How To Make A London Fog Tea Guide

London Fog, in short: A London Fog is an Earl Grey latte: brew the Earl Grey double strength so the bergamot survives the milk, add a little real vanilla, sweeten lightly.

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A London fog is an Earl Grey tea latte: strong Earl Grey, steamed or frothed milk, and vanilla. A clear guide gives you the method, the one mistake that ruins it, and a candid word on the sugar and caffeine the cafe version hides.

Last reviewed by the teas.co.uk team in May 2026.

What you need

Source: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for What you need, How to Make a London Fog. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how to make a london fog/

Per serving: 1 to 2 Earl Grey teabags (or loose Earl Grey), a small amount of just off boil water, milk or a milk alternative, and vanilla, ideally a little real vanilla extract, or a vanilla syrup if you prefer (that is where most of the sugar comes in).

How to make it, step by step

Source: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for How to make it, step by step, How to Make a London Fog. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how to make a london fog/

Brew the Earl Grey strong in a small amount of water (water just off the boil, around three to four minutes) to make a concentrated tea base, because milk will dilute it. Add vanilla to the hot tea. Heat and froth the milk, then combine, pouring the frothed milk over the strong tea base. Sweeten only to taste.

How to make it genuinely good

Source: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for How to make it genuinely good, How to Make a London Fog. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how to make a london fog/

Genuinely good London fog hinges on two things: a strong enough Earl Grey base (weak tea vanishes under milk, the commonest failure) and not over brewing it, because Earl Grey's bergamot turns bitter and soapy if stewed too hot or too long. A controlled three to four minute steep, not a forgotten one, is the key. Real vanilla beats syrup for flavour and adds no sugar; good frothed milk does the rest.

The honest note

Earl Grey is black tea, so a London fog is a caffeinated drink; the cosy, milky, vanilla character disguises that. Do not treat it as a wind down drink late at night if you are caffeine sensitive. And the cafe version's sweetness is usually vanilla syrup: a homemade one with real vanilla can have almost no added sugar, while a syrup built cafe one can be quite sweet. Make it at home and the caffeine awareness and the sugar are both firmly yours.

A London Fog, at a glance

Element	Short rule
What it is	An Earl Grey latte: strong Earl Grey, steamed milk, a little vanilla
Brew strong	Double strength Earl Grey so the bergamot survives the milk
Vanilla	A small amount of real vanilla, not a heavy syrup
Milk	Dairy or oat, gently warmed and frothed
Sweeten	Lightly and to taste; the bergamot should still read