11

AUSTRALIA

CHINA

MONGOLIA

RUSSIAN FEDERATION

SOUTH AFRICA

LESOTHO

SWAZILAND

BOTSWANANAMIBIA

ZIMBABWE MOZAMBIQUE

MAD

AGAS

CAR

ANGOLA

ANTARCTICA

ZAMBIA

TANZANIA

KENYADEM REPof CONGO

(ZAIRE)REP

of C

ONGO

MALAWI

RÉUNION(FRANCE)

MAURITIUS

RWANDA

CYPRUS

ARMENIA

AZERBAIJAN

TURKMENISTAN

UZBEKISTANGEORGIA

LEBANON9

SYRIA

JORDAN

SRILANKA

(CEYLON)

MALDIVES

U.A.E.

QATAR

ERITREA

DJIBOUTI

BHUTANKUWAIT

BRUNEI

BANGLADESH

TIBET

TAJIKISTAN

KYRGYZSTAN

NEPAL

MALAYSIA

SINGAPORE

EASTTIMOR

NEWZEALAND

SOLOMONISLANDS

VANUATU

FIJI

NEW CALEDONIA(FRANCE)

PAPUANEW

GUINEA

INDONESIA

VIETNAM

TAIWAN

PHILIPPINES

JAPAN

NORTH KOREA

SOUTH KOREA

CAMBODIA

LAOS

THAILAND

MYANMAR

(BURMA)

BURUNDI

GABONEQUATORIALGUINEA

CAMAROON

CENTRAL

AFRICAN REPUBLIC

UGANDA

YEMENOMAN

SOMALIAETHIOPIA

SUDAN

INDIA

IRAN

KAZAKHSTAN

TURKEY

IRAQ

SAUDIARABIA

PAKISTAN

AFGHANISTAN

CHAD

NIGERIA

GHANA

CÔTE

D’IVOIRE

TOGO

SENEGALTHE GAMBIA

GUINEA-BISSAU

SIERRALEONE

CAPEVERDE

WESTERNSAHARA

SPAIN

CANARYISLANDS(SPAIN)

PORTUGAL

GIBRALTAR

IRELAND

ICELAND

GREENLAND(DENMARK)

CANADA

ALASKA(US)

UNITED STATESOF AMERICA

MEXICO

WALES

SCOTLAND

NORWAY

SWEDEN

FINLAND

ENGLAND

1 GERMANY POLAND

LITHUANIALATVIA

DENMARK

AUSTRIA

5CROATIA

6 7

4

8

HUNGARYROMANIA

MACEDONIA

ALBANIA

GREECE

BULGARIA MOLDOVA

BELARUS

UKRAINE

SWITZ.

MALTA

ITALY

TUNISIA

3

CORSICA (FR)

SARDINIA (IT)

CZECH REP.

NETH.

2

BENIN

LIBERIA

BURKINA

FASOGUINEA

MALIMAURITANIA

NIGER

ALGERIA

MOROCCCO

LYBIA

FRANCE

EGYPT

UK

BELIZE

GUATEMALA

EL SALVADOR

HONDURAS

NICARAGUA

COSTA RICA

ECUADOR

HAWAII (US)

SAMOA

TONGA

URUGUAY

FALKLAND ISLANDS(UK)

PERU

PANAMA

COLUMBIA

VENEZUELA

THEBAHAMAS

CUBA

JAMAICA

GUYANA

SURINAMEFRENCH GUINEA

(FRANCE)

CARIBBEANISLANDS

HAITI

DOMINICANREPUBLIC

PUERTO RICO (US)

BERMUNDA (UK)

BRAZIL

BOLIVIA

ARGE

NTIN

A

CHIL

E

PARAGUAY

10

PACIFICOCEAN

PACIFICOCEAN

NORTHATLANTIC

OCEAN

ARCTIC OCEAN

ARCTIC OCEAN

SOUTHATLANTIC

OCEANINDIANOCEAN

BELGIUMLUXEMBOURGLIECHTENSTEINSLOVAKIASLOVENIABOSNIA & HERCEGOVINIASERBIA & MONTENEGROESTONIAISRAEL & THE PALESTINIAN TERRITORIESANDORRAMONACO

