Fun fact: tea is one of the best-selling products on Bold Xchange. We don't know if it's the incredible flavors or the high-quality, but Bold shoppers can't get enough. But if you're new to loose leaf tea—or just our awesome Black-owned tea makers—we want to give you a quick cheat sheet to getting the most out of the teas in our shop.

Black-Owned and High Quality

Just in case you're new around the Bold-iverse, here's what you need to know about all our products: they're always from Black-owned brands. We try products from every Black-owned brand we carry before adding them to our shop, and we only sell items we know are worth your time and money.  

Why Loose Leaf?

This is the first question we asked when we first started encountering Black-owned brands who create tea blends. We were used to tea in bags. But it turns out we were also used to tea that had been artificially flavored and ground to dust—tea that had lost lots of its luster.

The Black-owned brands we carry sell loose leaf tea made from whole leaves, real herbs, and quality spices. That way, by the time it reaches your cup, it's absolutely delicious.

How to Brew

• With single-use tea bags: Bold Xchange tea orders always come with a pack of disposable tea bags (also from a Black-owned brand). To use these, open a bag, spoon in some of the loose leaf tea, seal it, and add to a cup of water. You may even be able to finish the cup and brew another—one of the benefits of high-quality, loose leaf tea.
• With a tea strainer: Lots of people prefer to use a stainless steel  or silicone tea strainer made for this specific purpose. It produces less waste, that's for sure. We stopped carrying these because they can sometimes create an aftertaste or release leaves into your cup. 
• With a French press: This is the preferred method around Bold Xchange HQ. We don't have a brand partner for this (Black-owned French press makers, hit us up!) but truly any French press will do. Spoon in some loose leaf tea, pour in water at your desired temperature, then let it brew for a few minutes. It makes a perfect cup, every time.

For the Loose Leaf Tea Pros

Feel pretty confident with loose leaf tea already? Try some of these pro-level upgrades to get even more out of our beloved Black-owned brands:

• Make it iced: You may have noticed that in the descriptions for some teas, we mention it tastes great iced. We mean it! Especially in spring and summer, we like to carry a tea or two that tastes great with ice, simple syrup, and a lemon wedge. 
• Mix and match blends: If you've tried a couple and love them equality, add a dash of each into your cup and see how you like it. Note: we cannot guarantee that all combos will taste great.
• Add an ingredient or two: We stand by our Black-owned brand partners 100% when it comes to their products. But that doesn't mean they don't play well with additional ingredients. For example, if our cofounder Danielle is feeling under the weather, she brews a cup of ImmuniTEA (from Black-owned Cuples Teahouse) with some honey, lemon, ginger, and turmeric. Delicious—so she says.