Earl Grey tea
Earl Grey tea is a tea blend that has been flavored with the addition of oil of bergamot orange. The rind's fragrant oil is added to black tea to give Earl Grey its unique taste. Traditionally, Earl Grey was made from black teas such as China Keemun and therefore intended to be drunk without milk. However, tea companies have since begun offering Earl Grey based on stronger teas such as Ceylons, which are better suited to adding milk or cream. Other varieties have been introduced as well, such as green or oolong.
History
The Earl Grey blend, or "Earl Grey's Mixture," is assumed to be named after Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, British Prime Minister in the 1830s and author of the Reform Bill of 1832 and the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833. He reputedly received a gift, probably a diplomatic perquisite, of tea flavored with bergamot oil as a result of his ending the monopoly held by the East India Company on trade between Britain and China.[ A "Grey's Tea" is known from the 1850s, but the first known published references to an "Earl Grey" tea are advertisements by Charlton & Co. of Jermyn Street in London in the 1880s.
According to one legend, a grateful Chinese mandarin whose son was rescued from drowning by one of Lord Grey's men first presented the blend to the Earl in 1803. The tale appears to be apocryphal, as Lord Grey never set foot in China, and the use of bergamot oil to scent tea was then unknown in China. However, this tale is subsequently told (and slightly corrected) on the Twinings website, as "having been presented by an envoy on his return from China."
According to the Grey family, the tea was specially blended by a Chinese mandarin for Lord Grey to suit the water at Howick Hall, the family seat in Northumberland, using bergamot in particular to offset the preponderance of lime in the local water. Lady Grey used it to entertain in London as a political hostess, and it proved so popular that she was asked if it could be sold to others, which is how Twinings came to market it as a brand.
Jacksons of Piccadilly claim they originated Earl Grey's Tea; Lord Grey gave the recipe to Robert Jackson & Co. partner George Charlton in 1830. According to Jacksons, the original recipe has been constantly produced and has never left their hands. Theirs have been based on Chinese black tea since the beginning.
Records from the 19th century suggest that a tea merchant named William Grey created earl grey tea. William Grey advertised his "celebrated Grey's mixture in publications from the time and may have popularized the blend.
A 2010 survey found that a significant minority of people in the United Kingdom associate drinking Earl Grey tea with being "posh" or upper class.
In 2012 researchers at the Oxford English Dictionary found the earliest reference to Earl Grey, referring to a bergamot-flavored tea from 1824 that seemed to be used to enhance the taste of low-quality teas.
Use as a flavoring
Earl Grey tea is used as a flavoring for many types of cakes and confectionery, such as chocolates, as well as savory sauces. For sauces, the flavor is normally created by adding tea bags to the basic stock, boiling for a few minutes, and then discarding the bags. For sweet recipes, loose tea is often added to melted butter or hot cream and strained after the flavor is infused.
Health benefits and risks
Earl grey tea has an orange bergamot flavor that might provide health benefits as well as risks to its consumers. Earl grey tea is reputed to help aid in heart health. This is because it is made of black tea. Black tea is known for lowering blood cholesterol, which decreases blood pressure. Not only has earl grey tea been linked to improving hearts, but also with digestion as a whole. This is because bergamot tea has flavonoids, which are known for their ability to lower inflammation.
On the other hand, bergamot has health risks. These risks can include an array of skin issues. Consuming too much of bergamot teas can lead to issues with potassium intake. Lowered potassium in the body can lead to experiencing cramping and muscle twitching. In several studies, the application of high concentrations of some brands of bergamot oil directly to the skin was shown to increase redness after exposure to ultraviolet light; however, this should not apply to ordinary oral consumption of Earl Grey tea. Bergamot is a source of bergamottin which, along with the chemically related compound 6',7'-dihydroxybergamottin, is known to be responsible for grapefruit–drug interactions in which the consumption of the juice affects the metabolism of a variety of pharmaceutical drugs.
In one case study, a patient who consumed four liters of Earl Grey tea per day reported muscle cramps, which were attributed to the function of the bergapten in bergamot oil as a potassium channel blocker. The symptoms subsided upon reducing his consumption of Earl Grey tea to one liter daily.
A Personal Note from Robin
I have had the wonderful opportunity to attend High Tea in Victoria, BC, a few years back. loRRett and I flew from Oakland to Seattle, rented a car, and drove to Tsawwassen in Canada. We took the Inland Waterway Ferry (BC Ferry) to Swartz Bay, drove down to Victoria, and checked in to The Empress Hotel.
That evening, we had High Tea and toured Victoria.
The following morning, we embarked at Sydney, cruised through the Inland Waterways to Anacortes, Washington, and caught our return flight to Oakland. Total vacation time? Less than thirty-six hours, portal to portal!
The reason I bring this up is that one of the teas served at The Empress was called "Silver Jubilee," blended be the Murchie's Tea company in honor of Queen Elizabeth's Twenty-Fifth (or Silver) Celebration. It has since been renamed "Golden Jubilee", and it is good enough that I special order this wonderful blend on a regular basis.
If you enjoy "Lord Earl Grey" blends of tea, you should try to find (or order) Golden Jubilee!
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