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

180 0’0” 150 0’0” W 120 0’0” W

Antarctic Circle

Arctic Circle

Tropic of Cancer

Tropic of Capricorn

Prim

e M

erid

ian

(Gre

enw

ich)

90 0’0” W 60 0’0” W 30 0’0” W 0 0’0” 30 0’0” E 60 0’0” E 90 0’0” E 120 0’0” E 150 0’0” E 180 0’0”

180 0’0” 150 0’0” W 120 0’0” W 90 0’0” W 60 0’0” W 30 0’0” W 0 0’0” 30 0’0” E 60 0’0” E 90 0’0” E 120 0’0” E 150 0’0” E

60 0’0” N

30 0’0” N

30 0’0” S

60 0’0” S

0 0’0”

60 0’0” N

30 0’0” N

30 0’0” S

60 0’0” S

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180 0’0”

CHINA: ORIGINS & MYTH

The second of China’s San Huang, the mythical emperors and forefa-

thers of Chinese civilisation was a healer named Shen Nung. According

to legend, Shen Nung had the head and horns of a bull and the body of a

man; he was born in the twenty-eighth century B.C.E. (Before Common

Era) to a beautiful young princess who was possessed by a heavenly

dragon. He also studied herbs and developed many herbal remedies.

During an expedition through the south of China, while setting up

camp, the emperor’s aides were boiling some water for drinking in a pot

when a sudden wind blew down from the nearby hills blowing some

leaves into the pot. Being the herbalist that he was the emperor decided

to try the tasty concoction and felt revived and refreshed. The leaves

were that of the tea bush and humanity received the delightful gift of tea.

ENGLAND: AFTERNOON TEA

Tea mania swept across England as it had earlier spread throughout

France and Holland. Tea importation rose from 40,000 pounds in 1699

to an annual average of 240,000 pounds by 1708. Tea was drunk by all

levels of society. Prior to the introduction of tea into Britain, the English

had two main meals; breakfast and dinner. Breakfast was ale, bread and

beef. Dinner was a long, massive meal at the end of the day. It was no

wonder that Anna, the Duchess of Bedford (1788–1861) experienced

a “sinking feeling” in the late afternoon. Adopting the European tea

service format, she invited friends to join her for an additional afternoon

meal at five o’clock in her rooms at Belvoir Castle. The menu centered

around small cakes, bread and butter sandwiches, assorted sweets, and,

of course, tea. This summer practice proved so popular, the Duchess

continued it when she returned to London, sending cards to her friends

asking them to join her for “tea and a walking the fields.” (London

at that time still contained large open meadows within the city.) The

practice of inviting friends to come for tea in the afternoon was quickly

picked up by other social hostesses. A common pattern of service soon

merged. The first pot of tea was made in the kitchen and carried to the

lady of the house who waited with her invited guests, surrounded by

fine porcelain from China. The first pot was warmed by the hostess from

a second pot (usually silver) that was kept heated over a small  flame.

ASSAM & DARJEELING

Long before the British began commercial production of tea in India in

the late eighteen thirties, a native variety of the tea plant was growing in

the wild jungles of North East Assam and being used in brews by the

locals. During the early nineteenth century, the East India Company

had a monopoly on the tea trade and all tea was coming from China. It

wasn’t until 1833 when the company lost its monopoly that it consid-

ered the possibility that India’s climate was perfect for the cultivation

of tea and that it may make a profitable alternative to grow tea in India.

Perhaps because they where unaware or suspicious of the indigenous

varieties of tea already growing in India, they insisted on importing

the Chinese variety of tea seeds. Because of the harsh conditions the

Chinese tea seedlings struggled to survive while the native Assam plants

flourished. The native plants were harvested and sent back to London in

1838 and were very well received and the Assam variety became widely

harvested throughout India. The town of Darjeeling in the foothills of

the Hima layas was one place where the Chinese variety of tea plant grew

well in the elevated conditions. Darjeeling still produces tea from the

Chinese variety plant and has traditionally been prized above all other

black teas especially  by  the British.

ROOIBOS: SOUTH AFRICAN BUSH TEA

The Rooibos or Redbush tea plant, the Aspalanthus linearis, is

indigenous only to South Africa’s Cederberg mountain region. The

hardy shrub-like bushes survive the cold temperatures in winter and the

draught, which is often prevalent in summer in this arid mountain area.

