The History Of English Breakfast Tea

English Breakfast Tea, no milk or sugar for me

Chances are you've had English Breakfast tea before. Its a staple in many restaurants and often the only black tea choice on the menu. But have you ever wondered why it's called English Breakfast tea? Is it because it came from England?

Tea didn't become a breakfast beverage until sometime in the mid eighteenth century. Up until this point tea was a pricey beverage, reserved for afternoon tea affairs. But when prices lowered it became more of an 'all day' drink. Also, it's recorded that around this time Queen Anne started taking tea instead of ale as her morning drink, which started the fashion of tea at breakfast.

If you think about it, if English Breakfast tea was named in England they probably would have called it 'Breakfast tea', not 'English', right? So maybe it makes sense that the name for this blend was actually coined elsewhere, perhaps in the United States. But was the actual black tea blend itself created here, or elsewhere? Well, various sources seem to have differing opinions.

English Breakfast: NYC, or Scotland?
Many sources point to tea merchant Richard Davies having invented 'English Breakfast' in New York City in 1843. Davies was a British immigrant working in NYC and supposedly combined Chinese teas to create the famous blend. Later, in 1884, American Robert M. Walsh published A Cup of Tea, and mentions breakfast teas:

They are a distinct variety, differing in color, liquor, and flavor from the Oolong species, and known to trade in this country as “English Breakfast” tea, from its forming the staple shipment to England. They are produced in the province of Woo-e-shan, and derive their name from the Bow-ui (bohea) Mountains, where they are grown...bohea teas comprise Capers, Pekoes, Souchongs, Pouchong and Congous.

This quote indicates Chinese black and oolong teas were often enjoyed for breakfast at this time, but it doesn't really help us figure out if Davies coined the phrase. It's important to note green tea was also widely consumed during this time, but it seems that 'breakfast' teas were mostly black or oolong. A typical English breakfast during this time period was savory and meaty, so black teas would have worked well to balance out the richness.

Some sources say 'English Breakfast' was actually a Scottish invention by Scottish tea merchant Robert Drysdale in 1892 (which would also make sense, since it's called English Breakfast and not just Breakfast tea). From Breakfast: A History by Heather Arndt Anderson

Most credit the invention of so-called English Breakfast Tea goes to one Scottish tea master called Drysdale, who purportedly developed the blend of  Ceylon, Keemun, and Assam leaves to market as "Breakfast Tea" in the late 1800s.

Sources say Queen Victoria sampled this blend during her stay at Balmoral (the Scottish royal residence), and she returned to England with a large supply. Thus it was renamed as 'English Breakfast Tea'.

Irish Breakfast Tea, no milk or sugar for me

English, Irish, and Scottish Breakfast
If you look around for breakfast teas you'll see English, Irish, and Scottish breakfast blends. They all vary in flavor and strength (with Scottish supposedly being strongest). Even though English Breakfast started out as a Chinese tea blend, all three blends may contain teas from China, India, Sri Lanka and Africa (and sometimes other areas). Since there isn't a standard formula out there, it's tough to know what you're going to get.

No matter where the name comes from breakfast teas are created to stand up to milk and sugar, so they're often heavy on strength and lacking in nuanced flavor. But that's not always the case. I've found a few breakfast blends that I really enjoy and often brew them up in the morning.

I look for blends that are full loose leaf tea, with a nice balance of flavors. When you get a good one, milk and sugar isn't necessary. Since you never know how a breakfast blend is going to taste, it's best to try as many as possible!

History Of The Teapot

It may seem as if teapots have been around as long as tea itself, but that's not actually the case.  We all use them, but do you know when they originated? Let's get a little deeper into the history of teapots.

Teapot History- Song Dynasty to Ming Dynasty

Teapots may not have been around as long as the tea steeped in them, but the design is still quite ancient.  We need to look to Chinese tea history to learn more about teapots, as the leaves themselves shaped the need for a steeping vessel.

During the Song dynasty (960-1279) tea leaves were not processed they way they are today. Leaves were steamed, ground, and molded into brick forms. In order to prepare the tea, pieces of the brick were broken off and boiled in cooking vessels.

A little later during this time period tea was pulverized into powder form and whisked, just like matcha. Since the leaves were either boiled or whisked, a teapot-like vessel wasn't needed. Porcelain was invented in the Tang dynasty (618-907) and was largely the material used for tea cups and bowls used for tea, but teapots hadn't been in use yet.

You may be thinking you've seen teapots from this time period in books or museums, but these were most likely ewers used for water or wine. The shape of these vessels will play an important role, however.

It appears that the teapot was created during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) when changes in tea processing style led to steeping loose leaf tea. From the book The True History Of Tea:

Instead of the age-old custom of steaming the leaves, the monks on Songluo Mountain in Anhui province discovered that stir-roasting them in a dry hot wok improved the color, fragrance, and flavor of the finished tea. 

Tea production in the Wuyi mountains used the new method the Songluo monks created, and after much trial and error semi-oxidized oolong teas were born. The loose leaves needed a vessel for delicate brewing, in order to extract the right body and flavor of the tea. Through this necessity, the teapot was born.

Teapot History- Yixing 
Small teapots resembling the ewers I mentioned earlier were developed in the city of Yixing, in Jiangsu province of China around 1500. It seems likely that the water and wine vessels were used as a model for tea.

If you're a Yixing pot collector you know the vessels are made from reddish or purple 'zisha' clay (zisha translates to 'purple sand pot'). The clay has a special mineral composition that makes it ideal for brewing tea, and creates a porous material perfect for capturing the essence of the tea. The teapots were very small (and still are today), made for personal use. Small porcelain cups were used to sip with, but I've also seen mention of people drinking directly from the teapot's spout. I need to give this a try! Maybe at home when no one is looking...

