Tea Travels to Europe

Do you like this post?

The last article in the series discussed how tea had a mythical origin and how it started to grow in Asia because of Buddhist monks. This time, the discussion will focus on Europe and how tea affected this continent’s culture for the better.

Europe can thank the Jesuit priest named Jasper de Cruz for being the first European to taste tea. It was only 1560. This was the first time a missionary tasted the beverage. However, it was Portugal who brought tea to Lisbon as a commercial product. They brought a lot of it, not just little bags to give to family and friends.

The Dutch however were responsible for bringing tea to France, Holland and some Baltic countries. Do you know that tea then costs $100 per pound? The reason for this is the cost of traveling. The merchant ships were not easy or cheap to set up.

In a few years, Holland and France became the leading users of tea in all of Europe.

Britain and Tea development

Although most eastern and western Europe was all tea drinkers, it was Britain who developed tea further. In the early 19th century, Britain actually transplanted tea on British colonies like Java, India, and Sri Lanka. This facilitated the trade a lot.

This is why Britain and its history with tea will be discussed a bit below.

Coffee and Tea

Ironically enough, tea was popularized by Thomas Garraway on 1667. He sold tea along with coffee in his coffee house. He advertised tea as a medicinal drink that can revitalize you and improve lust. This made tea very popular with men. Soon, coffee houses became hubs of activity and relaxation in Britain. It was also a center for men to read newspapers, hear trade news, and meet friends and family.

When Catherine de Braganza of Portugal married Charles II, being Portuguese, Catherine de Braganza brought with her the love of tea. The East India Company then brought some tea to the court for Catherine in order to please Henry II.

By this time, the East India Company was still not sure that tea was a viable product to commercialize in Britain. However, Catherine de Braganza made tea drinking acceptable to women and she also popularized tea to the artists. Artists would serve tea while they have gatherings.

Because of this popularity, the east India Company realized that tea was indeed good for trade. Tea became the new commodity to trade and not just a special item for King Charles II and Catherine de Braganza.

British Tea Culture

As tea became popular in Britain; it has also affected the culture of the place. Afternoon tea time was started by Anna, the 7th duchess of Bedford. She would time it in such a way that they would have tea a few hours before the 8 o’ clock dinner time.

This tea time ritual was copied by the masses and became very popular in Britain up until now.

There is also a British tea ritual. According to Wikipedia, this is how formal British tea ritual goes.The kettle is boiled and water poured into a tea pot.
Water is swirled around the pot to warm it and then poured out.
Teaspoons full of loose tea or tea-bags are then added to the pot while the kettle is reboiled. The traditional quantity is one per person and one for the pot.
Water is added to the pot and allowed to brew for several minutes while a tea cosy is placed on the pot to keep the tea warm.
A tea strainer is placed over the top of the cup to catch tea leaves and the tea poured through it.
The straight black tea is then given to guests and they are allowed to add milk and sugar to their taste.
The pot will normally hold enough tea so as not to be empty after filling the cups of all the guests. If this is the case, the tea cosy is replaced after everyone has been served.

You would think that it doesn’t matter if you put milk or not, that It’s just a matter of preference. But this topic is heavily debated up until now. Debate occurs because tea was conjectured to be a more patriotic drink. It was said to have become more popular than chocolate and coffee because of this, since tea was produced in British colonized countries.

Next time in the series, tea and its history with the Americas will be discussed. You’ll know a man named Paul Revere and why his crew was popular for the Boston tea party.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Currently 0 comment - But what do you think?