Preparing tea for a group comes easy for me because my wife and I owned a tearoom for 14 years. However, I realize this simple task might appear daunting to a tea novice, or even a seasoned host who needs a bit of guidance on the logistics of making tea for four or more. Here…
Nelson Mandela’s Tea Cup Diplomacy
In 1993, Nelson Mandela invited a South African general over for tea. Mandela had gotten word that the general was plotting an Afrikaner guerrilla war against multiracial rule. When General Constand Viljoen and three other retired generals arrived at Mandela’s house in Johannesburg, they expected a servant to open the door. They were surprised to find…
The Dutch Brought Tea First Brought Tea to America
Peter StuyvesantThe earliest reference to the use of tea in Holland appears in a letter dated January 2, 1637, from the “Lords XVII,” the name by which the seventeen directors of the Dutch East India Company were popularly known, to the Governor General of Netherlands East India at Batavia. It reads:As tea begins to come…