# Do you strangle your tea bag? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 1, 2013, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073 "2013-08-01T11:56:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/21 "2013-08-01T19:44:11Z")
I put the bag on the spoon and press it lightly with a knife handle to get the extra water out. Otherwise it drips all over the countertop. I voted strangle although I don’t wring every last drop out of the bag. ---
**Author:** ![Kiwi\_Fruit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kiwi_fruit/32/12_2.png) [@Kiwi\_Fruit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiwi_Fruit)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/22 "2013-08-01T21:17:24Z")
I don’t strangle but also don’t leave it in the cup/mug. I mean, eww! That means the tea is getting stronger and all tanniny! Once the Earl Grey or Lady Grey is made, you don’t want it to be overdone either by strangling or leaving the bag in. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/23 "2013-08-01T21:23:51Z")
I’d never heard of strangling it with the string! I squeeze it between my thumb and forefinger! Yeah, it’s a little hot… I honestly can’t tell if it alters the flavor or not. I’ve tried it both ways, and it’s the same. A squeezed bag drips less. Less messy. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/24 "2013-08-02T00:37:34Z")
I strangle it with the string. I’m sure it does release some tannins, but in my experience, it’s not very much. Maybe I just don’t strangle very hard. Most of the herbal tisanes (yes, I use that word too) I drink, though, don’t have any significant tannin content, so those, I’ll leave in, and when the cup is about half-empty, I’ll pull it up against the exposed side of the cup and squeeze it thoroughly with the back of the spoon, to get all of the flavor. ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/25 "2013-08-02T00:52:46Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > I pretend it’s a woman being bound to railroad tracks. Same here. And she gets squeezed with the label on the end of the string after the abduction and tying, for me. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/26 "2013-08-02T00:59:54Z")
Never squeeze the bag. My wife on the other hand does. So when I’m making tea for the two of us, I pull the bag out of my cup and dump it into _her_ cup. Then I leave the room before she does something awful. ---
**Author:** ![brainstall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@brainstall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brainstall)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/27 "2013-08-02T01:07:55Z")
I guess I’m a no. Unless I have no choice, I brew tea in a pot and pour it into my cup when I think it’s ready. The tea bag stays in the pot until I want to make more tea, then I fish the old bag out, dump it in the compost container and rinse the pot with hot water. If I have to make tea in a cup, I guess I just take the bag out with a spoon or its string without wringing it out. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/28 "2013-08-02T02:43:05Z")
Hot tea, no. Tea to ice, yes. I _like_ the bitterness, that’s what I’m going for in iced tea. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/29 "2013-08-02T02:43:10Z")
I drink iced tea, and I make it by steeping 24 stringless (Celestial Seasonings) bags into a big pot of water. 5 minutes later, I fish out the bags, let them cool a while, then squeeze them into the pot. Then I refrigerate it overnight. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/30 "2013-08-02T04:02:11Z")
I usually drink leaf tea. If I’m drinking teabag tea I usually strangle for extra strength. I don’t think there’s much worse you can do after starting with a teabag in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![deltasigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e5b9ba/32.png) [@deltasigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deltasigma)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/31 "2013-08-02T04:17:38Z")
> [@Eliahna](#): > > I usually drink leaf tea. If I’m drinking teabag tea I usually strangle for extra strength. I don’t think there’s much worse you can do after starting with a teabag in the first place. Cream and sugar? No, no - wait. Aspartame and non-dairy creamer. Yeah, that’s it. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/32 "2013-08-02T04:29:01Z")
> [@deltasigma](#): > > Cream and sugar? > > No, no - wait. Aspartame and non-dairy creamer. Yeah, that’s it. 😃 Liquid Splenda and heavy whipping cream, thank you very much. ---
**Author:** ![deltasigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e5b9ba/32.png) [@deltasigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deltasigma)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/33 "2013-08-02T04:30:38Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Liquid Splenda and heavy whipping cream, thank you very much. Ooo. Liquid Splenda. I didn’t even know about that. Runs to check online. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/34 "2013-08-02T04:46:35Z")
Depends. When I make my sweet concoction treat once a week or so, I squeeze the bags (no strings) with the spoon against the inside of the Mason jar. I enjoy the bitterness against the cream, sugar/honey and vanilla/almond extract. Plain hot tea, no. Not much of an extra tannin fan without sugar to offset it. Iced tea, also no. I cold brew by the gallon and just leave the bags in the pitcher until empty, then chuck them in the trash from the pitcher. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/35 "2013-08-02T04:49:56Z")
I used to strangle, but some years ago I learned that not strangling leads to a better cuppa. And I WILL put cream or milk in my hot tea. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/36 "2013-08-02T05:03:36Z")
> [@deltasigma](#): > > Ooo. Liquid Splenda. I didn’t even know about that. Runs to check online. It’s not official Splenda, it’s the pure powder form of sucralose in a water suspension. A number of tiny companies market it. I buy it because the granulated Splenda is bulked out with dextrose and maltodextrin, which sort of defeats the whole idea of trying to eliminate sugars from your diet. ---
**Author:** ![deltasigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e5b9ba/32.png) [@deltasigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deltasigma)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/37 "2013-08-02T05:08:21Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > It’s not official Splenda, it’s the pure powder form of sucralose in a water suspension. A number of tiny companies market it. I buy it because the granulated Splenda is bulked out with dextrose and maltodextrin, which sort of defeats the whole idea of trying to eliminate sugars from your diet. Thanks. I did a search on Amazon and saw that. Is EZ-sweet a good choice? ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/38 "2013-08-02T05:14:45Z")
> [@deltasigma](#): > > Thanks. I did a search on Amazon and saw that. Is EZ-sweet a good choice? Not familiar with that brand. I usually buy Splendex brand. A 4 oz bottle lasts for months. ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/39 "2013-08-02T11:08:22Z")
Alright, so I’m a cretin for liking super strong black tea (NOT Earl Grey, tyvm {shudder}) with a scant tsp of sugar and a splash of milk. I’m a bag-leaver, it’ll sit there 'til I’m done, even if I get distracted and it’s gone cold. I like it strong and tannin-y to stand up to the milk. [This is my mug of choice](http://hadleypottery.com/images/_products/_items/_small/flare-mug-blue-horse-small.png) - 12 oz x 6 or 8 a day = nicely caffeinated 🆒 Whoops, time for mug #2 for the day! . ---
**Author:** ![turner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/22d042/32.png) [@turner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turner)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2013, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073/40 "2013-08-02T13:48:24Z")
Only when I’m choking my chicken [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-strangle-your-tea-bag/665073.md?page=3)