LOOSE-LEAF TEA COST PER SESSION Original arithmetic and blank records. All example prices are fictional USD. No product price, tasting result or guaranteed infusion count is reported. SESSION RECORD Exact tea / pack / date / currency: Price actually paid / tea-only basis / excluded charges: Net dry tea mass and unit: Price per gram, with calculation: Original dry leaf mass: Any fresh addition / its pack and gram price: Total new dry mass / total session leaf cost: Actual infusion count, if needed: Actual volume served OR drunk / unit / measurement basis: Named unit-cost calculation: Unresolved or unmeasured inputs: STOCK RECORD Opening grams / new purchases / grams used / recorded losses: Closing usable grams: Chosen dry grams per complete session: Complete sessions / remainder / remaining allocated value: Loss accounting basis: purchased grams plus separate loss OR adjusted usable grams. Do not charge the same loss twice. MONTHLY BUDGET RECORD Tea and pack | Exact product / net dry mass / currency | Fictional Pack A / 100 g / USD Price basis | Tea-only price actually paid; exclusions | USD 20; no discount, tax or delivery in this example Session leaf | Total new dry grams, including additions | 5 g; no additional fresh leaf Planned sessions | Number in the period; realistic use | 20 sessions; frequency is a planning choice Allocated leaf cost | Price / pack grams × grams/session × sessions | 20 / 100 × 5 × 20 = USD 20 Purchase cash and stock | Packs bought / other charges / closing grams | One USD 20 pack + USD 4 delivery = USD 24 cash; 0 g left Actual review | Sessions / new dry grams / stock / differences | Fill after use; retain missing values and leftover stock WORKED FICTIONAL EXAMPLES One loose-leaf session | USD 20 / 100 g; 5 g new dry leaf | USD 1.00 for the session | Two, four or no further infusions do not change the original leaf charge. Fresh leaf added later | Same price; 5 g initially + 2 g fresh later | USD 1.40 for the session | Include both new dry portions; water-only top-ups add no leaf cost. Four actual pours | USD 1 session; 4 pours of 150 mL served | USD 0.25 per pour; about USD 0.167 per 100 mL served | The total remains USD 1; use the observed 600 mL, not advertised vessel capacity. Only 500 mL drunk | Same USD 1 session; 500 mL actually drunk | USD 0.20 per 100 mL drunk | Served and drunk volume answer different questions. Name your denominator. A different small pack | USD 14 / 50 g; 4 g new dry leaf | USD 1.12 for the session | These invented prices are arithmetic inputs, not checked shop prices or a quality ranking. FORMULAS Tea-only session cost = tea pack price / net dry grams × all new dry grams used. Cost per infusion = whole session cost / actual infusion count. Cost per 100 mL = whole session cost / named actual drink volume × 100. Whole sessions = complete dry portions fitting remaining usable grams; retain the remainder. Allocated period leaf cost = chosen session cost × actual or planned sessions. Purchase cash is recorded separately from allocated use and remaining inventory. EIGHT FICTIONAL CASES Case 1: A fictional pack costs USD 20 for 100 g. You use 5 g and infuse those same leaves four times. Is the tea-only cost of the whole session USD 0.25? Your answer and reason: ______________________ Case 2: At USD 0.20 per gram, you start with 5 g, top up water, then add 2 g of fresh dry tea. Which leaf mass belongs in the session cost? Your answer and reason: ______________________ Case 3: A USD 1 session gives four 150 mL pours. You drink 500 mL in total. What is the leaf cost per 100 mL actually drunk? Your answer and reason: ______________________ Case 4: You have 17 g remaining at USD 0.20 per gram, and your chosen session uses 5 g. How many complete sessions fit, and does the remainder have no cost? Your answer and reason: ______________________ Case 5: An invented 100 g pack costs USD 20, but a recorded spill leaves only 90 g usable. If you spread the pack price over usable leaf, what is the cost of a 5 g session? Your answer and reason: ______________________ Case 6: An invented 250 g pack costs USD 50 and a 50 g pack costs USD 14. Does the larger pack guarantee a lower cost for the tea you actually drink? Your answer and reason: ______________________ Case 7: For the same 400 mL served, an invented loose-leaf session costs USD 1.00. Two fresh bags cost USD 0.30 each. What does this example establish? Your answer and reason: ______________________ Case 8: Your fictional tea-only budget is USD 16, and the chosen session costs USD 1. Each session happens to include two infusions. Does that fund 32 sessions? Your answer and reason: ______________________ ANSWERS AND EXPLANATIONS Case 1: No. The session costs USD 1.00; USD 0.25 is the cost per infusion when there are four. 20 / 100 = USD 0.20 per gram; 5 × 0.20 = USD 1.00. Divide by four only when reporting a per-infusion average. Reused leaves do not become four separate fresh doses, and the whole session charge does not shrink. Case 2: 7 g of new dry leaf, giving USD 1.40. Count the original portion and the intentional fresh addition. A water-only top-up adds no dry tea. If the later leaves come from a different pack, calculate the two portions at their own per-gram prices and add their costs. Case 3: USD 0.20 per 100 mL drunk. 1 / 500 × 100 = 0.20. The 600 mL served would give about USD 0.167 per 100 mL served instead. Both calculations can be valid, but the denominator must state which quantity was observed; do not mix them. Case 4: Three complete sessions fit, with 2 g left carrying USD 0.40 of allocated leaf cost. 17 = 3 × 5 + 2. The USD 3 used in three complete sessions and USD 0.40 remaining account for the USD 3.40 stock value. Use the remainder appropriately or record any loss; rounding down the session count does not erase inventory. Case 5: About USD 1.11, on the usable-leaf allocation basis. 20 / 90 × 5 = 1.111… . Keep extra decimal places until the final result. Alternatively retain the purchased-gram basis and record the spill separately. Do not inflate the per-gram rate and also charge the same lost leaf again. Case 6: No. Its lower purchased-gram rate depends on what happens to the unused stock. The rates are USD 0.20/g and USD 0.28/g. If only 50 g of the large pack is used and all the remainder is ultimately discarded, spreading USD 50 over the 50 g actually used gives USD 1/g. That is a fictional loss scenario, not a normal shelf-life assumption or advice to discard tea. Case 7: USD 0.25 versus USD 0.15 per 100 mL served for these stated inputs. 1 / 400 × 100 = 0.25; (2 × 0.30) / 400 × 100 = 0.15. It does not establish that bags are always cheaper, equally strong, equally pleasant or appropriate for the same preparation. Compare your actual products, quantities and method. Case 8: No. It funds 16 whole sessions under those assumptions. 16 / 1 = 16 sessions. The sequence may supply 32 infusions if each of those 16 sessions actually has two, but infusion count is a different unit. Delivery, tax, accessories and changes in dose need separate budget entries. SOURCE REFERENCES Tea and Herbal Association of Canada: How to Brew https://www.tea.ca/learn/how-to-brew/ Rishi Tea: How to Brew Loose Leaf Tea in a Simple Brew https://www.rishi-tea.com/blogs/journal/how-to-brew-loose-leaf-tea-in-a-simple-brew