It's actually tough to say for certain if teapots were really created in 1500, as the great James Norwood Pratt argues in the New Tea Lover's Treasury:

It strains credulity to believe so inventive a people as the Chinese never thought to brew tea in their so-called wine ewers.

That makes sense, doesn't it? Since teapots look so much like an ewer, wouldn't someone have thought to use one for tea before 1500? But, I'll leave that for Norwood to debate.

Chinese Ewer, image from the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Teapot History- Western Europe and Beyond
Once Chinese porcelain started making its way to European countries (to learn more about the history of European porcelain you can check out my previous post), Europeans couldn't get enough of the beautiful porcelain. They raced to figure out how to create their own porcelain, which eventually led to designing teapots and other teaware.

The pots originally exported to Europe were small with straight spouts, similar to the Yixing styles. The large porcelain and silver styles seen today came much later, when tea drinking became part of  the European lifestyle.

There is so much more to learn and discuss about teapot history and design, but it'll need to be saved for later posts. Next time you use a teapot think about how it evolved and where it came from. Maybe even have a sip from the spout!

Infused in History: A Tea Exhibit

One of my favorite things to write about is tea history. I love immersing myself in the traditions and and culture of tea, especially teaware. I get completely swept up in imagining what drinking tea was like during various time periods. Recently, friend and fellow blogger Lynn Karegeannes reached out to see if I could write a few panels for a tea exhibit she's helping to curate at the Smith-McDowell House Museum, a historic house in Asheville, North Carolina. The exhibit is titled Infused In History: A Tea Exhibit.

The Exhibit
Infused In History opens April 24th and runs through September. From the Smith-McDowell House website:

Beginning April 24, come to the Smith-McDowell House and add TEA to your TOUR! Each of our exhibit rooms will feature tea-related items and educational panels about the history, use and practice of taking tea. We have searched our collection and will have some ‘new’ treasures to display as well as some ‘on loan’ items of interest.

Lynn asked if I would contribute two panels for the exhibit, and I decided to write one on the history of European porcelain and the Meissen factory, and another on the development of handles on tea cups. Bruce Richardson of Elmwood Inn Fine Teas is the historical consultant for the exhibit, and it was so exciting to have him read my panels.

European Porcelain History

I've posted about the history of teacup handles before, so I thought I'd write a little bit about what I learned about European porcelain, perhaps to spark your interest in the exhibit.

I thought the origin of the word 'porcelain' itself was quite interesting. The word was first used by explorer Marco Polo, who encountered the material while traveling through China. The delicate, material reminded Polo of a seashell, and so he described it using the Portuguese term porcellana, a type of cowrie shell.

As I've mentioned in previous posts, Europe was crazy for the porcelain teaware exported from China starting in the 1700s, and many artisans and entrepreneurs were desperately trying to recreate the material without much success. But with the amount of teaware Europeans required, it was crucial to find a way of manufacturing it closer to home.

So, when did Europe finally discover the 'white gold'? German alchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger is credited as discovering a formula for hard-paste porcelain in 1708.  Böttger was originally trying to create gold (he was an alchemist, after all) when he attracted the attention of Augustus the Strong, the gold-hungry Elector of Saxony and ruler of Poland. Augustus ended up imprisoning Böttger in the hopes of forcing him to create gold, but through his experiments Böttger ended up making porcelain instead. It’s difficult to pinpoint which manufacturer started creating porcelain first, but in 1710 Böttger’s discovery led Augustus The Strong to establish the Meissen factory in Germany, which became the first to manufacture porcelain in large quantities and unrivaled quality.

Learn More 
If you're as crazy for teaware history as I am, I hope you can check out the exhibit! Please do report back if you get there, and let me know what you think. Be sure to check out Lynn's blog to learn even more about this exhibit. Also have a look at the calendar of events for the exhibit, as there are some interesting things happening, including a lecture by Bruce Richardson. If I lived closer, I'd be in the front row!

Tea History: Adding Milk To Tea

Many cultures add milk to their tea. British style tea, Taiwanese milk tea, masala chai and teh tarik are just a few that come to mind. Perhaps as you're reading this you are enjoying a milky tea latte. But when did milk get introduced into tea, and why? Adding milk to tea is not just for altering the flavor.

You may think that Western Europeans (most notably Britain) would be the first to add milk to their tea since it's such an important tradition today. People fight about adding the milk first, or tea first, and there are strong arguments for both. Perhaps you've heard a bit more about the subject, and you are either a 'miffy' or a 'tiffy'. But when did this all really start?

The History of Adding Milk To Tea

If you think about it, Tibetan butter tea has been around for far longer than European milky tea. One of my favorite tea history books, The True History Of Tea, mentions that tea could have been brought to Tibet in as early as 781 when a Chinese ambassador brought tea with him on his journey. In Mongolia the earliest record of adding dairy to tea comes from a court doctor:

The Yin Shan Zheng Yao (Essentials of Food And Drink) compiled by the Mongolian court doctor Hoshoi in 1332 contains the earliest description of the Mongolian use of butter and curd...in the preparation of tea...tea leaves were roasted in a wok until red, then boiled with butter and curd...

