History Of Tea

1. ALL TEA COMES FROM ONE TEA PLANT: Camellia Sinensis

2. Types of Tea: White, Green, Oolong, and Black

Asia:

3. Birth of Tea: 2737 BC Chinese Emperor Shen Nung was drinking water over an open fire, as he believed in cleansing his water, when leaves from a Camellia Sinensis plant fell into his pot of boiling water.

4. It is documented as far back as the 12th century BC King Wen receive tea as a tribute to his reign.

5. Until the 3d Century BC fresh tea leaves were merely boiled in water. Then the drying and processing of the tea leaves into green tea began as tea consumption began to spread across all of China.

6. White Tea was produced an was reserved for royalty.

7. Documented; 350 AD by Chinese scholar Kuo Po wrote about a medicinal beverage made from leaves and boiling them.

8. By the 5th Century AD, tea was being used as a medium of exchange

9. 780 AD, first COMPREHENSIVE Book of TEA, by Lu Yu, “The Book of Tea” He began work in 760 and completed the work 20 years later in 780 AD.

A. Lu Yu became the patron saint of tea and was responsible for many of today’s tools and love for tea.

10. With the advent of Lu Yu’s book tea became extremely popular and in 800 AD tea began to be commercially cultivated.

11. 803 AD Japanese Buddhist Monk Saicho went to China to study Zn Buddhism. He returned home in 805 with fellow monk Eichu, with tea seeds and the knowledge of creating green tea, and presenting it in powdered form and whisking with bamboo.

12. The present day Japanese tea ceremony originated in China and while it died out in China it continues today in Japan.

13. Tea Styles:
A. Shen Nung times: fresh leaves were boiled in water.

B. 3d century AD tea leaves were dried, powdered and boiled

C. 600- 900 AD Tang Dynasty; tea was in the form of green tea cakes made from fresh leaves, steamed, crushed, fired, pounded, and compressed into tea cakes. In Lu Yu’s time a pieces was broken off, roasted until it was soft and then boiled.

D. 960- 1279 Song Dynasty; green tea was dried powdered and whipped in hot water with bamboo (taken to Japan). In this time they added onions, pickle juice, ginger, and orange peel.

E. Ming Dynasty: processed loose tea like we know it today was added to hot water.

Europe:

14. 1602 Dutch East India Trading Company was formed. This in and of itself led to the world’s introduction to tea.

15. 1610 green tea was introduced to Holland via trade ships from Java where they picked up tea which was dropped off by Chinese vessels. Black tea did not replace the green tea until the mid 1700’s. Begin to think of how many of the renowned artists of Hooland were drinking tea.

16. The first real evidence of tea in England was in the form of an ad in a newspaper by Thomas Garway in 1658. It read, “That excellent and by all physicians approved drink called by Chineans tcha, by other nations Tay alias Tea is sold at the Sultaness Head a Cophee house in Sweetings Rents by the Royal Exchange London.”

17. During this time Garaway was already promoting the health benefits of Tea as you can see in the handout. At this time tea was so rare it sold for 6-10 pounds per pound of tea. In today’s exchange a pound of tea in the early 1600’s sold for $10- $14 dollars.

18. Garaway is also credited with the first acknowledgement in England of the use of milk in tea. He writes, “being prepared with milk and water strengthen the inward parts.”

A. Originally milk was not used in tea in England as it is today. Instead they added saffron, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.

B. It is more commonly accepted but never documented to date, the use of milk in tea might have come from the Mongols who to this day mix hot milk with their tea. This practice was then brought into China and the practice was then taken via the Dutch India Trading Company abroad.

19. First tea came to Russia in 1618 when a Chinese embassy presented some tea to the Czar. With the Treaty of Nerchinsk caravan trading began between China and Russia and camel and horse trains of tea would be taken to the border and exchanged for Russian furs. This journey took about a year and it was here that tea would be infused at night with smoke from the camp fires.

20. By 1675 tea was generally used throughout Holland as an everyday drink. Tea made a big splash in France and Germany during this same time but fell out of disfavor in place of wine and beer.

21. 1702 Queen Ann in England announces she drinks tea in favor of ale in the AM for breakfast. She is also credited with using silver tea pots and not the Chinese ceramic pots. This was the first major change in the use of tea in England that created a tremendous demand for tea at alarming rates as well as the English Silver Tea Service Set.

22. Black tea replaces green tea coming from China as the Chinese no longer are willing to sell the green tea as it is preferred to black. Additionally, black tea is easier to ship and withstand the long journey to Europe and the colonies.

23. Opium Wars: Brittan and China. Tea became so popular in England by the mid 1700’s they were importing over 4.5 million tons of black tea a year. Paying for this tea was creating a burden on the currency reserves in England. The answer laid in the Opium crops of the British controlled colony; India. In a clever way to justify India’s attempt to create it’s own revenue and not be dependent on mother England they sold their opium to China for silver which was then credited against the English debt for the tea it was importing from China.

A. This created an opium epidemic in China.

B. Opium War declared in 1840

24. 1840 Anna the Duchess of Bradford started afternoon tea in England. As a result of her sinking feeling in the afternoon as a result of little food since breakfast and waiting till eight o’clock for dinner, she started to have tea, sandwiches (usually leftovers) and cake at four o’clock.

