ISO 3103

ISO 3103 is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (commonly referred to as ISO), specifying a standardized method for brewing tea, possibly sampled by the standardized methods described in ISO 1839.[1] It was originally laid down in 1980 as BS 6008:1980 by the British Standards Institution,[2] and a revision was published in December, 2019 as ISO/NP 3103.[3] It was produced by ISO Technical Committee 34 (Food products), Sub-Committee 8 (Tea).

The abstract states the following:

The method consists in extracting of soluble substances in dried tea leaf, contained in a porcelain or earthenware pot, by means of freshly boiling water, pouring of the liquor into a white porcelain or earthenware bowl, examination of the organoleptic properties of the infused leaf, and of the liquor with or without milk, or both.

This standard is not meant to define the proper method for brewing tea intended for general consumption, but rather to document a tea brewing procedure where meaningful sensory comparisons can be made. An example of such a test would be a taste-test to establish which blend of teas to choose for a particular brand or basic label in order to maintain a consistent tasting brewed drink from harvest to harvest.

The work was the winner of the parodic Ig Nobel Prize for Literature in 1999.[4][5]

  1. ^ "ISO Standard for sampling tea from containers of all sizes". Archived from the original on 2019-12-29. Retrieved 2017-10-15.
  2. ^ Royal Charter and Bye-laws, 1981, The British Standards Institution
  3. ^ "ISO/NP 3103 - Tea -- Preparation of liquor for use in sensory tests". www.iso.org. Archived from the original on 2018-04-10. Retrieved 2018-04-09.
  4. ^ "Fancy a quick cuppa - in 5,000 words?". The Guardian. 2 October 1999. Archived from the original on 23 April 2019. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
  5. ^ "The 1999 Ig Nobel Prize Winners". Annals of Improbable Research. August 2006. Archived from the original on 26 February 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2013.