Tea was introduced to Mongolia from China, and butter and milk have been added to Mongolian tea for centuries. This was documented in the mid 1800s by French Missionary Évariste Régis Huc, who wrote about the tea was offered while visiting a Tibetan monastery. Once again from The True History Of Tea:

Like the Tibetans, they subsisted on a heavy diet of meat, milk products, and grain, and prized tea for its digestive properties. An ordinary cup of Mongol tea was prepared by breaking a tea brick into pieces with an axe, crushing the tea in a mortar, and boling the crumbs with water and a pinch of soda to extract all the strength and flavor. This infusion was set aside, and cow's or goat's milk oiled with an ample amount of salt. The tea infusion was then mixed with the milk, and some flour and Mongolain-style butter, made by boiling cream at a low heat, added. When this yellow broth had been brought to a boil, it was transferred to a Mongolian teapot- a two-foot cylindrical brass container with a handle on the side and two holes in the soldered lid: one for tea and one for air, and served in simple wooden bowls.

Adding Milk To Tea for Nutrition
In the case of Tibetan tea, yak milk and butter is added to increase the nutrition and caloric content of the tea. This tea will warm you up, give you energy, and keep you hydrated at the intense altitude of a cold, nomadic lifestyle. In areas of Mongolia, yak, horse, or sheep's milk would be added. I've only  had Tibetan tea in restaurants, and I'm guessing it's not exactly like the stuff you'd get at the source. But the tea I've had is heavy, salty, and...barnyard-y. It'll definitely fill you up and keep you warm. I found this interesting article from Eater that mentions a type of yak milk tea from Tibet. It'll give you a good idea of what the brew is like, and gives interesting cultural insight into the tea.

Why The British Add Milk To Their Tea
When the Dutch and British started adding milk to their tea, it could be because it was mimicked by what they saw in China. But others argue that it was to temper the delicate porcelain cups they created. Chinese porcelain cups were small and the tea was made to be consumed quickly. But when Europeans started manufacturing their own porcelain, they made the cups larger, which of course held more tea. This larger amount of tea sat in the cups longer, and would cause the delicate porcelain crack. But adding the milk first would lower the temperature, saving the precious pieces. Adding milk was reportedly popularized by Madame de la Sablière, an important figure in French society who in 1680 served tea with milk at her famous Paris salon. She supposedly added the milk because she wanted to save her delicate porcelain cups from cracking. This certainly makes sense, but there are other reasons why milk was added.

The quality of tea in the 17th and 18th century wasn't very good, due to poor storage and long ship voyages. Adding milk would dilute the pungent favors created from the poor quality tea. Another reason came a little later, as working class British citizens sought something to revive them in the middle of the day, and a brew of tea and sugar would do just that. I've often read books where coal miners and other laborers took flasks of milky sweet tea with them to revive them throughout the day.  This idea is related to 'high' tea and 'low' tea, but that's for another blog post!

Of course, milk tea is popular all around the world today, and as I type this I'm craving a strong masala chai latte. For one of the unique ways of adding milk to tea, check out my post about East Frisian tea. Have you tried Tibetan butter tea? What other unique ways do you add milk to your tea?

Teaware History: What Is Bone China?

I love learning about vintage teaware, especially its history. Lately I've been reading about the history of porcelain for an exciting project that I'll share soon, and I came across information on bone china. I have many vintage bone china teacups in my collection, but never really thought about what bone china actually is. I assumed it was called 'bone' because of the color. This is partially true, but I never thought it would pertain to what's actually added to the porcelain, to make it so...boney...

Porcelain is generally a mixture of kaolin clay, and feldspar. When you see 'china' as a material, usually it means it's made of porcelain. Bone china has one important addition, which is bone ash. Yes, it's made with charred animal bones, usually cow bones. From Wikipedia:

Once cleaned, the bone is heated to about 1000 °C (1832 °F) so that all additional organic material is removed from the bone and the bone becomes sterilized. Lastly, the newly sterilized bone is ground with water into fine particles which can be used as a raw material for bone china.

All of these cups are made with bone china

Bone China History
This all made me wonder, who decided to try adding bone ash to a clay mixture? In the early 18th century, European manufacturers desperately wanted to recreate the beautiful porcelain pieces imported from China, but had difficulty doing so. Before the discovery of hard paste porcelain in Germany, manufacturers were using all sorts of techniques to create a durable material. In the UK it was discovered that adding bone ash to soft-paste porcelain would strengthen the material during firing. English potter Josiah Spode is credited with perfecting the formula for bone china in the 1790s. From what I've read, the bone ash doesn't necessarily make the material stronger, but it does impart a creamier, white color that is difficult to otherwise achieve. The material is also quite thin and translucent. This delicate appearance was greatly sought after in teaware and other porcelain objects After the success of Spode, other English potters started developing formulas for bone china in the early 1800s.

From a blog dedicated to Spode history:

The Spode manufactory was the first to perfect a body using about 50% animal bone combined with the ingredients for true porcelain ie china stone and china clay. This is the formula which is now described as bone china. 

Bone china is translucent. See the silhouette of my fingers through this Shelley cup?

Identifying Bone China
Bone china is supposed to have a warm, creamy appearance, and the material is more translucent than regular porcelain clays. To be called 'bone' china the material should have at least 25% bone ash added, although it's tough to know how much was used. If you're wondering if you have a piece of bone china, hold it up to the light and put your hand behind it. Can you see it? If you can, it's likely  bone china. As with other fine china pieces, if you give the edge of a piece a flick with your fingernail, it should have a nice ring to it. Although if it doesn't it may not mean it's not bone china, it could mean there is a crack in the piece. But if you get some experience handling fine and bone china pieces, you'll start to have an idea for the look and feel of it. The easiest way to check? Look at the backstamp, if there is one. Along with the maker, it should include the words 'Bone China', 'Fine Bone China', 'British Bone China', etc.

