>>2233261OP here. After experimenting a bit over the past few days, I've figured out how to produce a nice and strong tasting cup of tea.
>Hot water with a barely piney tasteAs with any tea, how strong the tea is depends on how much tea you use.
> the worst time imaginable trying to clean the potI use a stainless steel tea infuser which cost me $5 and takes about 10 seconds to clean
>You cannot steep it like normal tea, you have to simmer the needles for a half hour not just pour water over them.Your problem might be that you're not chopping the needles up, or perhaps not using enough needles. I take a big bunch, cut the sap filled sockets off, then chop them up into half inch pieces. This gives the needles more surface area, and allows more of the oils to be extracted. I then pack the entire infuser full with the chopped needles. I pour nearly boiling water in my mug and let it steep for 20-30 minutes. This produces a fairly strong and pleasant tasting tea. I've also added a bit of home grown mint a couple times which complements the pine quite well, but I've found that it's easy to overpower the pine, so don't use too much.
Also, if you're worried about the tea going cold as it steeps, just place a small plate or something to cover your cup so the steam doesn't escape.
