What Causes Tea Stains?

Dive into what causes tea stains and how to remove them.
What causes Tea Stains
3 April 2023

Tea can cause stains on teacups, mugs, teapot and tea makers made from a range of materials from glass to ceramic, and porcelain. These stains can be unsightly, and potentially affect the flavour of your teas if not cleaned frequently and correctly.

The main cause of tea stains are tea tannins.

What are Tea Tannins?

Tannin, also known as tannic acid, is a polyphenolic compound that gives tea its colour. It is naturally found in tea leaves and contributes to its colour, and flavour. Other foods that contain tannins are chocolate, wine, berries, and coffee. Tannin levels can differ depending on the type of tea from black, green, white, and oolong, and how these teas are prepared. Tea stains can build up over time causing dark discoloration, they can also be worse depending on the water in your region, hard water or soft water.

Tea Article

How to remove tea staining?

Sometimes just putting your cups and tea accessories through the dishwasher does not remove tea stains. They may require a little more attention. Cafetto Tea Clean can be used to clean tea stains and tannins from teapots and teacups. It is a tea stain removing powder that when mixed with hot water provides a simple, and easy to use cleaning solution.

How to clean tea stains from teacups and tea pots

  1. Add 1 sachet of Cafetto Tea Clean to 1.5L of hot water and stir to dissolve.
  2. Fill tea cup, tea pot or other tea brewing equipment with the Tea Cleaner solution.
  3. Allow to stand for 10 minutes.
  4. Discard solution and rinse with potable water before reuse.

Your teacups, teapots, and other tea accessories should now be free from tea tannin stains and returned to sparkling new again! ✨

Cafetto Tea Clean

Cafetto Tea Clean can also be used for cleaning the inside of kettles, tea strainers, tea infusers, and tea filters. Learn more about Cafetto Tea Clean here.