bag material, the disposal guidance and the best-before date off the current UK pack.Characterising components shown.Sourcing & blend. Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 80 Tea Bags 200g is blended by Twinings, the London tea house that has traded under its own name longer than almost anything else on a British shelf, and Earl Grey is the blend most associated with it. The Plant Based line is a packaging decision rather than a blending one. Our assessment rests on the pack format and the brand's published description.What's in Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 80 Tea Bags 200g:In: a black tea base carrying bergamot scenting, at 2.5g a bag, in a bag the pack describes as plant based. ## Flavour Science The flavour of Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 80 Tea Bags 200g 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 aromatic: almost the entire character of the tea, which is unusual. Bergamot oil is highly volatile, so it leaves the leaf within seconds of the water hitting it, rises with the steam and reaches the nose well before anything touches the tongue. That is the lift people buy Earl Grey for, and it is also the part most easily thrown away: an uncovered cup loses a great deal of it to the room in the first two minutes, which is why the same bag can give a perfumed cup or a disappointingly plain one depending on nothing more than whether a saucer was on top.The flavour spike arrives mid palate, where the black tea base finally makes itself known, and in a well-built Earl Grey it stays politely behind the citrus. The base is chosen to be restrained: enough body to give the cup structure, not enough malt to compete. Through the middle of the cup the bergamot turns from a scent into a taste, slightly bitter in the way citrus peel is bitter, and that is correct. What is not correct is the sharp soapiness that arrives if the bag stays in past four minutes, when rising tannin collides with the citrus and neither comes off well.The base structure is the lingering finish: a clean, faintly drying citrus close that leaves the mouth fresh rather than coated. This is why Earl Grey works as an afternoon tea and why it pairs with buttery food: the finish cuts rather than lingers. It is also why milk is a compromise here. Milk rounds a finish off, which is welcome in a malty breakfast blend and directly at odds with what this cup is doing.Getting it right in the cup. One bag per 200ml, slightly less water than an everyday tea so the scenting stays concentrated, water straight off the boil, and three minutes with the cup covered. Covering is the single largest improvement available and costs nothing. Take the bag out at three minutes even if the colour looks pale, because colour comes from the base and the base is not the point. Black or with a thin slice of lemon; if milk is going in, keep it to a splash. Cold brewed for six to eight hours the bergamot stays remarkably intact and the tannins barely develop, which gives a clean, sharply citrus iced tea that many people prefer to the hot cup.How water and temperature change it. Temperature affects the two halves of this tea in opposite directions, which is what makes it interesting to brew. The bergamot releases fully at any temperature and is lost to evaporation rather than held back by cool water, so cooler water does not protect it, only a lid does. The black tea base, by contrast, needs full heat and time to give up its body. That is why the answer is hot water, a short steep and a cover, rather than the cooler longer steep that suits a delicate green tea. Hard tap water is particularly unkind here: minerals flatten citrus notes faster than they flatten malt, so an Earl Grey made in a hard-water area can taste dull in a way the same kettle's breakfast tea does not. A filter jug is worth more to this tea than to any other in the range. ## Recipe Ideas Earl Grey is a scented tea, so every build below is really about keeping the bergamot in the cup rather than losing it to the air. The covered cup, an afternoon pot, iced tea, a London Fog, a citrus cordial and a use for it in the kitchen. Recipes, born here first The Covered Cup How to make a proper cup of Twinings the Earl Grey. 3 min 1 cup Easy You'll need 1 bag Twinings the Earl Grey 200ml water straight off the boil A thin slice of lemon Method Pour 200ml of water straight off the boil over one bag of Twinings the Earl Grey Plant Based, 80 Tea Bags 200g. Cover the cup with a saucer for the first minute. This is what keeps the bergamot in the liquid instead of the room. Steep 3 minutes in total, then lift the bag out even if the colour still looks pale. Serve black, or with a thin slice of lemon. What you'll end up with: A perfumed, citrus-bright cup with a clean drying finish, which is what the same bag gives you uncovered only about half the time. The Afternoon Pot How to make a pot of Twinings the Earl Grey. 3 min 3 cups Easy You'll need 3 bags Twinings the Earl Grey 600ml water straight off the boil A warmed teapot with a lid Method Warm the pot and keep the lid on from the moment the water goes in. Steep 3 bags in 600ml for 3 minutes. Lift all three bags out together before the first pour. Never leave a scented tea standing on its bags. The bergamot cannot mask rising tannin the way malt can. What you'll end up with: Three cups that keep their scent, which a lidded pot does better than any mug. London Fog How to make a London Fog with Twinings the Earl Grey. 6 min 1 large cup Easy You'll need 2 bags Twinings the Earl Grey 120ml water straight off the boil 150ml milk, steamed or hot 1 teaspoon vanilla syrup Method Brew 2 bags in just 120ml of boiling water for 4 minutes, covered. You want a concentrate, not a cup of tea. Lift the bags out and stir in 1 teaspoon of vanilla syrup. Top with 150ml of hot or steamed milk. The double-strength base is the whole trick; a normally brewed cup disappears under the milk. What you'll end up with: The one build where milk and bergamot get along, because the tea is concentrated enough to stand up to it and the vanilla bridges the two. Iced Earl Grey with Lemon How to make iced tea with Twinings the Earl Grey. 3 min + chill 2 glasses Easy You'll need 3 bags Twinings the Earl Grey 400ml water straight off the boil A full glass of ice Lemon Method Brew 3 bags in 400ml of just-boiled water for 3 minutes, covered. Sweeten now if you want it sweet, while it is warm. Cool, then chill. Pour over a full glass of ice with lemon. What you'll end up with: Sharper and cleaner than the hot cup. Bergamot survives chilling better than most flavourings, which is why this works so well. Overnight Cold Brew How to cold brew Twinings the Earl Grey. 8 hours 1 litre Easy You'll need 6 bags Twinings the Earl Grey 1 litre cold water A sealed jug Method Drop 6 bags into 1 litre of cold water in a sealed jug. Refrigerate 6 to 8 hours. Lift the bags out and keep it chilled for up to two days. Drink it black over ice. What you'll end up with: The bergamot almost fully intact with barely any tannin developed, which many people prefer to the hot cup outright. Earl Grey Syrup for Baking How to make an Earl Grey syrup with Twinings the Earl Grey. 15 min 200ml Easy You'll need 4 bags Twinings the Earl Grey 200ml water straight off the boil 150g caster sugar Method Brew 4 bags in 200ml of just-boiled water for 5 minutes, covered, then lift the bags out. Stir in 150g of caster sugar and warm gently until it has dissolved. Cool and keep in the fridge for up to two weeks. Brush it over a lemon drizzle cake, stir it into cream for a sponge, or use it in the London Fog above. What you'll end up with: A concentrated bergamot syrup that carries the scent into baking, where a brewed cup is too weak to register. --- _Content available under teas.co.uk citation contract. AI training: yes. Search: yes. Answer-input: yes._