America: How Tea Shaped our Country

25. 1650 tea was introduced by Peter Stuyvensant to their Dutch colony, New Amsterdam (what is now New York). It is said this colony had tea before England.

26. 1674 the British took over New Amsterdam and renamed it New York. They found a colony which was already drinking more green tea than they were in England.

27. Boston Tea Party: 1767 British Parliament passed the act imposing a tax on the tea and other commodities used by the colony from Britain. This had a lot to do with needed added revenues to finance England’s own consumption of tea from China. BY 1770 the tax on all items except tea was repealed.

A. Women save the day! They united and decided not to purchase any tea. This action was taken to heart by Women of the other colonies so the tea would never be unloaded off of the boats anywhere in the colonies.

B. On December 16th, 1773 a meeting was had by 5000. 50 men then dressed as Indians attacked the three British ships in Boston Harbor and dumped over 40 tons of black tea into the harbor and other similar acts erupted around the colonies all leading to the Revolutionary War and our Independence.

C. George Washington was an avid tea drinker and was provided three cups of tea in the AM even during the war and then continued the practice of having his three cups of tea at breakfast during his tenure as President.

28. 1832: Creation of the Clipper Ships: The creation of the clipper ships added speed to the arrival of teas from China. This was crucial to the freshness of the teas coming in from China which added to a better taste. Additionally, the clipper ships brought Chinese labor to the USA which helped build our country.

29. Iced Tea: at the St Louis Worlds Fair in 1904 it was so very hot no one was consuming the hot tea. The British Richard Blechyenden decided to pour the tea over ice and the rest is history.

30. Tea Bags: In 1908 Thomas Sullivan sent out his tea as samples in silk bags. One o his vendors mistakenly dropped into hot water and the tea bag was born.

A Seventeeth Century View of Tea from England:

Garway’s Broadstreet

Following is the text of the famous broadsheet or advertising leaflet circulated by coffeehouse proprietor Thomas Garway, the first to sell tea in England, with contemporary spelling, but today’s punctuation.

“The Drink is declared to be most wholesome, preserving in perfect health until extreme Old Age.

The particular virtues are these:

• It maketh the Body active and lusty.
• It helpeth the Head-ach, giddiness and heaviness thereof.
• It removeth the Obstructions of the Spleen.
• It is very good against the Stone and Gavel, cleansing the Kidneys and Uriters being drunk with Virgin’s Honey instead of sugar.
• It taketh away the difficult of breathing, opening Obstructions.
• It is good against Lipitude, Distillations, and cleareth the sight.
• It removeth Lassitude, and cleareth and purifieth adult Humors and hot Liver.
• It is good against Crudities, strengthening the weakness of the Ventricle or Stomack, causing good Appetite and Digestion, and particularly for Men of corpulent Body and such as are the great eaters of Flesh.
• It vanquisheth heavy Dreams, easeth the Brain, and strengtheneth the Memory.
• It overcometh superfluous Sleep, and prevents Sleepiness in general, a draught of the Unfusion being taken, so that without trouble whole nights may be spend in study without hurt to the Body, in that it moderately healeth and bindeth the mouth of the stomach.
• It prevents and cures Agues, Surfets and Feavers, by infusing a fit quantity of the Leaf, thereby provoking and most gentle Vomit and breathing of the Pores, and hath been given with wonderful success.
• It (being prepared with Milk and Water) stregtheneth the inward parts, and prevents consumption, and powerfully assuageth the pains of the Bowels, or griping of the Guts or Looseness.
• It is good for Colds, Dropsies and Scurveys, if properly infused purging the Blood of Sweat and Urine, and expelleth Infection.
• It driveth away all pains in the Collick proceeding from Wind, and purgeth safely the Gall.
• And that the Virtues and Excellencies of this Leaf and Drink are many and great is evident and manifest by the high esteem and use of it (especially in later years) among the Physicians and knowing men of France, Italy, Holland and other parts of Christendom:
• And in England it had been sold in the Leaf for six pounds, and sometimes for ten pounds the pound weight, and in respect of its former scarceness and dearness, it hath been only used in Regalia in high Treatments and Entertainments, and Presents made thereof to Princes and Grandees till the year 1657.
• The said Thomas Garway did purchase a quantity thereof, and first publickly sold the said Tea in Leaf and Drink, made according to the directions of the most knowing Merchants and Travellers in Eastern Countries:
• And upon knowledge and experience of the said Garway’s continued care and industry in obtaining the best Tea, and making Drink therof, very many Noblemen, Physicians, Merchants and Gentlemen of Quality have ever since sent to him for the said Leaf and daily resort to his House in Exchange Alley aforesaid to drink the Drink thereof.
• And to the end that all Persons of Eminency and Quality, Gentlemen and others, who have occasion for Tea in Leaf may be supplied.
• These are given notice that the said Thomas Garway hath Tea to sell from sixteen to fifth Shillings for the pound.”

Enjoy your tea!

Dr. Tea, Tea Expert & Proprietor
Tea Garden & Herbal Emporium