Tea Blog

I was having a twitter conversation with a dear tea friend recently,and I was mortified to hear they didn’t have a positive experience in a UK tearoom. As I had written, “what to look for in a good tearoom” in a previous post, I felt a strong urge to put the kettle on and reminisce about some of the great experiences I’ve had growing up in the UK.

(Kettle on: let’s begin).  Tearoom conjures up so many different images to different people so let me start with an explanation by Wikipedia, which states that “A tea house or tearoom is a venue centered on drinking tea.” For some, this could be a Victorian style offering Afternoon Tea or High Tea; for others, this could be a place that sells purely tea and teawares; and for still others, it’s a place offering teas and light snacks.

In this post, I thought I would talk about two tearooms I’ve visited often in London, starting with Postcard Teas. If you log on to Twitter you’ll see some of their wonderful collection of teas on display. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Tim d’Offay, and it’s always a delight to speak with him, as I often leave his tearoom having learned something new. When you enter his tearoom, the way the teas and teawares are beautifully displayed makes you feel you’re in a modern art gallery. It really is serene!! Many people go to London for the shopping, and Postcard Teas is conveniently located very near to Bond Street — home to some of the most expensive designer shops in London. In keeping with the upmarket area, Tim sources a range of great teas himself.  You’ll know exactly the name of the estate and place of production of each and every tea, which is not a statement that many tea companies can proudly proclaim.   The range and quality of the teas are just exquisite, and I can’t wait to go back to London to try more of his teas.

(Kettle brewed to the correct temperature for Pu’erh, and now onto the tea making).

The next tearoom is located by another great tourist spot: St. Paul’s Cathedral and as well as having a large range of teas, they also have a selection of breakfast and light lunches on offer, too.  When I lived in London, I would often arrange my lunch meetings there — a cup of tea, a freshly made sandwich or salad and maybe scone with jam and cream if I’m feeling particularly naughty.  What I love about this place is the fun-aspect to their tea categories: serenitea; tranquilitea, activitea — I think you get the picture. 🙂  We Are Tea is a great place to start your tea journey, as their tea selection is easily accessible to novice drinkers and can also keep the seasoned drinker interested.  You can also follow their developments on Twitter.

The article was written with a lovely brewed cup of Pu’erh tea for inspiration.

Editor’s note: You don’t have to travel to London to get great teas that suit both a British and American palate!

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