BEHIND THE CRAFT
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An Infinity of Patterns

The word ‘Kaleidoscope’ is a permanent memory of childhood play and curiosity. From Greek, it means the “observation of beautiful forms”.  We recall those beautiful patterns, never repeated.

David Brewster, the inventor of the ‘modern’ Kaleidoscope, said it might be of great value in "all the ornamental arts" as a device that creates an "infinity of patterns".

Our brand is like a sedimentary rock: layers of experiences from faraway lands washed together, connecting, over time creating a structure of uniqueness and beauty. Constantly being reinvented, but always remaining inclusive, tolerant, harmonious.  Turning the familiar to the unfamiliar, the mundane to the exotic.

For our finest tea caddies, we bring together individual patterns and images from the past and present to create a contemporary kaleidoscopic canvas for the future.

FGTE12228

First Romance Loose Leaf Black Tea Gift Caddy 100g

Net Weight: 100g

From Tea Master Lalith Lenadora, a unique visual feast of a blend of fruits, flower petals and a fine black tea. Flavours including strawberry, mango and orange will delight your senses - truly a First Romance.

The East India Company - Lifestyle

Tea

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£30.00
A unique blend from our Tea Master - a colourful selection of delicious fruits and flower petals combine with with a quality Sri Lankan orthodox black tea create a very special flavoured black blend.

The fruity and creamy sweet exotic flavours will delight your senses and stir the excitement of a first romance.

Loose leaf tea in one of iconic large Kaleidoscope Caddies - perfect to store your previous tea, makes a wonderful statement gift too.
The skill of the master blender is the critical ingredient here - this is a multi-sensory blend with as much care taken on the appearance of the tea as on the aroma and flavour itself.

Black tea, mango pieces and orange peel underpin the flavour profile, overall made creamy with a lovely natural strawberry essence.

Lotus and blue mallow flowers bring a spirituality and calmness to the blend, whilst the bright blue cornflowers add a delightful fleck of colour to the blend.
The dry tea leaves are a visual delight, with the dark leaves interspersed with blues, yellows and oranges.

In cup, the liquor is a rich red-brown colour.

Aroma is sweet, fruity and full of cream notes.

Drink it without milk - the flavour is rich, balanced and creamy - it almost takes like cream has been added in fact.
Pairs well with scones and patisseries.
Quantity

2.5 GRAMS OF TEA LEAVES PER CUP

Temperature

200ML OF WATER AT 100ºC

Brewing Time

3-4 MINS BREWING TIME

The First Romance Cocktail

Recipe: Serves 4
• The East India Company First Romance Tea
• 150ml water
• 4 large tsp of The East India Company Victoria Extra Jam
• 200ml vodka
• 100ml pressed apple juice
• 40ml freshly squeezed lemon Juice
• A twist of orange
• A strawberry
• Ice cubes

Place one teaspoon or one pyramid bag of First Romance tea into a mug and pour on 150ml of freshly boiled water. Brew for 4 minutes, remove the bag or strain to remove the tea leaves and leave to cool. When cool pour into a cocktail shaker, add the vodka, pressed apple juice, lemon juice and jam. Add a handful of ice cubes and shake it really well to disperse the jam. Strain into 2 martini glasses, adding a twist of orange and a slice of strawberry to each.

Ingredients

Black Tea, Rose petals, Orange peel, Marigold petals, Cornflowers, Strawberry flavour, Lotus petals

Storage

Store in a cool, dry place avoiding direct sunlight and strong odours.

Stories

What makes Black Tea black?

It all starts with a small ‘just-plucked’ green tea leaf, usually about 5 cm long, delivered fresh by the picker to the local factory for processing. Whilst varying by region, there are always 5 core steps to making a Black Tea.

Step 1 - ‘Withering’: the leaves are spread out in warm air for up to a day to reduce the water content by about 20%. The leaves wilt and lose some of the vibrant green colour.

Step 2 - ‘Rolling’: the wilted leaves are soft and malleable and are placed in an ‘orthodox’ rolling machine. It presses the leaf and breaks down the cell walls, releasing the enzymes required to start the oxidation process. Sometimes the leaf is broken more by a rotavane ‘mincing’ machine that produces smaller grades of tea. If a very small teabag grade is required, a Cut-Tea-Curl machine is used.
Step 3 - ‘Oxidation’ [not fermentation, which requires a microbe involvement]: takes half an hour or so depending on the conditions. Chemical reactions are now creating the natural chemicals that deliver flavour and [reputed!] health benefits. The leaf darkens, just like a cut apple after a few minutes.

Step 4 - ‘Firing’: the oxidised tea is fed into a dryer at about 120 Celsius. This does 3 things - it destroys the enzymes, so oxidation stops; secondly it removes nearly all the water [about 3% remains]; and thirdly, it darkens the colour from light brown to dark to almost black, depending on the length of firing.

Step 5 - Sorting: tea exits the firing process in different sizes, which will complicate brewing - hence the last stage of the process is grading – fired tea is poured into the top of a sifting machine with different mesh sizes from top to bottom. It vibrates and the different sized tea leaves are separated as the tea travels from top to bottom, the biggest leaves being left the top.

Our spirit delivers no ordinary products

  • FAQ

    Does this tea contain caffeine and is there more or less than in coffee?
    Yes, all tea like coffee, contains caffeine. The amount in both teas and coffees does vary, depending on the type, but typically Sri Lankan black tea is lighter than other teas in caffeine content, usually between 50 and 90mg for a normally brewed 230ml serving. This compares to about 95mg for a normal cup of coffee. The best advice is to treat tea and coffee similarly if you need to manage your caffeine intake.

    I’ve heard that tea contains theanine. What is it and what does it do?
    Tea does indeed contain theanine, which is an amino acid [the building blocks of proteins]. Tea is one of only a few sources of theanine. It represents about 1% of dry weight and is at its highest concentrate in shade-grown teas like matcha and gyokuro. Whilst not yet proven in scientific studies that would permit specific health claims to be made, it is believed by many to be able to reduce mental and physical stress, promote relaxation and a sense of well-being. But not only that, it is more recently being thought to aid cognitive function. It’s one explanation for tea’s famous ability to create calm in a crisis [the Great British solution to all problems – ‘putting the kettle on’] and to stimulate when a little boost is required.

  • Delivery & Returns

    UK Standard Delivery: £3.95
    UK Next Day Delivery (mainland UK only): £9.95 (Order before 12pm)
    International Delivery is available, please see our delivery page for details. For more information and Terms & Conditions, please see our Delivery page.

  • Reviews

First Romance Loose Leaf Black Tea Gift Caddy 100g

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