distinct taste or smell. Some people shorten their preparation time by heating water in a microwave, however tea connoisseurs do not recommend this. A glass coffee press (if you're making more than one cup) or a glass mug (if you're making one cup at a time) will allow the tea to cool quickly, minimizing bitterness. If you drink a lot of green tea, consider installing a hot-water dispenser on your kitchen sink. The temperature is perfect for green tea. To re-use your tea leaves (or pearls) just plunge the tea strainer into a cup of ice water immediately after the steeping process. Depending on the type of tea you're using, you should be able to get at least one additional use of your leaves or pearls. The biggest mistake you can make with green tea is to steep it in water that's too hot. Green, white or silver teas are different from black teas in that they need water that's only about 180 to 185 (80 C to 85 C). The second biggest mistake is to steep for too long. Green tea shouldn't be steeped for more than 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. White or silver teas should be steeped for even shorter periods--a minute and a half is usually perfect. Featured Articles Meet a Community Member Meet Karin , an aspiring cattle-woman from Alberta, Canada who's adopted and dramatically improved our cattle and farming articles. She also enjoys patrolling recent changes, formatting, and correcting spelling and grammar. Her favorite