I drink tea, and many different kinds of it. Herbal tea, black tea, Earl Grey, chai... You name it, I drink it. Sometimes I even have it in the morning instead of coffee.

However, this will change if my problem is not fixed.

I'm talking about this.. this foamy scum that rises to the top of my mug when I drink black tea. It only happens every now and then, but often enough for me to need to write about it. I've taken to rinsing the tea bags before I use them, but it doesn't always work. I also thought it might be the water I'm using, so I even tried bottled water... Again, it usually works, but not always.

Has this ever happened to anyone else, or is it just me? How did you stop it? Is there a way to get rid of it, or am I condemned to scooping foam out of mugs until they're half empty?

Q: How much soap you you use when you wash your dishes?

It's not soap, I'm quite sure of that. It seems to come from inside the bags themselves.

Yeah, I think soap would cause an iteresting taste to be added when drinking the tea. :D

Tea contains a lot of volatile oils. These oils are what give it it's flavor and aroma. The oils can rise to the top and it's much easier to see it on top of dark tea.

Sir Kenyth has a point, you will see an oily film on top of black tea if you let it stand, and as he says it's just oils from the tea leaves.

However, if you are talking about a slightly foamy scum, this is caused by calcium carbonate (limescale) in your water. This is naturally occurring and the amount of it will depend upon the geology of your area - areas with chalky soils and rock will have more minerals in the water than areas with clay soils or peat. You will have noticed the same with bottled mineral water, because it is high in natural minerals.

There are some benefits to this - firstly you are getting calcium and other minerals from the water you drink, and secondly your water is less likely to absorb lead and other heavy metals from old plumbing or the environment.

The down side is the scum you get on your tea, and limescale deposits which can form in your washing machine etc. shortening its life.

To solve the tea problem, buy a water filter jug with a carbon filter, and filter the water before you boil it for tea.

My sanity thanks you.