Which Tea Steeper is Best?

I can’t speak for the ‘Steeper’ or the ‘Perfect Teamaker’, but I do have the IngenuiTea and I quite love it, especially when travelling since it’s sturdy. But I think I love mine more than I’d love the one they sell now since it’s my understanding that the filter inside is no longer removable like the older/clear base version was. I think I’d kinda hate that since I’ve heard it makes cleaning a pain in the butt.
I’m not sure if either the Teavana or DavidsTea steepers have removable filters, but I’d love to know since I know I’ll have to replace my IngenuiTea eventually and that would be great.

On a side note, while I love my IngenuiTea, since it’s plastic it does tend to hold onto scents/flavors easily. Sometimes I can get away with just rinsing it well with hot water, but sometimes not. Then I just dump some baking soda into it and fill it with hot water, then wash it out once it’s cooled/the next day. But it does make brewing multiple cups of tea one after another kinda impossible without intensive scrubbing between depending on the tea. Lately I’ve switched to a little glass pot with a filter since it’s alot easier to clean up.

As a tea beginner (which I still am in a way) I started off with the IngenuiTEA. Its great because its really easy to use, really easy to clean, has plenty of room for the tea to expand, and you get to look at your tea :)

It does have some downsides though. For one, its made of plastic and when you feel it, it doesn’t have a a feeling of good quality that makes you feel like it will last for a long time. Plus, even though they say its BPA-free, the idea of pouring boiling hot water into plastic never makes me feel good. Also, because it’s plastic, the tea doesn’t stay warm for very long. If you’re drinking tea with short steeping times that won’t be an issue, but I drink nothing but herbals and I don’t always get to my tea right away so that has become an issue for me. Oh, and it only holds enough tea for one person, so think about whether or not that is a good thing or a bad thing. The worst problem for me about this tea maker, though, is that lately its been leaking A LOT. I will supposedly drain the entire contents into my cup, and then when its time to clean up, there is a little puddle underneath it without fail. For some reason when I was starting out I thought I had to get a “tea steeper” like this one, but after a couple of months I was asking myself why I didn’t just get a traditional teapot with a filter.

If seeing the tea is important to you, I would go with the glass teapot, but if you want something that will retain more warmth without the candle, you may want to look into ceramic or cast iron. I ordered a pretty inexpensive cast iron teapot from Amazon this morning and I can’t wait to get it!

I tend to use my steeping baskets more than my DavidsTea steeper, but that’s just me. My friend uses her steeper multiple times a day, and really loves it. Yes, it can retain scents and you have to be careful when you’re popping it apart to clean it, but it’s fairly easy to wash. I prefer doing a baking soda and vinegar volcano to scrubbing with baking soda for cleaning (or use unflavoured denture tablets and hot water!), so I don’t scratch the surface.

That glass tea pot is really lovely!

I love my ingenuiTEA, I’ve been using one for over a year now and it’s a great solution for me when I travel. Clean up can be a bit difficult, especially when it comes to flavored teas, because some of them leave a residue on the plastic that is difficult to get off, but there are ways to give it a good deep cleaning. Size-wise, 16oz is perfect and I have markings on the side (in sharpie) for when I only want an 8oz cup. As mentioned above, it does leak a lot and tends to leak more the longer I have it, but my solution to that was to put a plastic lid under it to catch the drips. Problem solved!

When I’m at home I don’t tend to use my ingenuiTEA nearly as much. I make my tea a cup at a time so it stays warm and use steeping baskets like OMGsrsly does. With those clean-up is a lot easier since I can scrub them down with a toothbrush and baking soda to clean any lingering flavor out of them. You can pick up a 2-pack on amazon for about the same price as an ingenuiTEA and dedicate one to flavored teas and one to unflavored (which is what I do.)

I do own a glass tea pot, but I find that I don’t use it unless I’m entertaining, the same goes for my ceramic pot. I don’t always have time to sit down and enjoy watching my tea steep and often times the pot makes more tea that I can drink before it cools off. I’m intrigued by Adagio’s Concert Tea Pot and the fact that it uses tealight candles to keep the tea warm. I wonder how well that works, you’ll have to tell us if you purchase it.

A while back I did a review on my blog and gave my impressions on the ingenuiTEA at the 1 month and 6 month mark as well as cleaning tips, here is the link in case you’re interested.
http://www.notstarvingyet.com/index/2013/12/9/teaware-review-adagio-ingenuitea-and-ingenuitea-iced.html

I have both an IngenuniTEA and a Steeper on my counter and I find them pretty comparable. The Steeper might hold just a bit more and I like the way it looks a little more, but they both really get the job done. I use mine in the mornings to steep the tea I intend to take to work in my timolinos. When I am at home, I tend to just use the infusers that come with the perfect mugs, because it is easier to gauge my water when steeping directly in my cup.

I have an earlier model ingenuiTea, and like it well enough. It does need a little saucer or tray to set it on – mine doesn’t leak at all normally, but its legs are so short that the press valve can accidentally get pressed very easily. It’s only slightly easier then using a filter bag or a drop in mesh filter — but it does let the leaves open and expand fully, so a little better for large leaf teas.

Also, Adagio’s glass ware is notorious for being very fragile. Mind you, I’m not familiar with any other brand of glassware, so it would be a glass issue as opposed to an Adagio glass issue, but it is something to be aware of.