All the British Tea in China

English Tea makes the cover of Shanghai Times, August 6, 2014 The Westward flow of tea out of China has been unending since the first tea was brought to Europe in the mid-1600s. Now, thanks to a growing generation of young tea drinkers enamored of Downton Abbey, British literature and Western television, that great river…

The Traditional British Cup of Tea Is Changing

The UK needs to nurture younger tea drinkers.The traditional English cup of tea, once considered a necessary luxury, is undergoing its biggest change since tea was first advertised for sale in London in 1657. British tea consumption has fallen from 2.5 ounces per person per week to less than an ounce. That means Britons are drinking…

Carson’s Guide to Tea at Downton Abbey

No doubt, Carson was well-schooled in the myriad duties entrusted to his care at Downton Abbey. If a question of protocol did arise, he surely had the butler's bible of the day sitting on his desk. Published in London in 1823, The Footman's Directory and Butler's Remembrancer contained the answers to every bit of etiquette minutiae…