Collecting Bone China
Bone china is generally more expensive than other china, because of the bone ash. The labor is more intensive to create the material. Bone china is easy to find today in stores that sell teaware and dishware. I prefer to collect vintage pieces that I find online and at flea markets and antique stores. I also found this helpful book that will help you clearly identify your china. Bone china was originally manufactured in England, so many of the older pieces you find will be from the UK.

The Question of Ethics- for Vegetarians and Vegans
If you're vegetarian or vegan, I'd be curious to know- would you knowingly purchase bone china?I am curious to know what you all think! Please leave a note in the comments.

Ok, I have to share one last strange tidbit...so my research got a bit out of hand, and I came across china pieces you can have created with HUMAN bones, as a memorial. This is definitely bringing bone china to a new level.

Tea History: East Frisian Tea

Every tea tells a story. Today's post is about a cup of tea that feels like a novella: complete with a beginning, middle, and a sweet ending. The characters are all strong on their own but they share a common thread. At first the story is a bit disconcerting, as the flavor is so rich. But then as it lingers, it’s pure comfort. You can’t put this story down. You want to keep going, to see how it progresses. The next few sips balance out the narrative. The tea is super strong, independent enough to stand up to the cream. You're rooting for the main character. The last few sips reveal a surprising sweet finish, and you wish the adventure didn't have to end. This is the story told in a cup of East Frisian tea.

Let's uncover the authors of this story. One of most surprising tea drinking areas in the world is East Frisia. Have you heard about this small pocket of passionate tea drinkers? East Frisia is in the North West corner of Germany, right on the coast. It is right next to the Netherlands, and its location is one of the reasons why they drink tea. I recently had the opportunity to try an East Frisian blend of tea and starting reading about the full ritual behind it. Of course I ended up doing a bit more research. Turns out East Frisia has a very interesting tea history woven into one complex cup of tea.

Teaware History: The Brown Betty: The People's Teapot

The other day I was clearing out the top shelf of my kitchen cabinet and uncovered a Brown Betty teapot I was gifted a few years ago. I love the teapot but it doesn't get used much since it's so big. As I sat staring at it, I started to wonder about its history. I knew it was a very old style but that's about all I could remember. I had a very 'Jerry Seinfeld' moment, thinking 'what's the deal?' Well, I did a bit of digging and found a few interesting tidbits. Turns out it's a very big deal indeed. Read on for a bit of teapot history and design, and how to find a Brown Betty of your very own.

British Tea History: From Tea Bowl To Teacup

I was recently reading a bit of history on 18th century England and noticed a passage where the author mentions an aristocratic woman drinking a 'dish' of tea.  It made me think of the post I wrote back in March about the value of 18th century teaware. I started researching tea bowls a little deeper, and somehow ended up down an ebay rabbit hole. A few days later I was the proud owner of a British tea bowl and saucer. I know, I shouldn't be allowed to have internet access; teaware just magically shows up at my door! The new teaware inspired me to learn more about British tea bowls, how they were constructed, and when the handle was added. 

Early European tea drinking gained popularity in the 1700s. England wasn't the first European country to sip tea, but it's where the beverage really took off, so I'm focusing on British teaware for this post. At first England imported its teaware from China because it was difficult to locally replicate the fine porcelain used in Chinese teaware. There were many pottery producers in England at the time, but they were unable to recreate the delicate Chinese porcelain. The recipe for Chinese porcelain was a well guarded secret.

A Family of Three at Tea by Richard Collins (1727). © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Hard vs. Soft
During my online auction search for early British tea bowls, I noticed a few vendors mentioned the cup was made of 'softpaste'. At the time I had no idea what it meant, but it seemed like it indicated an earlier tea bowl. True porcelain is referred to as 'hardpaste'.  Until about 1760 European manufacturers were using softpaste porcelain using materials such as steatite or soapstone to get a porcelain-like material. During my research I found the helpful book British Tea And Coffee Cups by Steven Goss that discusses the materials, and early British teaware:

Softpaste porcelain began in about 1745 at Chelsea and within just a few years there were also factories at nearby Bow, Vauxhall and Limehouse...tea wares were amongst the first items to be produced and many of the pieces were decorated with oriental scenes, often copied straight from Chinese imports...Softpaste porcelains needed to be glazed as the body would otherwise be porous. 

To decorate softpaste, bowls were either left uncolored with molded flowers (this technique was called blanc-de-Chine) or painted blue and white. The blue decorations were commonly used because oxide of cobalt (the blue paint) was able to withstand the high firing temperatures. Other colors would be hand-painted or transferred onto the bowls and saucers after the first firing, and then fired again at a lower temperature.  These colorful decorations were mixed with a lead base. The use of so much lead in the glazes led to many instances of lead poisoning for the potters working with the materials.

The formula for hardpaste porcelain was finally discovered in Germany, but to be feasibly manufactured in Britain the materials had to be sourced locally. Once again from the book British Tea And Coffee Cups:

Although the formula was eventually discovered at Meissen in Germany in the early eithteenth century, it did not reach Britain until about 1760, when an apothecary called William Cookworth found china clay (kaolin) and china stone (petuntse) in Cornwall and subsequently set up his factory in Plymouth...These two raw materials are essential to the production of hardpaste porcelain as made by the Chinese.

Can You Handle It?
Many sources say a handle was added to tea bowls because the high-temperature black tea the British enjoyed made the cups too hot to hold comfortably. I also read with the invention of hardpaste porcelain it was easier to produce a handle that wouldn't break during the firing process. But I found an article from NPR that says something a bit different:

Christina Prescott-Walker, a European ceramics expert and the director of the Chinese ceramics department at Sotheby's, believes the invention of the handle may have been a fashion statement more than a utilitarian choice. "In England, tea bowls were still being made as late as 1800," she tells The Salt. Faulkner writes in his book that the original bowls were perceived as more "authentically oriental" than their handled cousins.

