Join The Tea Set!

I do love a nice cuppa to start the day, especially on those cold, winter mornings before setting off to work. When I was four, my dad bought me a beautiful little blue and white tea set. I still have it. He sat on the floor with me, cross legged, drinking my imaginary tea, and eating imaginary cakes fresh from my toy oven! But here are some interesting facts I discovered about my favourite cuppa. In 2737 BC, a pleasant aroma caught the attention of the Chinese Emperor Shen Nung. He realized it came from a pot of boiling water into which a few tea leaves had fallen. This, apparently, was the first pot of tea ever brewed! It was Thomas Sullivan, a New York tea importer who had to send samples to his clients. So he used small gauze packets so his clients only had to drop them directly into hot water, this was how the Tea Bag was invented. Iced tea came about at the ST. Louis World's Fair, USA. Richard Blechynden, a tea plantation owner, came to this fair to promote his tea. But a heat wave struck during the fair and unfortunately, a hot cuppa was not in demand. So he dumped a load of ice into his brewed tea, and the first cup of iced tea was served...Which I still cannot bring myself to like!