The Tea Blog - Fine Tea Guides & Expert Advice RSS

As spring starts to hedge into our periphery, the gardeners are collecting seeds so numerous they cannot possibly hope to sow them all, and Ireland celebrates its patron saint – St Patrick. In light of watching for signs of spring, preparing the garden, and being Irish myself, I find I am turning away from my winter favourite (Char’s comfortingly smoky Russian Caravan) and instead reaching for a familiar, strong brew to rejuvenate the energy I am now spending outside – Irish Breakfast tea.   But what exactly is Irish Breakfast tea?   I'd never really questioned it before I came...

This Valentine’s Day, we are celebrating the delightful pairings of our flavoured Earl Grey teas! Try an Earl Grey pairing for yourself and fall in love.

It is the beginning of the new year, a time many of us use as an opportunity to reflect on practices which we can change to improve our way of living. Switching to loose leaf tea is a small step you can take to immediately improve not only your enjoyment of the nation’s favourite beverage, but also improve your health and lessen your environmental impact. Here’s how: Environmental Impact The average tea consumption per head in the UK is currently estimated at 2-3 cups per day. This comes to the length of 31,000 football pitches every year! With many commercially available teabags...

The Christmas spirit is catching here at Char, and we have already had a few people asking about buying Christmas presents!  With that in mind, we have created a handy helper for anyone intimidated by how many types of tea we have to make sure your recipient is grinning ear-to-ear with their first brew on Christmas morning!   Quick links to the teas in our Christmas tea gift chooser You can find any of the teas in our gift chooser by using our site search, or by following the links below: Sweet, Loose Leaf and Caffeine-Free Rooibos Scent of Christmas...

We get many questions at Char about our Winchester Afternoon Tea, and how an Afternoon Tea differs from a Breakfast Tea. In order to fully answer this, we are outlining the origins of the practise of Afternoon Tea, traditional decorum for participating in an Afternoon Tea, and how to hold your own Afternoon Tea party. The History of Afternoon Tea Tea has been consumed at all times of day and night since the 3rd millennium BC in China. In England, tea only became popular in 1660 under the influence of Queen Catherine of Braganza, the Portuguese wife of King Charles...