The tea bowl and saucer that I purchased online (pictured above and below) seems to be from the early 19th century, which certainly helps to prove this point. Cups became more ornamental in the late 18th century, and this could be when the addition of the handle really kicked in. 

What About The Saucer?

The use of a saucer appears to be function over form. It may have been used to hold the bowl while drinking, and keep cups stable while serving tea to others. I also read articles where it's assumed the early saucers were more bowl-shaped (see my saucer in the picture above) because hot tea was poured into the saucer to cool, and then sipped. I had a difficult time finding proof of this, but it is mentioned in several articles.

A closer look at my saucer

Tips For Collecting
If you are interested in collecting antique British tea bowls, there are a few things to keep in mind. The earlier pieces usually did not have a maker's mark on them, so it can be difficult to pinpoint the factory it came from. The absence of a mark doesn't mean it's a fake piece. But even when you do see a mark, it's difficult to know where the bowl came from as many factories copied the marks and decorations of other well known companies. As I mentioned, sometimes sellers will mention if the piece is 'soft paste'. This is a good indication of the age of the piece (if accurate) as it's difficult to determine otherwise. Since it's difficult to truly know the age of a tea bowl unless you're really serious with your teaware collecting, just go with what appeals to you.

In terms of style, there are many different ways the bowls would have been decorated: sets were either molded with flowers and left white (blanc-de-Chine), or  could be fired with cobalt and then hand painted. Patterns were also transferred onto the pottery. This was done by etching or engraving the design to a copper plate, then inking the plate. A special paper was then applied to the plate until it absorbed the ink and was then transferred to the pottery. This is referred to as transferware, and it was used on my bowl and saucer seen above. In many instances you can see a very subtle seam on the design, where the ends of the paper meet. Transferware techniques are still used today, so it's not the best indication of the age of a piece.

As you can see, I certainly learned quite a bit about British tea bowls! It has certainly given new fuel to my teaware collecting endeavors. For more on British tea history check out some of my older posts here and here. Is there a bit of tea history that you're eager to learn more about? Let me know what it is in the comments, and I will write a post all about it!

Tea History 101: What Is Smouch?

Dong Ding Oolong leaves- the real thing, not sloe!

Steeping tea during its infancy in Europe and the American colonies was akin to living in the Wild West- no rules. Tea wasn't checked for quality, no one had a reference for proper preparation, and you couldn't be sure what was really in your tea blend. To add to the disarray, tea was in high-demand, and counterfeits were widely created.

In the 18th and 19th centuries tea was bulked up with sneaky additives and used leaves were dried and resold. I hadn't given this too much thought until I came across a book during a family trip to Charleston. I leafed through Civil War Recipes: Receipts from the Pages of Godey's Lady's Book while waiting for my kids to pillage the gift shop in a historic fort. My eyes rested on a small section called "Economy of the Tea Table [1863]" where I read:

Interview: Bruce Richardson of Elmwood Inn Fine Teas

Photo Courtesy of Bruce Richardson

As a fan of tea history, I first came across Bruce Richardson's name as the co-author of a book I reach for often, A Social History of Tea. Since then I've noticed his name pop up on numerous books, lectures, tea history sites, and as the co-owner of Elmwood Inn Fine Teas with his wife Shelley and son Ben.

Last month I had the pleasure of speaking with Bruce face to face at the NY Coffee & Tea Festival, and knew he'd be a perfect person for a blog interview. As expected he's very knowledgeable about all things tea, but also fine art, music, and travel. Read below for our interview, including one of his most memorable tea adventures, and a special personal tea ritual.

A Visit To The Charleston Tea Plantation

When my husband suggested we visit Charleston, SC with our kids for spring break, there one was thing that instantly popped into my mind. Not the immaculate architecture, the historic sites, or the southern cooking. Naturally, the first thing I thought of was 'We need to visit the Charleston Tea Plantation!!'. 

American Tea History: Who Sipped Iced Tea First?

It's time for more tea history! This weekend we're jetting off to Charleston for spring break, and I imagine we'll be inundated by sweet tea. When I think about iced tea in America, Southern 'sweet tea' immediately comes to mind. I'm not a huge fan of sweet tea myself, but it got me wondering about the history of iced tea in the US so I did a little bit of research and found a few interesting tidbits. It seems iced tea may not have been invented in the south, but let's look at some of the evidence...

Tea History 101: The Value of 18th Century Teaware

I love history, especially when it involves tea! I also love to share the tidbits I'm learning here on the blog. I recently had the pleasure of attending a seminar on tea etiquette by Bruce Richardson, who co-authored A Social History of Tea, one of my favorite books on Western tea history. Bruce gave an informative seminar on afternoon tea etiquette throughout history, and one photo he shared in particular struck me as interesting:

Family Of Three (c.1727) by Richard Collins. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

This is a painting of a family enjoying tea with beautiful tea accessories, and drinking from tea bowls! I didn't realize that it was common to sit with your tea and teaware for paintings in the 18th century. During his seminar, Mr. Richardson mentioned European families often put their most valuable possessions in their paintings, so it makes sense that teapots, teaware and tea bowls are often seen in them. Teaware in the 1700s was very expensive and difficult to acquire, therefore quite valuable to a family. The above painting is part of the Victoria and Albert Museum's collection in London, and per the V&As website:

When painting 'conversation pieces' (relaxed portraits of family groups or gatherings of friends), artists were expected not only to show their sitters in fine clothes, but would also be obliged to include valuable possessions, indicating their wealth and social status.

