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5 Things You Didn’t Know About Tea

After water, the world consumes more tea than any other drink. In fact, you may have one in your hand right now. Even if you know your Oolong from your Darjeeling, here are some surprising facts about tea that might make you look at your morning cup with a little more appreciation.

5. All tea comes from the same plant

All varieties of tea are sourced from clippings of a single tea plant - Camellia Sinensis.  How the leaves are processed determines the type of tea, and there are literally thousands of possible varieties! Climate, part of the plant used, oxidisation and how the leaves are handled all contribute to the taste and quality of the tea. Thousands of cultivars have been produced from this single plant, and it’s thanks to the human imagination that we have the astounding choice in tea today.

4. Tea contains more caffeine than coffee

Pound for pound, tea leaves contain more caffeine than coffee beans. However, by diluting tea leaves more and using less per cup, our intake per drink is less. Some varieties of tea have more caffeine than others (black has more than white, for example), and even though it is possible to buy decaffeinated tea, it’s actually impossible to remove all traces of caffeine from tea leaves. However, as we throw the tea leaves away, this shouldn’t be a concern for the decaf drinkers amongst you!

3. Tea can be classified as a health drink

This is particularly true of green tea and varieties taken without milk or sugar. Tea leaves have a surprising amount of health benefits that can combat everything from stress and anxiety to heart disease and stroke. Tea is especially high in compounds that destroy free radicals, those cells that can damage DNA and lead to cancer. Not only that, but tea has been shown to help fight Parkinson’s Disease, and studies suggest green tea may reduce onset of neurological diseases like Alzheimer's – so get the kettle on!

2. The cup of tea is old

Humans have been drinking tea for at least 3000 years. It’s impossible to pinpoint exactly when we first began brewing tea leaves, but we know for certain that it began in China before 1000BC, and possibly around 2700BC. Legend has it that Chinese Emperor Shen Nong discovered tea by accident when leaves accidentally fell into his pot of boiling water. For a long time it was drunk only medicinally and initially spread to Japan, not finding its way to Europe until the 1600s.

1. The most expensive cup of tea will cost you £180

Da Hong Pao is a variety of Oolong tea that is rarely found for sale and is only offered in China to respected dignitaries and honoured guests. Supposedly the tea cured the mother of a Ming Emperor, who preserved the tea bushes the drink had grown on. Three of these bushes still survive today, and contribute to the incredibly high price tag. In addition, the leaves can only be harvested at particular times of the year, and the Chinese believe it is an incredibly powerful medicine. However, the price may make your eyes water a little, a 1kg bag will set you back almost $1 million.

Ten healthy reasons to drink more tea

Here are ten healthy reasons to drink more tea.

Decaffeinated and Earl Grey Tea now available

We are pleased to announce that Plymouth Tea has recently added a Decaffeinated tea and Earl Grey tea to its existing list of blends. These blends are now available to order through the website in bags of 300.

In-keeping with our existing approach both blends seek to maintain the utmost quality and flavour and provide tea drinkers with a real taste of luxury.

Our decaffeinated tea consists of some of the finest Indian and Kenyan teas to create a luxury decaffeinated blend that we hope will allow everyone to enjoy the taste of quality tea, minus the caffeine. Traditionally decaffeinated tea has a reputation for lacking in flavour, colour and strength which is why we have strived to keep the standard of this blend as high as would be expected from a Plymouth Tea.

The natural decaffeination process that we employ ensures that this tea still maintains its robust, rich and refreshing flavour, meaning that the drinker does not have to compromise on the quality when selecting our decaffeinated tea.

Likewise our new Earl Grey tea is a blend of fine teas which have been treated with natural oils of the Bergamot citrus fruit, which gives the tea a distinctive perfumed aroma and flavour. We are confident we have created one of the finest Earls Grey Teas available.

The story behind Earl Grey tea is an interesting one. Legend has it that the tea was created in the honour of the Prime Minister, Charles Grey (the 2nd Earl Grey) who helped rescue the drowning son of a Chinese mandarin while on a diplomatic mission. The mandarin was so grateful that he presented the Earl with the blend in 1803.

Delicately scented with Oil of Bergamot, you can smell the rich aroma of the tea before you have even opened the package. Our Earl Grey can be taken with or without milk or with a slice of fresh lemon for a refreshing and revitalising drink.

We hope that the addition of these new blends will provide our customers with more choice and will help us to give our trade customers a fuller selection of Plymouth Tea to keep their customers happy.

If you have tried either of our new blends or indeed any of our teas we would love to hear from you. Please feel free to send us your feedback either via the website, email or via our Facebook page.

Another good reason to drink Plymouth Tea

We were all interested to read today that boffins at the University of California in Los Angeles have backed up research published early this year that suggested four cups of tea a day can significantly reduce the risk of a stroke.

Clever Scientists found that tea offers powerful protection against blood clots that kill around 200 people every day in the UK.

Apparently, just three cups of tea a day can reduce the risk of a stroke by around 20 percent.

There have been many studies in the past highlighting the protective effects of tea, but hard evidence has until now been thin on the ground. The team from UCLA searched through a number of previous studies to carry out what they call 'meta-analysis', where the findings are combined to come up with more meaningful data.

The results published online in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, showed that people drinking the highest amount of tea a day - three cups or more - were 20 percent less likely to fall ill than those drinking less tea.

Previous studies by the same team found that black tea was just as effective as green tea, as antioxidants in both appeared to protect against the kind of damage to the body that causes heart attacks and strokes.

It's good to hear there is now scientific evidence to suggest drinking tea is good for you - in the Plymouth Tea office we get through a fair few cups a day, so hopefully we benefit from maximum protection. Now all we need is some studies on the positive effects of cake on weight-loss...here's hoping.

Plymouth Tea featured in Devon Life Magazine

Plymouth Tea has been featured in the November issue of Devon Life Magazine. The local magazine has put together some Christmas gift ideas including a tasty Devon hamper full of local produce from all over the county. There is Chilli Jam from South Devon Chilli farm, Blood Orange Marmalade from Cranfields foods and Devon Cider Mustard from Highfield preserves to name but a few.

Of course the star of the show is our tea! They have recommended Drake's blend but we would be so bold as to say that Mayflower and Armada would go down just as well with a slice of Christmas cake or a mince-pie.

We think a hamper is a great idea for a gift for Christmas.

Plymouth Tea named River Cottage Drink Producer of the Month

Plymouth Tea has been named drink producer of the month by River Cottage.net - we are all very pleased with ourselves!