Gifts for tea lovers in Australia

Bags, loose leaf or matcha

Tea drinkers fall into rough camps, and a gift for one camp often misses the other. Bag drinkers want convenience and variety. Loose-leaf drinkers want a better way to brew. Matcha drinkers want the right tools and good powder.

For a bag drinker, the T2 advent calendar, the Koala Tea tin and the Tea Drop herbal set are easy. For someone ready to try loose leaf, the T2 Well Well Well mug is the simplest first step. Tea Drop's Parisian Love set gets an Earl Grey drinker into loose leaf with paper filters, so no infuser is needed.

For a pot drinker, the Maxwell & Williams teapot is a classic shape at a small price, and the Maison Balzac pot is the one for a table people will look at.

Mugs are the easy fallback for a coworker or a Secret Santa. The Maison Balzac mug and the two lidded cups here are all cheerful, practical and under the price of a nice lunch. A mug is a weak gift for a serious tea drinker, though, who already owns a cupboard full of them.

Matcha

The Robert Gordon set gives a bowl, whisk, holder and scoop in one box. It does not include the matcha itself, so add a tin from a tea shop they like, and tell them it goes in the fridge once opened. Bamboo whisks wear out, so a regular drinker will need a new one in time.

Caffeine, heat and timing

Someone who drinks tea in the evening to wind down will get more from the Tea Drop Winter Stillness set, which is all herbal, than from a box of black teas. Ask before you buy if you are not sure.

Christmas in Australia lands in summer, so a heavy pot of spiced winter tea may wait until autumn. A travel cup, a herbal blend or something new to try gets used sooner.

The T2 advent calendar has a hard deadline: it needs to arrive before 1 December. Order it early.

Questions people ask

What is a good tea gift under $30 in Australia?

The Maxwell & Williams Olde English teapot while it is on sale, the Koala Tea beach tin, the Leaf & Bean stoneware travel mug and the Alperstein Designs cup all sat under $30 on the shops' pages. The teapot is the most useful for someone who brews by the pot. Prices change, so check before buying.