Eighteenth Century European tea drinkers such as the ones in the painting enjoyed tea from bowls, since that's how it was consumed in China and Japan (and still is today). European exporters simply purchased the tea ware in Japan and China and shipped it off to England. Commissions for specific designs and sizes came later, as did manufacture within Europe. The woman in the painting looks as if her pinky is 'up' but most likely she is extending her pinky to counterbalance the bowl, and also to keep her digits cool from the hot bowl. By the way, putting your 'pinky up' for afternoon tea is a definite myth! But more on 18th century tea bowls- handles were added later, per wikipedia: 

Tea bowls in the Far East did not have handles, and the first European imitations, made at Meissen, were without handles, too. At the turn of the 19th century 'canns' of cylindrical form with handles became a fashionable alternative to bowl-shaped cups.

The pieces of tea ware available during this time were often shipped from China and Japan in mixed batches and most families did not have matching sets. They often purchased individual pieces one at a time. This was well before the large fancy European tea sets were available. European artisans started to reproducing teaware they saw from China in the early 1700s, but re-creating the delicate pieces was difficult and artisans didn't master the technique until the mid-eighteenth century. Companies such as Meissen mentioned in the quote above, started creating tea bowls and other teaware, and later produced cups with handles. 

An old Meissen demitasse cup from my collection, but this one has a handle!

According to the book Steeped In History, Europeans required handles because they drank mostly black tea, which (as you know) is usually served at a higher temperature than green tea. The hot temperatures made it difficult to hold the delicate tea bowls. Just think about the woman in the painting above, trying to balance her hot tea bowl in her hand! The child in the photo is also holding her bowl quite precariously. When I use a gaiwan to prepare black tea such as dian hong, I do admit I have a hard time holding it because of the temperature. It makes sense handles were developed when black tea became the popular choice in England and much of Western Europe. If you have an antique European tea cup that doesn't have a handle, chances are it's quite old! 

Have you come across Eighteenth Century European portraits that include teaware? Or the teaware itself? If so I'd love to hear more about what you've seen!

For more bits of tea history, check out my previous posts on such things as Americans sipped tea before the Brits, tea and the presidency, and tea and women's suffrage. 

Review: Congou Black Tea By Oliver Pluff & Co

I love learning about tea history, there is so much information to discover and digest. I've written a bit about colonial American tea drinking in the past, as well as the historic tea blends of Oliver Pluff & Co. Their blends give a peek inside the teapots of colonial America.

Today's review is for Oliver Pluff & Co.'s Congou. Congou is derived from the word gongfu, meaning a skillfully crafted tea. You may recognize the term from the Chinese gongfu preparation style (prepared with skill), and perhaps you've come across it in tea blends such as dian hong congfu, and bai lin congfu. Oliver Pluff's Congou is a full leaf, finely twisted tea. During colonial times, it was considered very high quality tea.

Jumping back to Colonial America, Congou was one of the black teas imported by the British East India company. It's a tea the American colonists would have seen in local shops. Tea was extremely expensive back in colonial times, and often stored under lock and key. In fact, during the Boston Tea Party in 1773, 15 chests of Congou tea were thrown overboard as part of the protest.

The flavor of the colonial teas must have been quite different from what we'd expect today. In the 18th century,  teas took months to ship from China to England, and then could have sat around in London storage warehouses for months or even years before making its way to the New World. Definitely not what we'd expect when purchasing tea today.

But on to today's tea review! As I mentioned, the dry leaves are twisted, and also contain some golden buds. They have an extremely sweet fragrance with a bit of something starchy, reminding me of sugar cookies fresh from the oven. A warm and comforting aroma.

The brewed tea is sweet and quite smooth. There is a mellow toasty flavor to this tea, with barely a hint of astringency. Oliver Pluff's website describes the flavor as unsweetened baked apples, and I think it's spot on. When I was young, my grandmother often served baked apples, and the flavor of this tea definitely brings me back to her kitchen table. The flavor is also reminiscent of baked sweet potato- there is definitely a bit of earthiness lingering within the sweetness. The flavor is strong enough to work as a morning tea, and appropriate for a bit of milk. I've been drinking it as my morning tea for the past week, and I've enjoyed the sweetness and full body. I usually prefer my teas on the slightly oversteeped side, and this one doesn't get astringent with my aggressive steeping. It's a nice tea to prepare during the chilly winter mornings we've had lately.

To learn more about this product you can visit the Oliver Pluff Website. Also, to learn a bit about the company's founder, you can check out my review here. Thank you Oliver Pluff & Co for providing this tea for review!

Tea And Women's Suffrage

Photo taken from this site

I've always been interested in history, particularly when it involves tea. Lately I've been curious about US tea history and have done a little digging for previous posts. I recently ran into information involving tea and women's rights both here and in the UK. This post skims the surface on the subject matter, as I don't want this to get too lengthy. But I think it's interesting and quite relevant to today. This post has a political slant to it, but it's all in the name of tea and humanity.

In the late 1800s, British women didn't have many choices when it came to informal gatherings. It was considered inappropriate for a woman to be seen eating or drinking alone. During the suffrage movement it was difficult to find places to discuss ideas unless it was in their own homes or large formal meeting spaces. Emerging suffrage groups discovered they were able to meet in tea houses, which had become 'acceptable' places for women to go on their own to socialize. From the site Women's History Network:

There may be those who scoff at the idea of investigating ‘Suffragettes and Tea Rooms’, but political movements need sheltering spaces in which views can be exchanged. During the 19th century women attended hundreds of suffrage meetings in Britain’s town halls and assembly halls – and, if suitably couth, in the drawing-rooms of the better-off, but there were few places outside the home in which they could congregate informally.

