What we know for certain is Earl Grey tea was named after Charles Grey, the 2nd Earl of Grey, a Cambridge and Eton educated aristocrat who was elected to parliament at the age of twenty-two, and eventually served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1830 – 1834.
But few people know that the tea is named after Charles, the 2nd Earl Grey and British Prime Minister from 1830 to 1834. The original recipe for this beloved blend simply calls for black tea with the addition of oil of bergamot, squeezed from tiny lemons grown in the Mediterranean region.
The first story goes that during a trip to China, Charles saved the life of a Lord. As a thank you for saving his life, this Lord gifted Charles Grey with a recipe for black tea scented with the oil of bergamot oranges, therefore establishing the beginnings of Earl Grey.
While the classic Earl Grey tea was created for Earl Charles Grey, the modern Lady Grey blend is named after his wife, Lady Mary Elizabeth Grey.
Two British tea companies, Twinings and Jacksons of Piccadilly even claim to have been the ones who formulated the original tea for the Grey family.
History of Earl Grey Tea
Sometimes it feels like Earl Grey has practically become synonymous with Twinings. It was invented at our shop on the Strand in 1831 at the behest of the Prime Minster, Charles Grey, the second Earl Grey. And we named it after him.
Traditionally, Earl Grey tea is served with a slice of lemon and sugar to taste. According to YouGov, a massive 85% of British Earl Grey and English breakfast tea drinkers enjoy their tea with milk. In the US, they like to add milk and sugar to their Earl Grey tea.
French Earl Grey – This variation is made by adding rose petals to the Earl Grey Tea. The resulting brew has a sweet aroma with a fruity and floral taste. Russian Earl Grey – In addition to the black tea and the bergamot, the Russian variation contains citrus peels and some lemongrass.
Earl Grey tea spans beyond your typical Earl Grey tea. It comes in not exactly 50 shades, but more so a wide variety of blends to give you a twist to this timeless tea. Earl Grey is one of those teas that are versatile and can be blended with different tea types.
Earl Grey is one of the most recognized flavored teas in the world. This quintessentially British tea is typically a black tea base flavored with oil from the rind of bergamot orange, a citrus fruit with the appearance and flavor somewhere between an orange and a lemon with a little grapefruit and lime thrown in.
When it comes to making Earl Grey tea with milk, you can't do it in the same way that you would with a normal cup of black tea. This is because Earl Grey tea is flavoured with bergamot oil, and if you're not careful, the oil will cause the milk to curdle.
Features. Earl Grey with blue flower is a black tea flavoured with bergamot, mallow blossoms & cornflower blossoms, making it and exotic blend for a unique Earl Grey experience. The distinct, homely flavour of this Earl Grey melds bergamot, mallow and blue cornflower blossoms that will wrap your tongue.
This full-bodied black tea is flavoured with bergamot and beautiful blue cornflower petals. These blue petals add a subtle extra note of sweetness to the familiar Earl Grey taste.
In general, black and pu-erh teas have the highest amount of caffeine, followed by oolong teas, green teas, white teas, and purple teas. However, because the caffeine content of a brewed cup of tea depends on many different factors, even teas within the same broad categories may have different caffeine levels.
Bergamot (Citrus bergamia) is a type of citrus fruit native to Italy. Essential oils from the peel and the extract from the juice are used to make medicine. Bergamot oil has several active chemicals and is commonly used as aromatherapy.
Earl Gray tea is a popular drink due to its caffeine kick and renowned flavor. Some people also swear by its health benefits ranging from preventing cancer to curing the common cold.
We also know that the tea which Jane Austen drank was a Chinese black tea. This is because black tea was not successfully grown outside of China until a crop in Assam, India, survived well enough to be exported in 1815, just two years before Austen's death.
Earl Grey and Lady Grey are both popular bergamot-flavored tea blends. The main difference between the two is that Lady Grey also contains lemon peel and orange peel.
To make Earl Grey tea, leaves from the camellia sinensis plant—a typical tea plant—are combined with bergamot oil, which is the essence extracted from the fruit's skin.
Drinking Earl Grey Tea promotes the production of good cholesterol (HDL) and triglycerides while lowering and inhibiting the production of bad cholesterol LDL. A few cups of this tea can help prevent cardiovascular diseases from setting in and keep you feeling fresh and healthy.
1) More Energy
Coffee can also be dehydrating for the body whereas Earl Grey works to keep you hydrated thanks to its high potassium content and its ability to balance water content in the body. Although too much Earl Grey can counteract this due to the bergapten in the bergamot oil being a potassium channel blocker.
If you do prefer black tea, though, which is healthier: plain black tea, or Earl Grey? The answer is Earl Grey, which has the added benefit of bergamot oil, the source of bergamottin, a phytonutrient that beat out two dozen other phytonutrients last year in a test of human stomach lining protection.
How Long Should Earl Grey Steep? Steep Earl Grey tea in 208 Fahrenheit (98 Celsius), almost boiling water for 4-5 minutes, until it's dark and fragrant.
Milk has a much stronger taste than water and its viscosity is also thicker making it harder for you to taste the actual tea.
When you put milk into infusing tea you lower the temperature of the water so a proper infusion can't take place. To get the best of your brew in a mug, always make the tea first to your taste and strength and the milk after.”