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Tea recipe · Earl Grey

The Standard Darjeeling Earl Grey Cup

A lighter Earl Grey on a muscatel Darjeeling base: brewed short, best without milk, with the bergamot and delicate fruit kept intact.

  • Prep 5 min
  • Serves 1
  • Easy
Earl Grey · recipe card
At a glance Updated 22 Apr 2026
Teapigs Darjeeling Earl Grey, 15 Tea Bags 37.5g, Black Tea, Teapigs Limited. Sold by Teas.co.uk.
5Steps
4Ingredients
£5.60The tea
14In this section
Made withTeapigs Darjeeling Earl Grey, 15 Tea Bags 37.5g
The recipe

Exact quantities, then the method.

This is a more refined take on Earl Grey: a light, muscatel Darjeeling sits under the bergamot in place of a heavy black base, so it drinks best without milk and wants a short steep to hold onto both the bergamot lift and the Darjeeling fruit.

Source: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for the The Standard Darjeeling Earl Grey Cup recipe. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/recipes/earl-grey/the-standard-darjeeling-earl-grey-cup/

It uses Teapigs Darjeeling Earl Grey, a whole-leaf bergamot Black Tea. One mug, a few minutes, and best drunk black.

⏱ 5 min 🍽 Serves 1 📊 Easy 📚 Earl Grey Recipes

You'll need

  • 1 Teapigs Darjeeling Earl Grey tea temple
  • 250ml water, just boiled then left 30 seconds off the boil
  • A thin slice of lemon, optional
  • No milk recommended, it muddies the Darjeeling

Method

  1. Boil fresh water and let it stand 30 seconds. A Darjeeling base is more delicate than a heavy Assam, so just off the boil protects the fruit and the bergamot.
  2. Put the temple in the mug and pour the water over.
  3. Steep 3 minutes only. This is the key: a short steep keeps the bergamot bright and the muscatel Darjeeling note alive; longer and it goes flat and tannic.
  4. Lift the bag out with one gentle press, no squeezing, which would pull bitterness from the Darjeeling.
  5. Drink it black to taste the leaf. A thin slice of lemon suits it; milk muddies the delicate base, so leave it out.
What you'll end up with: A fragrant Earl Grey with bright bergamot over a light Darjeeling fruit, clean and never heavy. One to drink black.

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