According to a royal butler, that is.
We'd all like to think we know how to make the perfect cuppa.
But every so often, there's some new 'rules' about the perfect brew that leave us questioning if we've actually been doing it wrong.
The latest person to do so is none other than a former royal butler - so we reckon he definitely knows what he's talking about.
Grant Harold, who worked as a royal butler between 2005 and 2011, has served a number of members of the royal family, including: HRH Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
He revealed the four-step method to making a royal-approved cup of tea on the BBC Three series, Miss Holland.
Some of them definitely sound like pretty standard things to us, but it was step number 3 that was surprising.
According to Harrold, you should...
- Pour the tea into the cup from a teapot
- Add milk to the cup after the tea – never before
- Stir back and forth – never a circular motion and never touching the sides
- Sip – don’t slurp – from the cup
He explained the stirring instructions to
Business Insider, adding:
"If we stir in a circular motion we can create a storm in a tea cup and see the tea coming over the sides which we should never allow.
"If the spoon touches the sides it makes a clinging sound and we don't want that at the afternoon tea table.
"I am sure the Queen enjoys her Assam or her Earl Grey the traditional way, made with tea leaves in a teapot and poured into a fine bone china teacup. She will also use a strainer."
