When Adagio got in contact to discuss sending tea samples, I never expected to be so lucky as to receive the Adagio IngenuiTEA 2 brewer as well. Thank you, Adagio!
This is my full review of the Adagio tea brewer with some honest thoughts on what I loved and what could be improved. I’ve tested it out with one of my favourite teas from the Adagio festive collection – a tasty Chestnut flavoured black tea.
Spoiler: both the tea and the tea brewer are pretty epic.
Adagio IngenuiTEA 2 at a Glance
- Method: Brew and release tea into the cup
- Best for: Tricky loose leaf blends, like rooibos
The Adagio IngenuiTEA 2 is an ingenious tea brewer for loose leaf blends. The fine mesh filter and large volume size make it a better teapot alternative for loose leaf teas that usually escape a filter, like rooibos.
Full Review – Adagio IngenuiTEA Infuser Teapot
- Type: Teapot infuser and release
- Filter: Plastic fine mesh filter
- Volume: 450ml
- Ease of Use: Extremely easy!
- Where to Buy: Amazon or Adagio IngenuiTEA 2 Official Website
The IngenuiTEA 2 brewer is a simple plastic construction. There’s a main clear chamber with a flip lid and a mesh filter at the base of the chamber. Using it is just as simple – I’ve written out the steps below.
I really like how smoothly it operates and the crystal clear tea that ends up in my cup. With many teapots and metal mesh infusers, very small particles pass through it. This results in that dusty bit at the bottom of your cup.
With very fine tea leaves, like rooibos tea, finding the right filter is tricky too. But the Adagio IngenuiTEA 2 handles it like a champ and I never have any problems with stray leaves sneaking their way through.
How to Use the IngenuiTEA
Place your tea leaves in the main chamber, add your water, and let it brew. Once it’s at the right strength, you place the brewer on top of your mug or cup. The pressure of the cup rim pushes up this plastic component underneath which releases the tea.
Just like a teapot, you can refill the main chamber with more water to re-steep the leaves as many times as you want. Just be careful not to leave old tea leaves sitting in there for too long – it makes the cleaning a nightmare.
Cleaning and Storing Adagio’s IngenuiTEA 2
Even though the BPA-free plastic is entirely microwave and dishwasher safe, I can’t actually get it in my dishwasher.
First, you need to pop off the flip lid as it just won’t stay open to clean if it’s placed in the dishwasher as it is. I really don’t like doing this as we all know the plastic type hinges on these tea brewers are not the sturdiest. You don’t want to be adding unnecessary tear and wear. Furthermore, it’s best to wash the IngenuiTEA 2 on the top rack to stop the hot water melting the plastic… except that the extra tall design doesn’t fit on the top rack.
This usually means that I end up hand washing the device which is tricky as you can’t actually disassemble it to reach between the base and mesh filter.
Also, don’t forget that plastic holds onto stains, which is why there’s a brownish tint to the mesh filter in my images. No amount of washing up liquid will remove it, especially as you cannot scrub it from both sides.
Summary
Considering how great this tea brewer is, coupled with how tiresome it can be to clean, I have ultimately saved this brewer for special occasions. I use it for rooibos teas and special teas like blooming teas where I only need to brew one cup (so a teapot is too big) and I still want to see the pretty leaves and flowers from all angles.
You should have one of these in your tea cupboard. Trust me. Buy it directly from Adagio using the link above, or check it out on Amazon using the button below.
Tea Recommendation
If you want to find some delicious new teas to try with this tea brewer, your first stop should be my Tea Review Index. This is where you can find all the teas I’ve reviewed organised into categories. So, browse the entire loose leaf selection or narrow down by ingredient, origin or brand!