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Tea comes from the leaves of a tree called Camellia sinensis. Although the tree can grow more than 30 feet tall, it is cut short like a bush so that leaves can be plucked easily when harvesting.
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Tea is grown in India, Sri Lanka, China, Indonesia, Argentina, Kenya, Japan, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Uganda, Malawi, Turkey, Iran, Brazil and Tanzania.
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80% of caffeine can easily be removed from regular tea by pouring hot water over the leaves.
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It has been proven that the consumption of tea may prevent disease and prolong life.
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Laborers harvest tea by hand, plucking the leaves, which are then dried and processed.
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If you have lace tablecloths that have been yellowed or stained, put a cup of enzyme bleach in a bucket of water and soak the tablecloth for about three days, then wash. Regular bleach can yellow the fragile fabric or cause it to fall apart.
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If the inside of your china teapot turns brown from the tea, clean it with bleach. Be sure to rinse thoroughly before using it again.
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To clean your silver, try rubbing it with toothpaste. Or you can put aluminum foil in the bottom of the sink, fill the sink with warm water and add a cup of Tide laundry detergent. (Other kinds do not work.) Put all the silver pieces in water on the foil and let set for 8 to 12 hours or overnight. Your silver should be tarnish free.
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It was Queen Victoria who popularized the custom of taking afternoon tea. Sponge cake was the Queen’s favorite sweet, served with a layer of strawberry jam and whipped cream.
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Queen Victoria also popularized the custom of drinking tea with a slice of lemon. She had been visiting her eldest daughter, the Princess Royal, in Russia when she picked this up.
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During the Queen’s reign, even the humblest working-lass people observed teas with beautiful, translucent tea sets that had teapots hand-painted with the inscription, “God Bless Our Queen.”
