Liking tea – or not

Anyone who knows me well knows that I love my tea. I enjoy a great many varieties, and whilst I do have my old favourites, I’m not averse to experimenting and finding ones I’ve never tried.

In my cupboard at this moment are the following varieties of tea: Melbourne breakfast, French Earl Grey, Lady Grey, peppermint, white jasmine, Earl Grey, English breakfast, Australian afternoon, Russian caravan, Brisbane breakfast, and one or two others.

I’m also what you might call a tea purist: I take all my teas without milk or sugar.

I used to think it was very odd for somebody to dislike tea. All tea, tea in general, any tea. And then I had a revelation: one of the most commonly available and aggressively marketed tea brands is Lipton. And of course if Lipton is the one you try first, you’re going to dislike it. Lipton tea is awful. It would naturally give the entire beverage a bad name, and would put you off trying others.

So if you’re out there, reading this, and you’ve only tried Lipton tea and didn’t like it, do me a favour: try another tea. Twinings, for preference; I find Twinings Earl Grey to be a very palatable tea, soft and easy to drink, with none of that tannin bitterness to it. If you don’t fancy that idea, wander into T2 or Teavana or whatever you’ve got in your part of the world. Have a look, have a sniff. If you ask nicely, they’ll often brew you a tea you’re interested in to taste. Explore the vast and endlessly fascinating world of tea!

Best of luck in your adventures. I hope you return to my blog a convert, or at least less stridently anti-tea than you might have been before!