Yorkshire Tea Loose Leaf: How Much to Use and How to Brew

Yorkshire Tea Loose Leaf: Dose, Pot and Strainer, in summary: The familiar Yorkshire blend without the bag. Use one rounded teaspoon per mug, about 2.5g, brew four minutes with freshly boiled water, then strain every drop off the leaf so the second cup matches the first.

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

A tea bag makes the most important decision for you, which is how much leaf goes in the cup. Loose leaf hands that choice back, and with a strong everyday blend like Yorkshire that control is the main reason to buy it: heap the spoon for a builder's pot, level it for something gentler.

What is actually in the caddy

Open the pack expecting long, twisted leaves and you will be surprised. This is a fine, brisk grade, much closer to what sits inside a tea bag than to the showy whole leaf people picture, since the blend is designed for a quick, strong brew. The label reads simply black leaf tea, and in the cup the aroma is quiet: warm, bready and faintly sweet.

The smell of the dry leaf, before any water goes near it, doubles as your freshness test. Loose leaf has a scent of its own that bagged tea rarely gives off, so a quick sniff before spooning tells you whether it has started to go stale. Keep it in an airtight tin, away from light and strong smells, and close the lid every time, because nothing else is protecting the leaf.

The spoon, the kit and the four-minute rule

Start at a rounded teaspoon for each mug, about 2.5g on our estimate; the pack itself gives no such figure. On that basis the 250g pack makes around a hundred mugs, fewer if your hand is heavy. Any pot with a strainer, a mesh spoon or a basket infuser will do; the small spring-clip tea balls will not, because they cram the leaf too tight to open.

Brew for four minutes with freshly boiled water, then pour the whole pot off the leaf. Unbagged, the leaf opens fully and gives up its flavour a little quicker than it would in a bag. Leave it sitting in the pot and it goes on extracting after the good part is over, which is why a neglected second cup tastes hard instead of strong.

Why the same blend tastes fuller from a pot

Nothing mysterious explains it. Given space in a pot, the leaf unfurls completely and the water reaches every piece, whereas a bag squashes the same leaf into a pad whose middle barely brews. The result is the familiar Yorkshire character, brisk first and then malty and slightly sweet, but with more of the leaf pulling its weight.

Loose or not, this is a strong, caffeinated black tea built with milk in mind, and the fuller cup carries milk even better than the bagged version. Buy it if a teapot and strainer are already gathering dust at home; if they are not, ask yourself whether the extra rinsing and emptying will outlast the first month.

The packs we stock

Taylors of Harrogate Yorkshire Tea Loose Leaf Tea, 250g (barcode 615357118669)

What the label says

The published ingredient list for Taylors of Harrogate Yorkshire Tea Loose Leaf Tea, 250g names none of the 14 major allergens. Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change.

Ingredients, as published: Black Leaf Tea.

Ingredient and nutrition information for this product, as published on the manufacturer's label. The pack in your hands is the final word.

What to eat with it

McVitie's Ginger Nuts Biscuits, 250g: a ginger biscuit with enough heat for a strong, heaped-spoon pot.
McVitie's Milk Chocolate Digestives Biscuits, 266g: the everyday partner for a milky mug poured from the pot.
McVitie's Rich Tea Biscuits, 300g: a light biscuit for dunking in a level-spoon, gentler cup.

Elsewhere in the Taylors of Harrogate range

The full range is on the Taylors of Harrogate brand page.

FAQ

How much Yorkshire loose leaf tea should I use per cup? One rounded teaspoon per mug, roughly 2.5g on our estimate. Heap it for a stronger cup, level it for a lighter one.

How many cups does the 250g pack make? About a hundred mugs at a rounded teaspoon each, on our own reckoning. A heavier spoon gives fewer, stronger cups.

Why does the second cup from my pot taste bitter? The leaf is still brewing. Strain the whole pot at four minutes and the second cup will match the first.

Can I use a tea ball? A roomy basket infuser is better. The small spring-loaded balls squash the leaf so it cannot open, which gives a thin cup.

Is it the same blend as Yorkshire Tea bags? It is sold as the Yorkshire blend in loose form, and the leaf is a fine, brisk grade similar to what you find in a bag.

Curator's note: Strain the pot at four minutes, every time. That one habit is the difference between loose leaf you keep buying and loose leaf you give up on. Lee, teas.co.uk, Tunbridge Wells.

In short: Yorkshire Tea Loose Leaf: Dose, Pot and Strainer

Field	Detail
Brand	Taylors of Harrogate
Packs we stock	250g
Category	Loose Leaf Tea
Allergens (as published)	The published ingredient list for this product names none of the 14 major allergens.
Caffeine	caffeinated
Dose	One rounded teaspoon per mug
Brew	Four minutes, then strain it all
Kit	A pot with a strainer or a basket infuser