Tea shops gave women a place to gather and helped the suffrage movement strengthen and develop a voice. Fundraisers were held at tea houses, and teaware was even created to fuel the movement. In the UK the Women's Social and Political Union (WPSU) commissioned tea ware with their logo and other symbols for fundraisers. Sylvia Pankhurst, a noted daughter of a suffragist leader designed much of the teaware. From A Social History of Tea:

The WSPU commissioned a tea set from her in 1910 for their refreshment stall at the Scottish WSPU Exhibition in Glascow, and another set by her featured an image of the Hollaway Prison Badge that was awarded to women who were locked up in the prison for their militant pro-suffrage activities.

Sylvia Pankhurst designed quite a bit of teaware for the movement, including the set you can see below. This set was designed for sale at the the Women's Exhibition in 1909. If you are interested in learning more about china commissioned for the movement, this article is a good place to start.

The Angel of Freedom tea set designed by Sylvia Pankhurst. Photo from Museum of London

Tea played an important role in British women's history, and it was also influential in the United States. Just as most First Ladies held tea in the White House as social events, suffrage leaders gathered over tea to discuss action. In 1848 tea played a significant role in the movement. Five important suffrage leaders (Lucretia Mott, Martha Wright, Mary Ann McClintock, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Jane Hunt) met for a history-changing tea in upstate NY. Once again from A Social History of Tea:

Lucretia and Elizabeth had, in London several years previously, vowed to hold a convention about injustices suffered by women, and so while the tea party probably started as a calm affair, it quickly became the launch pad for nothing less than the Seneca Falls Convention.

The Seneca Falls Convention was the first US women's rights convention. Decades later in 1914, tea continued to foster the fight for women's rights when well-connected and dedicated Alva Vanderbilt Belmont hosted a 'Conference for Great Women' and commissioned porcelain tableware including a teapot with 'votes for women' emblazoned on the front (you can see a photo of the teapot at the top of this post). The table ware was used as part of the luncheon at the meeting and also for a tea party held later that year. The events raised money for the suffrage movement and guests and each event took home 'votes for women teacups and saucers. Tea was literally helping to get the word out! The tireless efforts of these strong women were rewarded in 1920 with the addition of the Nineteenth Amendment granting women the right to vote.

As I mentioned there is much more that can be said on this topic. There are so many more diverse, strong and influential women that haven't been discussed. But what can we learn from this history? Tireless work, dedication and hope, along with gathering together (over many pots of tea) is needed now more than ever to activate change. I hope tea continues to bring women of all cultures and backgrounds together to fight and get our voices heard. Can tea really help create change? It's easy to fall into the 'tea is about sharing and being mindful and at peace' camp, and that's beautiful but it's just not enough. I know many of my own politically charged conversations have taken place over cups of tea. Perhaps it is the way to open up the discussion. It is inspiring to read about how tea fueled these influential women in history, and I do hope it can inspire us take action.

Tea And The Presidency

Washington and Lafayette at Mt. Vernon, painting from the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Since tomorrow is inauguration day I decided to take a look back at past US Presidents and their tea drinking habits. I'm going to try as hard as possible to keep my own political views out of the post. Let's just get into history and tea!

Awhile back I was perusing used books and found Tea With Presidential Families and couldn't resist it. I had no idea past Presidents drank enough tea to have a whole book dedicated to it. The book has loads of photos of presidential teaware and facts about the presidents and first ladies that enjoyed tea while in office. The book starts with George Washington and goes through Bill Clinton (it was published in 1999).

The book has many interesting facts but first, let's start with President Obama. Did you know he drinks tea instead of coffee? If you ever noticed photos of him holding a mug or hot cup, it was most likely tea he was sipping on. His preference for tea was mentioned in this article from the Boston Globe from 2014 which states,

"Scour through a series of photos of him — in the Oval Office, aboard Air Force One, inside the Situation Room — and he almost always has a cream-colored, gold-trimmed porcelain cup in front of him. We don’t know exactly what’s in those cups, but aides suggest they’re filled with tea."

The same article shows him in various coffee shops, drinking tea (in a couple shots you can see a teapot). He is also documented as drinking quite a lot of bottled iced tea. Our 44th president certainly has good taste in beverages.

Let's take a look back at US Presidents throughout history. I've mentioned colonial tea drinking in a previous article (tea water pumps!), and during the research I came across the above picture of George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette meeting at Mt. Vernon and having tea (you can see Martha Washington pouring tea in the background).  Young Lafayette, eager to fight the British met General George Washington when he was recruited to the continental army in 1777. The two bonded and the rest can be read in history books (Washington was sworn in as President in 1789). Washington was known for his love for tea. He drank tea every morning and records show that he frequently ordered teas such as bohea and hyson.

A modern example of bohea tea

Despite the aversion to taxed tea from England, tea was a part of how colonial Americans socialized, so it makes sense that early presidents frequently sipped it. John Adams drank tea before and during his presidency. He and Abigail were the first in the White House, and records show they brought teaware from China with them and hosted many tea parties. There is a recipe for Abigail's 'rose petal tea' that she'd serve to guests in the 1960s White House Cookbook which contains recipes from various first ladies.

Thomas Jefferson is documented to have enjoyed tea, so much so that he built a tea room at his home at  Monticello. It's reported that he drafted the Declaration of Independence in his tea room in 1776. When he became president, there were many recorded orders for tea. From Tea With Presidential Families, "Although his first recorded order was for Bohea, Jefferson's taste later changed to Hyson,  which became his favorite from 1809-1816".

I decided to pull a few more interesting tidbits throughout history from from Tea With Presidential Families:

--The Van Burens were of Dutch descent and as Dutch New Yorkers they added herbs and saffron to their tea. I found this very interesting and it may warrant further research and a blog post!

