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History of Tea Tea
- The world’s favourite drink. The
British have been drinking tea for more than 350 years
but tea in other
countries predates this by more than 4 millennia!! An
accident or a stroke of luck?? Over
four and a half thousand years ago, according to a Chinese mythology, in
2737 BC, the Chinese emperor and a skilled ruler, Shen Nung, scholar and
herbalist, was sitting beneath a tree while his servant boiled drinking
water. A leaf from the tree dropped into the water changing the colour
of the water to light brown. Shen Nung decided to try this brew. The
tree was a wild tea tree. And thus according to legend, tea was
discovered. Tea
consumption spread throughout the Chinese culture reaching into every
aspect of the society. Tea
travels to Japan The
first tea seeds were brought to Japan by a Buddhist priest – Yeisei.
Hence, he is known as the “father of tea” in Japan. Because
of this early association, tea in Japan has always been associated with
Zen Buddhism. Tea
received almost instant imperial sponsorship and spread rapidly from the
royal court and monasteries to the other sections of Japanese society. Tea
was elevated to an art form resulting in the creation of the “Japanese
tea ceremony” also known as “Cha-no-yu” or “The hot water for
tea” England
gets introduced to tea. In
England tea Tehai
to Tea From
the earliest times tea was renowned for its properties as a healthy,
refreshing drink. By the 3rd century AD many stories were
being told and some written about tea and the benefits of drinking tea.
But it was not until T’ang Dynasty (618 AD – 906 AD) that tea became
China’s national drink and the word ch’a was used to describe tea. The
modern term “Tea” derives from early Chinese dialect words – such
as Tchai, Cha and Tay used both to
describe the beverage and the leaf
known as Camellia Sinensis. Tea is an evergreen plant of the
Camellia family. As
buddhist priests start to move around China and Japan, the spread of
cultivation and tea drinking followed them. Today tea is the reigning beverage in over 45 countries and is consumed in over 115 countries around the globe. The Irish are the world’s largest consumers, each person on an abverage consuming eight cups a day. However, the largest producer and overall the greatest consumer is India, where at any time and anywhere, Chai is an essential part of life.
History
of Tea in India In
the year 1823, Robert Bruce a Scottish raider and explorer learnt from a
native nobleman of North East India that the Singpo tribe grew a variety
of tea unknown to the rest of the world. He
acquired the samples and after his death, his brother Charles Alexander
Bruce initiated the growth and manufacture of Tea in India. For which
the Britishers experimented on various lands with tea bushes from China
and planted tea in Kumaon Dheradun, Kangra, Kullu and Garhwal on
experimental basis. The
experimentation then continued in Darjeeling and later to Dooars. But in
dooars the native tea of India, also known as Assam Bush, was proved
more suited. In
the South, The pioneers cleared forestes to grow crops and following
much experimentation finally settled on Tea. James Finlay & Co.
being the first to attempt tea cultivation in the high ranges of Kerela.
The hills of Kerela now ‘Munnar’, are now home to the highest Teas
grown in the world. Following
the success of tea in Kerela
other palnters in the Nilgiri Hills began to follow suit in 1859. Today
most of South Indian Tea is grown in the hilly region, in the states of
Tamil Nadu, Kerela and Karnataka. But the bulk of Indian Tea comes from
the eastern and the North Eastern parts of the country where the estates
are mostly located in the plains. Today
India is the biggest producer of tea in the world, producing 31% of the
total tea produced and among the worlds largest exporters The
socio-economic history of Indian tea is a wonderful saga of endeavour,
courage and success. Hundreds & millions of Indian start off their
day with the subtle flavor and gentle aroma of their morning cup of tea. |
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received royal patronage when king Charles II married the Portuguese
princess Catherine of Braganza, who was an inveterate tea drinker.