How Do I Organize My Tea Bags? (Solved & Explained!)

Do you sometimes (or always) have trouble finding the tea you are looking for?

There are many ways to organize your teas. You can organize your tea by type. Tea can also be organized by brand. If you prefer, you can alphabetize your tea by brand name or by tea name.

Now it is time to explore the different methods of organizing tea. Take a look at the Pros and Cons of each method and try a few out.

Tea Organization Basics

No matter which of the following methods works best for you there are a few key things they all have in common.

Tea should be stored in a cool dry place

Heat can age the tea quicker. This causes the tea to become stale which in turn will lessen the flavor.

Tea should be stored in an airtight container

If the container is not airtight, you risk your tea losing its freshness. Just like with cereal, or crackers, or anything else if the container is not airtight then the tea can become stale.

Tea should be stored in opaque containers

Just like with heat and air, light can damage the tea. Tea that is exposed to light for long periods of time will lose its freshness.

These three things are important for any kind of tea. They are especially important for loose leaf teas. Loose leaf tea is already fresher in most cases than tea from tea bags.

Organizing by Tea Type

Organizing by Tea Type involves determining what types of teas you have and grouping them with similar teas. Depending on where you look you will find a multitude of tea types. Some teas are “True” teas, meaning they are from the tea plant, other teas are not made from the tea plant.

• Yerba Mate (Mate Herb) – It comes from the Mate plant not the tea plant
• Black Tea – It comes from the tea plant
• Oolong Tea – It comes from the tea plant
• Green Tea – It comes from the tea plant
• Matcha Tea – It is a type of green tea
• White Tea – It comes from the tea plant
• Purple Tea – It comes from the tea plant, it is one of the newest tea forms
• Pu-erh Tea – It comes from the tea plant
• Yellow Tea – it comes from the tea plant
• Red Tea/Bush Tea – This tea is common to Africa, it is often Rooibos, It is usually caffeine-free but not always, It does not come from the tea plant
• Herbal Tea – It comes from a variety of herbs and has no tea plant

Now that is a lot of tea. The most common way people organize by tea type is by caffeine content. For instance higher caffeine choices in one area and low caffeine in another. For instance, you would start with Yerba Mate or Black Tea and go through to herbal teas.

Organizing by Tea Packaging

To organize your tea by packaging, look at how it is packaged. Put all the loose leaf tea in one area. Next, organize your tea in tea bags. This gives you two main categories which you can then break down using other organizing techniques. For instance, you could alphabetize tea in each section.

You can organize by the shape of the containers. Such as round containers versus square versus rectangular containers. This type of organization is key to making the most of your tea storage space.

Organizing by Tea Brand

If you have a few favorite brands of tea, you can organize by tea brand. This works great if you have between 5 and 10 favorite brands. However, this method becomes a lot more complicated if you like a lot of different types of tea.

Organizing by Tea Origins

You can organize your tea by the country or continent of origin. For instance, you could have a space for teas from Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, South America, and North America. This works for both brands from those areas as well as teas grown in those areas.

Within your country or continent categories, you can organize the tea by name, brand, season, caffeine content, or packaging.

Organizing by Tea Name

If you are someone who likes things to be alphabetical you can try organizing by tea name. There will most likely be some letters of the alphabet that are not represented in your tea storage.

Start with teas that have an A for the first word and then go through the alphabet. The key to organizing this way is that you need to be able to see each letter of the alphabet you use.

This can become difficult if you have only one tea with a name that starts with a K. Then you use up a whole space in your cabinet or shelf, for just one tea. Alphabetizing your tea is not the most space efficient tea organizing strategy. However, it is great for someone who has the space.

Organizing by Season

You can organize your tea into four categories using the seasons. Such as summer teas, spring teas, fall teas, and winter teas. This form of organization works best if you have certain teas you prefer to drink during specific times of the year.

You can even combine one of the other methods with this such as organizing into seasons and then by brand, packaging, origin, or type.

Organize by Expiration Date

All tea has an expiration date. However, like with herbs, an expiration date on tea is just a best by date. The date is the point that the tea begins to lose its freshness and its taste. You can still drink tea made from expired loose leaf or tea bag tea.

If you are someone who often has trouble remembering to eat or drink the oldest foods first, organizing by expiration or best-by date may be best for you. Put the newest teas in the back and put the oldest teas in the front.

Conclusion

Now that you know some of the most common ways to organize tea it is your turn to try them out. Give each of them at least a week if you are not sure which will work best.

Maybe one will stand out as being the easiest. Maybe none of them will work. Maybe you’ll find your own method that works.

Whatever you choose, know that organizing, just like tea drinking, is an individual choice. Have fun and enjoy your newly organized tea!