--President Andrew Johnson brewed tea every day in a teapot shaped like a steam train. Supposedly it was given to him because of his interest in the railroad. I think my son would be more interested in tea if we had a teapot shaped like a train!

--President Rutherford B. Hayes had a hand in developing US tea growing! When he was sworn in as president, he appointed William LeDuc as Commissioner of Agriculture. LeDuc was impressed by tea plants distributed by the patent office growing in the south, and ended up leasing two hundred acres in Charleston for his experimental US tea farm.

-- President Garfield was a tea lover, and had two favorite tea recipes. Spice tea that had mint, orange juice, lemon, allspice and black tea, and his own herbal tea blend that included catnip and pennyroyal.

--President Lyndon Johnson " Drank only tea and Fresca. Lady Bird Johnson remarked in her diary, and we agree, 'How many things are launched under the name of a tea!'"

--President George Bush (Sr.) was known to frequently drink green tea.

Photo from Tea With Presidential Families

--During the Clinton administration, " On a visit to Belfast, Ireland, Mrs. Clinton encouraged politicians to sort out their problems by getting together over many cups of tea".

Many first ladies were known to host social teas, which the book well documents. It became customary for the first lady to invite the incoming first lady to tea. I'm sure many of you read about the tea Michelle Obama hosted for Melania Trump.

This post may have contained more presidential tea info than you bargained for, but there you have it. I felt compelled to share since I was surprised at just how much tea was consumed by US presidents and first ladies. The phrase 'make tea not war' comes to mind. This is a phrase I will keep in mind in the months ahead.

A Sip Of Scandal Water

Earl grey/shortbread/teddy hook punch

One of my favorite things about London is the history infused in every brick of every building. During my time there in September, I found myself taking pictures on every street, and stopping to read historical facts posted on many of the buildings. I had an afternoon tea experience that combined history with tea, food, and booze. I can't think of a better way to spend an afternoon, can you?

A dear friend checked with a few co-workers in London to recommend an afternoon tea experience that was different from the rest. What they came back with was something called 'scandal water'. Tea was colloquially referred to as 'scandal water' in the 19th century. Back then the women who gathered for tea often gossiped about the goings on of the day, thus developing the phrase. The Scandal Water menu explains how they take this idea and create their own unique afternoon tea experience:

Walking through the airy Edition hotel towards the back leads you to the cozy Punch Room lined with rich wood panelling and hipster staff where beards and waxed mustaches seem to be the uniform. It feels intimate and exclusive and, well, hip. But the vibe here isn't the 'cooler than you' vibe I was expecting. The staff was quite cheerful and our server was extremely passionate about the afternoon tea menu and history behind the selections.

Our server, left, and the bartender, right. 

The afternoon tea experience here has been carefully crafted. As I mentioned it combines tea, small bites, carefully prepared cocktails, all with a nod to the origins of afternoon tea. The focus here is on the flavor experience, not on posh opulence like most modern versions. Scandal Water was created by Henrietta Lovell of Rare Tea Co and Phil Carmichael, executive chef of Berners Tavern. Add in the Punch Room's inventive cocktails and you have a unique experience. Punch Room's Davide Segat created cocktails based on the teas selected to be served. Our server was more than willing to explain the 5 courses available (you get to pick 3) and explain the preparation behind each selection. I was impressed with the depth of his knowledge.

Special brew tea/eccles cake/entoria punch and jasmine tea/chocolate/edition punch

My husband joined me for this outing, and we each chose our 3 courses. We ended up with a few of the same as the ingredients were just too good to pass up. We were also given warm, fluffy English muffins which were far and away better than any I've tried. It was as if I hadn't tasted one before.

Sencha tea/salmon/milk punch and jasmine tea/chocolate tart/edition punch

The teas were lovely and paired extremely well with the crafted bites of food. The most successful course was Sencha tea served with exquisite diced salmon topped with crisp pastry and caviar. The punch served was a milk punch, more on that one in a bit. The experience was vegetal, marine, salty, savory, silky, crispy, tangy.

My favorite tea was the 'special brew' a Chinese black tea blend that was smoky with a bit of citrus and dried fruit. It  paired well with an Eccles cake that had raisins, currants, nutmeg, and cinnamon flavors. The tea was featured in the punch which also included rum, lemon juice, and thyme. It sounds like a lot of complicated flavors but everything really did work. It was a course that felt warming, sweet, and comforting.

Jasmine tea/chocolate tart/Edition punch

The punch brought this experience to a different level. They take punch very seriously here (how could you be called the Punch Room if you didn't?), in fact some of the preparations take a day or more to complete. The milk punch was one of the most memorable cocktails I've ever had- it contains milk but it's crystal clear. The subtle milky flavor and mouthfeel is amazing. The milk is slowly clarified, taking out all the solids but leaving the flavor. It's a centuries-old recipe reimagined. This punch also contained cognac, rum, brandy, the sencha tea, lemon juice, and spices. It sounds insane but as with every punch we tried it was smooth, balanced, and complex. I have a few ideas on how to create my own version of milk punch (without any long and complicated procedures) which I'll be working on in the next few weeks.

How can you not love these guys?

I like that Scandal Water is a departure from the heavy, excessive afternoon tea experiences most people have come to expect. I'll usually need to skip dinner after an afternoon tea but Scandal Water is meant to be more like the afternoon refreshment it was historically created to be. Just something to tide you over. If you're looking for a unique take on afternoon tea, this is the place to go. It feels like a little secret nook far away from the tourists and tumult of London even though you are in a boutique hotel. I have a few more London adventures to recap, I hope to do so in the coming weeks!
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