Storing matcha tea in a thermos

The way we make Chai in India ( there are lots of variants of the spice mix) is to use the spices whole while brewing the tea and to strain the tea before drinking.

Though for cardomom you should crush it to release the flavor. I would suggest using your hand or the broad side of your knife blade.

If you decide to use ginger, it might be a good idea to grate it to increase the surface area so that the flavor is absorbed quicker. (Ginger chai is really good in winter :))

As posted in comments by members of the community (and adding my own), several tips can help you get good warm tea in your thermos at wake-up:

• Choose loose leaves instead of tea bags to avoid tea dust that would overinfuse your tea in the thermos. The small amount there is in tea bags, is heavy enough to sink to the bottom very quickly, so if you pour the tea slowly into your thermos, you can discard it. You can also rinse the tea before brewing with cold water to help expel any excess dust, or (as done in many tea-drinking countries) throw out the first cup of tea made with new tea leaves.

• If you're just using tea bags, why not just keep the thermos bedside and then toss the tea bag in in the morning?

• You could try heating cold-infused and strained tea in the evening and put it into the thermos; it has a brewing time of 8 to 12 hours, so you'd have to start this around noon. If you have a microwave close enough to your bed, you could also use cold infusion to make your tea during the night and then give it a blast in the microwave in the morning.