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A brew， a cuppa or a “rosy lee”； the vernacular variation and inventiveness when it comes to naming the humble mug of tea in England is exhausting.1 We have developed our own colloquial language surrounding the culture of the common cuppa， mostly because of its intrinsic role in our daily lives.2
Whilst in China I established a love of the wide variations of new tealeaves available at every corner. Moreover， the culture of preparation was new， the leaves were loose， brewed in a special filter pot and served in small dainty glasses.3 The delicacy and simplicity of Chinese tea was something I instantly became attached to and developed a yearning for upon arriving back in the U.K.4
For most of us in England， “tea” is usually associated with teabags， but more specifically， bags of English breakfast tea. I realized， upon arrival in China， that this is not “real” tea. I struggle to remember a moment in my entire stay that I encountered tealeaves in an individual baggy.5
Moreover， for most English tea drinkers， a brew is not complete without a dash of milk and a spoonful of sugar.6 Yet tea in China was a simple combination of leaves and boiled water， never sweetened or diluted with other ingredients.7 When I returned home even I had begun to find our obsession with milky， sweet tea a little insane.8 Chinese tea was， I decided， refreshingly simple and I returned home with a taste for beautiful fragrant green teas， jasmine flowers and chrysanthemum.9
Yet despite the obvious differences， tea served a similar purpose in both cultures.
Mugs and cups of tea are a tradition in England amongst friends， for people of all generations. We will almost always reunite with friends and peers “over for a cuppa” and it is most definitely the drink of friendship， family and reunion， as well as being tightly engrained in everyday culture.10
Yet whilst tea is primarily a casual， social convention11， offered to you at every doorstep whether you are family， guest or the local builder， it can also， on occasion， become a formal event. The English tradition of “afternoon tea” appeared around the year 1840. The cultural history of the ritual of serving afternoon tea stems from a rather simple but interesting source.12
Amongst the high classes of the 19th century， it was particularly fashionable to take your evening meal at around 8 p.m. in the evening. However， this left a large gap of time between the second and third meals of the day. Afternoon tea， consisting of a small platter of cake， sandwiches and scones，13 and of course tea， was introduced by upper-class women who complained that they often got hungry at around four o’clock in the afternoon.
Whilst in China I established a love of the wide variations of new tealeaves available at every corner. Moreover， the culture of preparation was new， the leaves were loose， brewed in a special filter pot and served in small dainty glasses.3 The delicacy and simplicity of Chinese tea was something I instantly became attached to and developed a yearning for upon arriving back in the U.K.4
For most of us in England， “tea” is usually associated with teabags， but more specifically， bags of English breakfast tea. I realized， upon arrival in China， that this is not “real” tea. I struggle to remember a moment in my entire stay that I encountered tealeaves in an individual baggy.5
Moreover， for most English tea drinkers， a brew is not complete without a dash of milk and a spoonful of sugar.6 Yet tea in China was a simple combination of leaves and boiled water， never sweetened or diluted with other ingredients.7 When I returned home even I had begun to find our obsession with milky， sweet tea a little insane.8 Chinese tea was， I decided， refreshingly simple and I returned home with a taste for beautiful fragrant green teas， jasmine flowers and chrysanthemum.9
Yet despite the obvious differences， tea served a similar purpose in both cultures.
Mugs and cups of tea are a tradition in England amongst friends， for people of all generations. We will almost always reunite with friends and peers “over for a cuppa” and it is most definitely the drink of friendship， family and reunion， as well as being tightly engrained in everyday culture.10
Yet whilst tea is primarily a casual， social convention11， offered to you at every doorstep whether you are family， guest or the local builder， it can also， on occasion， become a formal event. The English tradition of “afternoon tea” appeared around the year 1840. The cultural history of the ritual of serving afternoon tea stems from a rather simple but interesting source.12
Amongst the high classes of the 19th century， it was particularly fashionable to take your evening meal at around 8 p.m. in the evening. However， this left a large gap of time between the second and third meals of the day. Afternoon tea， consisting of a small platter of cake， sandwiches and scones，13 and of course tea， was introduced by upper-class women who complained that they often got hungry at around four o’clock in the afternoon.