How to Brew Hemp Tea: The Right Way
Most people overheat it. Some don't steep it long enough. A few pour boiling water straight over it and wonder why it tastes flat and grassy.
Knowing how to brew hemp tea properly isn't complicated — but there's a right way and a wrong way, and the difference between the two is actually tasting what you paid for.
This is the right way.
What You'll Need
No specialist kit. But get these basics sorted before you start.
- Loose leaf hemp tea — whole or lightly broken flower, not dust. Quality starts here. Browse hemp tea varieties
- A tea infuser or strainer — fine mesh ball or a reusable paper filter. Avoid cheap ones that let material through.
- A kettle — temperature control is ideal. Standard kettle works fine with a thermometer, or just a timer.
- A mug — pre-warmed makes a proper difference. More on that below.
That's it. Nothing fancy needed.
How to Brew Hemp Tea Step by Step
Water Temperature
This is where most people go wrong first. Boiling water — 100°C — is too hot. It scalds the botanicals and pulls harsh, grassy notes out of the flower, masking the terpene profile you're actually paying for.
The sweet spot? 80–90°C. If your kettle doesn't have temperature control, boil it and let it sit off the heat for two minutes. Close enough.
How Much Hemp Tea to Use
Roughly 1–2 grams per 250ml of water. That's about one loosely packed teaspoon per standard mug.
Start at 1g if you're new to it. Move to 2g once you know what you're working with. The variety matters here too — denser, more resinous flower needs less than lighter, fluffier material. Don't just dump it in and guess.
Steep Time
3–5 minutes. Put the infuser in, pour your water, cover the mug if you can, and leave it.
Don't rush it to two minutes. Don't leave it ten. Both are wrong ends of the same mistake — one's underdeveloped, the other's bitter and flat.
What to Add
Some people add a small amount of fat — a splash of full-fat milk, a few drops of hemp seed oil, or a small pat of butter if you're making it in a pot. Cannabinoids and terpenes are fat-soluble, so this can help you get more from the same amount of leaf.
Not essential. Worth trying once you've got the basics sorted.
Honey works well with citrus-forward varieties. With earthy, resinous ones, leave it alone — let those notes breathe.
Tips for a Better Brew
Small things that actually make a difference. Worth adding to the routine.
Pre-warm the mug. Pour a little boiling water in, swirl, tip it out. Stops the temperature dropping the second your brew hits cold ceramic. Takes ten seconds.
Cover it while it steeps. A small plate over the top holds the heat in and keeps the terpene-rich steam inside the cup rather than letting it escape. Simple but effective.
Try cold brew. 1–2g in a jar of cold water, left in the fridge overnight. 8–12 hours. The result is smoother, less grassy, and it works beautifully with floral or citrus varieties. Proper summer drink — and no kettle required.
Don't squeeze the infuser. Tempting when you pull it out, but it pushes bitter compounds into the cup. Let it drain naturally. Ten extra seconds.
Is cold brewing worth trying? If you've only ever had hemp tea hot, yes. Different plant, different experience.
Mistakes Worth Avoiding
Using boiling water. Already covered — but it's still the most common one. 80–90°C, not 100°C.
Buying poor-quality flower. You can't brew your way out of bad material. If what you're working with is dry, dusty, or smells like nothing in particular, the problem isn't your technique. How to spot quality hemp tea
Steeping longer to get more from it. Doesn't work that way. After five or six minutes you're mainly extracting tannins and chlorophyll. Bitter and flat. If you want a fuller cup, use more leaf — not more time.
Ignoring the variety. A citrus terpene profile and an earthy, resinous one don't behave the same in the cup. Get to know what you're working with before you start adjusting anything else.
The Calm Leaf Standard
Every hemp tea order leaves our Liverpool warehouse — L1 and L17 — same day on orders in before 2pm. Lab tested. UK compliant. Third-party verified.
The method only matters if the product's worth brewing. Ours is.