The region around Clanwilliam, 250km from Cape Town, is dominated

by the Cederberg Mountains and the tea plant only grows there because

of the microclimate of this region, which is located approximately

250km northeast of Cape Town. The needle-like tealeaves grow on

shrub like bushes, which are between 0.5 to 1.5 metres in height.

To harvest the leaves the workers cut off branches and then the leaves

get chopped, bruised and left in the sun to ferment. The leaves then

change in colour from green to amber and develop a distinctive sweet

aroma  and  flavour.

JAPANESE TEA CEREMONY

The first tea seeds were brought to Japan by the returning Buddhist

priest Yeisei, who had seen the value of tea in China in enhancing

religious mediation. As a result, he is known as the “Father of Tea” in

Japan. Because of this early association, tea in Japan has always been

associated with Zen Buddhism. Tea received almost instant imperial

sponsorship and spread rapidly from the royal court and monasteries to

the other sections of Japanese society. Tea was elevated to an art form

resulting in the creation of the Japanese Tea Ceremony (“Cha-no-yu” or

“the hot water for tea”). The best description of this complex art form

was probably written by the Irish-Greek journalist-historian Lafcadio

Hearn, one of the few foreigners ever to be granted Japanese citizen-

ship during this era. He wrote from personal observation, “The Tea

ceremony requires years of training and practice to graduate in art...yet

the whole of this art, as to its detail, signfies no more than the making

and serving of a cup of tea. The supremely important matter is that the

act be performed in the most perfect, most polite, most graceful, most

charming manner  possible”.

BOSTON TEA PARTY

In the years leading up to the American Revolutionary War, the British

parliament was charging heavy taxes on all tea trading in the British

Colonies. As a result of the tea tax, the American colonists refused to

buy the British tea and instead smuggled in tea from Holland. This left

the East India Company with warehouses full of unsold tea. In 1773 the

British parliament passed the Tea Act, which the American colonists

objected to particularly because they believed it violated their right to

be taxed by their own elected representatives. Through the tea act the

East India Company were able to undercut the Dutch tea smugglers

and regain their monopoly on the tea trade and once again control the

taxes. Outraged by this the American dockworkers refused to unload

the shipments of British tea from the Boston harbour. On December

16, 1773, a group of men calling themselves the Sons of Liberty went to

Boston Harbour dressed as Mohawk Indians and dumped forty-five

tons of British tea into the harbour. This is noted as one of the key

events leading up to the American Revolution.

WHITE TEAS

White tea is made from the immature buds of the

tea plant that are picked and processed before they

have had time to ‘ripen’ and develop many of the

characteristics that are generally associated with

tea. Due to their underdeveloped nature, they tend

to have much less caffeine than any of the other tea

varieties. They are not allowed to oxidize at all and

produce a pale liquor and are the most subtle of teas.

In poorer areas, where tea has been unaffordable

to some, guests have been served another kind of

‘white tea,’ which is simply hot water.

GREEN TEAS

Green tea is tea that has been allowed to mature and

has been picked, pan fired (or steamed) to stop the

oxidation process after a very short period.

The natural vegetal flavor of the leaf stands out and

often a green tea will have a subtle sweetness that

is lost when the tea is turned into a style such as

oolong or black tea. Green tea produces a greenish

to yellow liquor and can range in bouquet from

grassy to floral.

OOLONG TEAS

An oolong tea has been allowed to oxidize partially

and thus produces a more complex, darker liquor,

and sits on the scale between a green and a black

tea. An oolong can be slightly oxidized to very

oxidized depending on the variety of the tea. The

depth of character for an oolong ranges greatly and

is partially a result of the degree of oxidation, so

an oolong can end up being closer to a green tea,

or a black tea, depending on how it is produced.

The liquor produced, therefore, can range from a

greenish yellow, to a dark amber.

BLACK TEAS

Black tea has been allowed to oxidize fully before

being fired (dried), and the many chemical reactions

that have occurred produce a dark, very complex tea.

All of the vegetal qualities of the leaf are gone and

replaced with a depth of character unparalleled in

the food world. The liquor produced ranges from a

dark amber to a black that would rival coffee.

