People all over the world say what passes for tea in the US is actually “tea dust.” The bagged tea found in American homes and supermarkets is lower in quality than the loose leaf versions drunk internationally.
When loose-leaf tea is processed, the smallest pieces left behind are gathered and graded as “tea dust” by the tea industry. The particles are bagged so they can be consumed. It’s what most Americans think of as tea—as the rest of the world laughs at them for drinking dusty tea particles.
Tea enthusiasts say loose leaf teas have a more complex flavor than their bagged counterparts. Bagged tea is sometimes bitter. That’s why it’s meant to be mixed with milk and sugar. Loose leaf tea is typically enjoyed after it’s steeped in hot water only.
“I tried loose leaf tea and didn’t need to anything but hot water 🤯.”
What actually is "tea dust"?
Tea dust is a byproduct of loose leaf tea. As harvested tea plants are crushed, pressed, and rolled to be sold as loose leaf tea, the bits and pieces left behind are bagged and sold as tea bags. These remnants of broken tea leaves are referred to as “fannings” or “dust” in the tea industry. Tea leaves are graded using a system that considers the size of processed and dried black tea leaves. High-grade teas have long, wiry leaves, while the smallest tea particles are classified as “dust grade.”
@teakleyourfancy shared that tea bags “usually contain tea dust and broken tea leaves.” The dust and broken leaves offer a less complex flavor and can taste bitter because the tiny particles yield a higher surface area than long, dried tea leaves do.
Tea people commenting on tea dust posts agreed with Kylie Jenner’s iconic, whining, “I don’t like it.” They turned their noses up at the bagged stuff.
“That’s not tea. Nope, nope, nope.”
“I could taste the Lipton through my screen 🤮🤮🤮.”
“Bag tea is great from southern sweet tea and that’s about it 😂.”
Why do people in the US drink tea dust?
In short, colonialism.
TikTok tea guy, @yourteaguy explained it all. “In the West, tea evolved for people to add huge amounts of milk and sugar to the tea because it was bitter.”
The western tea market evolved alongside colonialism. Colonialists who planted tea trees in their colonies developed a process called crush, tear, curl. The method transformed leaves into powder (dust) to be sold for maximum profit.
According to @yourteaguy, the crush, tear, curl process, “...prevented farmers from adding value by destroying the entire culture around tea consumption. None of the old expertise about tea equipment, place of origin, picking method, processing style, steep method, history, tree age, tasting, notes of ritual mattered when it was going to be ground up and homogenized.”
“...and when the tea was bad quality or bitter, they told people it was meant to be drunk with milk and sugar.”
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