BEHIND THE CRAFT
image

The Good Ship Waterloo

Borrowing a classic East India Company commissioned painting by William Huggins, a typically heroic image of a merchant ship Waterloo, shown off Whampoa Island c.1820.

Traders from India, Arabia and Europe were required to keep their ships off Whampoa, while smaller ‘state-owned’ crafts ferried goods to and from the Thirteen Factories area off Guangzhou, allowing the Chinese to keep tight control of trade.

Whilst Huggins had a successful career first as seaman and then as a London-based artist, boasting an exhibition at the RA, the good ship Waterloo was less fortunate.

Having survived an early mutiny attempt, she was wrecked with the loss of all crew, at Table Bay off Cape Town on her unlucky 7th voyage in 1842 - the fate of many intrepid pioneers.

FGTE12108

The Staunton Earl Grey Loose Leaf Black Tea Caddy 125g

Net Weight: 125g

A tribute to George Staunton, the man who introduced the western world to this famous blend. One of our most popular loose large leaf teas, with a vibrant and refreshing flavour of bergamot and neroli.

The East India Company - Lifestyle

Tea

-
+
£20.00
Our Earl Grey is named in tribute to George Staunton, the man who introduced the western world to this Chinese manner of taking tea.

One of The Company’s most popular blends, The Staunton Earl Grey is a Sri Lankan black tea with natural neroli oil and bergamot oil, both citrus fruits.

You can find out more about why we call our unique the 'Staunton' if you have a read of short story about Earl Grey below. There are many competing versions of how Earl Grey came to fruition, they all add a fun mystery to what is now one of the world's favourite teas, but our story is the real story.

Why not have a read over a cup of tea....
Our Staunton Earl Grey has not one, but two critical ingredients.

Bergamot is a small citrus fruit, yellowy green in colour, likely a hybrid of lemon and bitter orange - more of the latter below. Native to southern Italy, it is now grown in many warm countries. As well as being used extensively in perfumery, it is THE classic Earl Grey flavour, but less than one gram of the required bergamot oil can be extracted from a bergamot orange.

The second is the essential oil Neroli. It’s extracted from the skin of a bitter orange. It’s not eaten raw like other oranges, but it does have one particularly important use – the bitter Seville Orange is prized for its use in that famous standard of British breakfasts – the Orange Marmalade.
Our Staunton Earl Grey is a rich blend of aromatic black tea, that gives a brightly coloured liqour in cup.

A unique combination of both neroli and bergamot essential oils delivers a complex aroma, both vibrant and floral.

And the flavour is of course aromatic with clear citrus notes, and is light to medium-bodied, just enough to carry milk if required, but it's at its best without.
Savour a cup of this rich-bodied loose leaf black tea with our Sea & Salt Caramel Biscuits.

Or for those who enjoy a delectable combination of all things orange, bring together the elegant aromatic flavours of Neroli and Bergamot in our signature Staunton Earl Grey Tea with the citrusy, sweet notes of our Seville Orange Marmalade biscuits. Both lusciously fragrant, one would simply not be same without the other.
Quantity

2G OF TEA LEAVES PER CUP

Temperature

200ML OF WATER AT 100ºC

Brewing Time

3-4 MINS BREWING TIME

EIC Recipe Book - Staunton Earl Grey Black Tea with Orange Blossom Cordial

Serves 4

Place 4 Staunton Earl Grey Tea teabags into a saucepan with 1 litre of fresh just-boiled water and infuse for about 4 or 5 minutes.

Remove the teabags, leave to cool.

Tip into a jug and add a handful of ice, along with 6-8 tablespoons of East India Company Orange Blossom Cordial.

Stir well, taste and adjust accordingly.

For an elegant finish, add a thin slice or orange and lemon to each glass.

Ingredients

Black Tea, Natural Neroli Oil, Natural Bergamot Oil

Storage

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

Stories

The Real Story of the Origin of Earl Grey Tea

It’s a common myth that it was Charles Grey (1764-1845), the 2nd Earl Grey and Prime Minister of Great Britain from November 1830 to July 1834, that discovered the tea of that became known as Earl Grey. It is a fine heritage for a fine tea, but the facts do not support the story.

It was however highly likely that Earl Grey popularised it, but the original recipe was created by Sir Joseph Banks, an eminent botanist at Kew Gardens and advisor to The East India Company and George Staunton, another botanist, who in 1793 was a member of an East India Company-funded mission to China, intended to unlock trade between Britain and China.

At this time, Banks became interested in the possibility of growing tea in India and so he requested Staunton to observe Chinese methods of tea cultivation and flavouring, requesting detailed drawings, providing as an example of what was required, a botanical drawing of a Bergamot plant.
The archives of the original East India Company document Staunton’s findings. He noted tea bushes and bitter orange bushes growing together and observed the Chinese scenting the tea with the orange flowers. Staunton made his recommendations to Banks in his report, and Banks duly experimented in his own little teahouse in London. We believe he used Bergamot oil [which was grown only in Europe] to scent the tea simply because it was the closest substitute for the unavailable Chinese Neroli oil obtained from the Bitter Orange plant.

Earl Grey tea - Chinese black tea with Bergamot oil - was born.

Product development is but one aspect. Marketing is another. Banks was a friend of Earl Grey, who loved the tea and in recognition of his social influence of the day, the tea was named after him.

We celebrate this achievement in a number of ways that makes our earl Grey unique. Firstly, we use a combination of neroli and bergamot oils in our blend. In addition, we use a Sri Lankan black tea rather than the usual Chinese Keemun tea, because we feel is gives better body. And finally, we have proudly named our blend, The Staunton Earl Grey.

Our spirit delivers no ordinary products

  • FAQ

    Does Earl Grey tea include 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 have a problem with caffeine.

    What is Neroli?
    Neroli is the essential oil produced from the blossom of the bitter orange tree. It's scent is sweet and honeyed and we like to combine it with the classic Bergamot oil, another citrus fruit oil, in our Staunton Earl Grey.

  • 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

The Staunton Earl Grey Loose Leaf Black Tea Caddy 125g

£20.00 Sold out
£74.00 £74.00