Compared to green tea, which usually loses its

flavour after within a year, black tea retains its

flavour for several years and has historically been a

major item of trade. Compressed bricks of tea have

even been used as a form of currency. Black tea ac-

counts for 90% of tea sold in the west. Many names

of black teas refer to the region they are grown in,

common types include; Assam, Ceylon, Darjeeling,

Keenum and Lapsang  Souchong.

TISANES (HERBAL TEAS)

A tisane or herbal tea is an infusion and not usually

made from the leaves of the tea bush. Typically a

tisane is the combination of boiling water with dried

fruits, flowers or herbs. Common tisanes include;

chamomile, peppermint, rooibos and rosehip.

BLENDED TEAS

There are many other sub varieties of tea, such as

Pu-erh, Kukicha, Genmaicha, and many blends like

the familiar Earl Grey. These teas run the gamut

of flavors and characters due to the conditions

under which they are produced, and the blending

of particular teas has a long and rich history in

western culture.

V A R I E T I E S O F T E AV A R I E T I E S O F T E A

Tea is the product of the Camellia Sinensis and its sub-varieties. The Camellia Sinensis, an ever-green plant native to China, takes on a variety of forms and grows between 15 and 20 metres in height. All of the main varieties of tea are derived from this one plant aside from tisanes or herbal teas which are infusions made from ‘non-tea’ items such as herbs. The differences between the main varieties of tea are a result of the maturity of the plant and the oxidization level.

Some of the most popular blended teas include

ENGLISH BREAKFASTEnglish Breakfast is a blend devised to suit the particular

tastes of the British. It is a full-bodied black tea and one

of the most popular blended teas in the world. It may

include teas from Assam, Ceylon and Kenya. English

Breakfast was developed by a Scottish tea master in

Edinburgh over 100 years ago and popularised by Queen

Victoria. It is particularly well suited to be mixed with

milk and sugar.

RUSSIAN CARAVANThe name Russian Caravan refers to the camel caravans

that would travel for many months to bring tea from

China to Russia. It is believed that the journey through

the cold climates of Mongolia and Siberia enhanced the

tea and Russian epicures believe that a peculiar delicacy

of flavour was imparted to it by the slight moisture it

absorbed when unloaded nightly and placed on the snow

covered steppes. Russian Caravan is a blend of Chinese

teas including Oolong, Keemun and Lapsang Souchong.

It can have a rather smoky flavour.

JASMINE Originating from the Song Dynasty, Jasmine is the most

famous scented tea in China. It is subtly sweet and usu-

ally made from green or white tea blended with jasmine

flowers. The jasmine plant grows at high elevation in

the  mountains.

EARL GREYEarl grey is a tea that is blended with the oil extracted

from the rind of the bergamot orange. Traditionally only

a black tea, Earl grey can now refer to any type of tea that

contains the oil of bergamot. It is named after the British

Prime Minister, Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey.

MASALA CHAILiterally meaning spiced tea, Masala Chai is a blend

made by brewing tea with a mixture of aromatic Indian

spices. The word chai simply means tea in much of

South Asia. The simplest traditional method for making

masala chai is to simmer a mixture of milk and water with

loose tealeaves and whole spices. The solid tea and spice

resi dues are strained off before serving. There is no fixed

recipe or method for preparing masala chai and most

Indian families have their own versions. The tea base is

usually a strong black tea such as Assam. Traditionally

masala chai may include such spices as cardamom,

cinnamon, ginger, fennel seeds, peppercorn and cloves

and may also include almonds, saffron, nutmeg, rose

flavouring and liquorice root.

T E A R E V I V E S T H E W O R L DD R A G O N W E L L H O U S E

0 – 5,000

5,000 – 10,000

10,000 – 30,000

30,000 +

tea supply quantity (tonnes)** According to 2007 Food And Agriculture

Organization Of The United Nations results.

Please note: Data is organised by ‘total tea

supply quantity’, as to present a ‘per capita’

approach would exclude such tea giants as

China and India due to large population.

Therefore some countries that are big tea

drinkers but have a relatively small population,

such as Brunei, have been left out. The country

with the highest tea consumption per capita is

Paraguay.