Tea Time for All

John Hartwell

Lt. Colonel
Forum Host
Joined
Aug 27, 2011
Location
Central Massachusetts
Racine Advocate, May 27, 1863:
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As the older brother of two sisters, father of two daughters and grandfather of two young babies, I KNOW ALL ABOUT TEA PARTIES! I have 42 years of experience and know my manners. Loved every one of them even including my first and only finger nail polishing!
Regards
David
 
@John Hartwell, you find the most interesting newspaper clippings! Thanks for this share. I have always been fond of tea time and enjoy reading about how this was practiced in Victorian times. Victorian ladies usually wore an afternoon dress when attending an informal afternoon tea. These dresses came in a variety of styles, but a style that was closed to the throat was preferable to one with a low neckline.

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1890 French Silk Tea Gown.
(Met Museum)
At an informal tea, ladies were expected to remove their bonnets even if they were only staying the minimum amount of time. As for gloves, a lady could remove them or keep them on. And afternoon tea parties weren't just for the ladies. Many women invited gentlemen acquaintances to their tea parties.
 
Theodore Estabrooks founded Red Rose Fine Teas in the 1890s. In the 19th century tea was sold loose from tea chests and the quality was very inconsistent. Mr. Estabrooks dedicated himself to producing a blended tea that was consistent from cup to cup. His efforts yielded the tea bag as we know it today. Red Rose was originally sold in the Atlantic provinces of Canada. @Northern Light, have you ever heard of this brand?

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19th century tea chest.​
 
"Gunpowder is a classic green tea from Zhejiang province, China. As the name implies, Gunpowder tea is made up of leaves hand-rolled into tiny pellets. These resemble gunpowder, and give this tea its distinct name. Full-bodied cup with a hint of smokiness and a smooth mouthfeel. Blend Gunpowder tea with spearmint to create the famous 'Moroccan Mint' tea." according to https://www.adagio.com/green/gunpowder.html
It was very popular.

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[Charleston, 1863]​
Southern tea drinkers were dependent on the success of the blockade-runners.
 
I think Mes. Smith needs to switch to Decafe


That's what I thought, too. Poor Mrs. Jones began peering around corners in case Mrs. Smith was in sight. You feel for her.

Gunpowder tea sounds a lot like Earl Grey tea, doesn't it? The smell of childhood! Grew up in the middle of some elderly relatives, Scots, remember them scorning tea bags. Like you'd just said a dirty word. They fussed with loose tea, pre-warmed pots and had small wars over length of time one steeped. Still have handless cups, with saucers, passed down to the tea drinkers from heck, late 1700's.

Brits still observed 4 p.m. tea when I lived there. You didn't mess with tea time. It was extremely nice and really, nearly the entire population stopped for' tea '. It was either mugs, tin pots and Digestive biscuits or a more formal tray with china cups, pot and whatever finger food was served. Lived in Somerset, farming country, where clotted cream, jam and scones made you think you'd died and were drinking tea in Heaven.
 
Theodore Estabrooks founded Red Rose Fine Teas in the 1890s. In the 19th century tea was sold loose from tea chests and the quality was very inconsistent. Mr. Estabrooks dedicated himself to producing a blended tea that was consistent from cup to cup. His efforts yielded the tea bag as we know it today. Red Rose was originally sold in the Atlantic provinces of Canada. @Northern Light, have you ever heard of this brand?

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19th century tea chest.​
This is the tea I drank growing up in Toronto. It is not as popular down here in the Frozen North, where King Cole Tea is the "king". I still like it best.
It used to come with a small china figurine in each box. I still have a few kicking around somewhere.
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Really like those figures from Red Rose tea. Especially I like the cat with fiddle and gingerbread man.

Red Rose Fine Teas estimates that several million Wade Whimsies are in circulation through their distribution alone. Many clubs exist, including an "official collectors" club sponsored by Wade. There are group meetings for Wade collectors everywhere. Several price guides are available for new collectors.

Check out their site:

https://redrosetea.com/figurines
 
The photo is of a home tea chest. Attached is a drawing showing the shipping chests (like the "Indians" threw into Boston Harbor at their tea party). The shipping chests were made of good quality wood in the Orient. When the tea was sold in various colonial ports, the chest was also for sale -- as a source of high quality wood for the furniture makers. The brass corners were also prized as raw material.
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