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Tea
was popular in the Orient as far back as five thousand years ago. It
was used as a medium for taking medication, as an aid to digestion and
its health and therapeutic properties were well accepted. The Camellia
Sinensis plant from which black and green tea is derived actually grew
wild in the Brahamaputra Valley region of Assam in India. Tea was also
popular in monasteries where it was used as an aid to meditation by
monks.
It was only after the Portuguese maritime powers opened
up the trade routes to the Far East that tea was introduced to Europe.
The Dutch, German and British then established trading houses such as
the Dutch East India Company, that brought tea into the commercial
world. China, India and Sri Lanka (Ceylon) were the main sources of
tea then and the best teas still come from these countries.
Of
course the story of the tea clippers, such as the famous 'Cutty Sark'
racing the oceans to get their tea shipments into England are well
known.
In the United States high taxes on tea imports levied by
the British led to the 'Boston Tea Party' where ships carrying tea
shipments were destroyed in Boston Harbor. This significant event in
the revolutionary war that led to American independence.
Tea
was rare and expensive in the nineteenth century and only drunk by the
wealthy. In England the poorer classes drank beer! The establishment
of large grocery chains by entrepreneurs such as Sir Thomas Lipton
finally brought tea to the masses.
The medical benefits of tea,
well known to the ancient world and countries of the Far East, have now
been recognised by medical experts in Europe and the USA. Tea is
enjoying a renaissance all over the world and its consumption is
increasing. The many varieties of tea available, its health benefits,
the natural flavours being added to it and the fact that a cup of tea
contains about a third of the caffeine contained in a cup of coffee,
contribute to its popularity.
Tea is relatively cheap and is the
most consumed beverage in the world after water. Three thousand million (3 Billion)
cups of tea are estimated to be drunk daily in various forms and
environments.
This ancient, noble and sometime mystical beverage
with it's rich history, tradition and ceremony is playing an
increasingly healthy and interesting role in the modern world.
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