I’ve had a couple blog posts now showing off my Mandala Tea’s Glass Tea Thermos in action, so I think it is time to review how nice of a tea thermos it is!
I am a big Mandala Tea fan. Great teas and customer service! I found their Glass Tea Thermos and purchased it for my first cruise so I can have a pretty tea thermos. I have quite a few travelling tea steeping items, but I wanted something attractive and stylish that could also double as a tea pot in a pinch.
Mandala Tea’s Garret has a pretty handy video on using the Glass Tea Thermos.
For some housekeeping information, here are the instructions for the Mandala Glass Tea Thermos.
Teaware Review of Glass Tea Thermos
My Glass Tea Thermos came snuggly packaged in a box. Inside the tea thermos was and instruction manual, similar to the online one mentioned above.
Design of Mandala Tea’s Glass Tea Thermos
Yay, doubled wall glass! I find these double wall glass tea glasses hold temperature better than those with a plastic double wall. Double wall design makes hot tea not burn your hands. With 200F water the tea thermos feels cozy warm. The capacity is 10.5oz or 320ml, which I found to be a nice size. The capacity is bigger than a typical cup of tea with the entire thermos not being overly large.
The glass rim is on the thick side, but is not too thick to drink from. The rings under the edge do not interfere with tea sipping.
The gasket ring inside the lid fits really snug. By the way, this tea thermos is not leak proof! It will lightly drip when on its side, with that said, this isn’t a tea thermos you can let roll around in your bag.
The strainer is quite nice as its one piece (not counting the handle), which I like better than wire mesh that can gets gunky over time. Strainer is easy to insert and remove, yet staying firmly in place. I like how high the strainer sits in the glass, thus giving a good capacity to the tea thermos.
However, the holes on the strainer are a bit fat. While I was on my cruise to Mexico, I tried a rooibos tea in my Glass Tea Thermos.
As always, rooibos steeps up very lovely, however the strainer’s holes were too big for the tea. I had lots of tea bits to drink through! With that said, Glass Tea Thermos is best used with whole leaf teas rather than flavored blends or small twiggy teas.
I was quite happy using Glass Tea Thermos as a impromptu tea pot. As long as I have a cup handy, I had gongfu style tea steeping!
Mandala Tea’s Glass Tea Thermos also pours nicely with the strainer in – I was able to pour into obnoxiously small tea cups without the use of a pitcher/cha hai….
… and serve tea to the Tea Owls. Mmmm, White Night tea!
Oolong Owl Tip
In Garret’s video, you see him fill the Glass Tea Thermos first, then pop on the strainer. I found you can fill the thermos with the strainer in if you pour slowly with a concentrated stream of water, such as pouring high from your kettle. If you do not do this trick, the water will overflow and leak all over the counter, causing tea owls to run around hooting in terror.
Comparison
I personally prefer the Mandala Tea’s Glass Tea Thermos over the Libre Tea Glass. First off, the Mandala Tea’s Glass Tea Thermos is all glass, rather than partial polycarbonate, so it hold heat a little better in my experience. The Mandala Tea’s Glass Tea Thermos is also a more simpler design for a more clean look but more importantly being easier to clean. With the 2 lid design of the Libre Tea Glass you have to gaskets to clean. Also, you can pour tea out of the Mandala Tea’s Glass Tea Thermos with the strainer still inside, the Libre Tea Glass does not pour well unless you remove the strainer lid. The bonus to the Libre Tea Glass is the wire strainer is finer. Both are not leak proof.
Comments
Overall Glass Tea Thermos is a lovely travel tea thermos. The design is very attractive, letting a tea drinker show off their gorgeous teas, a conversation piece when out in public drinking tea on the go! The Mandala Tea’s Glass Tea Thermos works best with big leafy teas due to the strainer design.
Even after my cruise, I still use the Glass Tea Thermos for all my tea on the go needs. On really lazy days at home working on the computer, I use it for oolong steeping. The Glass Tea Thermos is also my go-to cold steeping vessel!
If you want to drink more tea, similar to drinking more water, carrying a tea tumbler where ever you go will encourage you to drink more!
