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You probably know that loose leaf tea produces a better cup of tea. But what about tea bags? Is there a difference between square, round and pyramid-shaped? A British advertising watchdog thinks there is.
Pyramid-shaped tea bags have the upper hand when it comes to infusing flavor quickly and having more room to move about the cup, according to the UK-based Advertising Standards Agency.
The agency came to this conclusion after testing pyramid-shaped PG Tips tea bags against the competition, the Telegraph reports. However, the move upset rival Tetley who packages its product in rounded tea bags and believes there is no significant difference.
The case poses one great question: do pyramid-shaped bags really produce better tea?
Steve Damron/Flickr
To test this premise laboratory staff at PG Tips conducted various experiments to test ‘infusion rates’ using both round and pyramid-shaped tea bags, the Telegraph reports.
The study was conducted back in 2013 and involved brewing tea bags for 40 seconds and also for two minutes, which are the most common brewing times for most Brits. Lab results showed pyramid PG Tips tea bag had 'significantly greater brewing efficiency' than the round Tetley tea bag and had '99 per cent more room to move around the cup,’ the Telegraph reports.
Apparently, the concept of pyramid-shaped bags being superior to round tea bags has been around for a while. A New York Times article dating back to 2006 explained that brewing fine tea takes longer to infuse which is why "better teas are put in pyramid-shape bags, or larger pouches."
The situation is still brewing so you shouldn’t toss out your round tea bags just yet. In the meantime, have some fun with these cute dove-shaped origami tea bags (which offer a fun twist on the premier pyramid shape).
