What is Earl Grey?

• October 22, 2013
• Tea_Girls
• Tea Talk

One of the most commonly known teas is Earl Grey, but what is in an “Earl Grey?” Tea legend says that it was a blend that was drank the Second Earl of Grey in the 1800’s, and used by Lady Grey for entertaining guests.

Now to the technical bits… An Earl Grey is a tea flavored with bergamot, a citrus fruit from the Mediterranean mostly grown for it’s coveted peel and not the sour juice and not to be confused with the bee balm bergamot herbal plant. Traditionally, the tea base is a Ceylon black tea, however, each company has it’s own recipe for an “Earl Grey,” varying the proportions of bergamot flavoring and tea, or even adding the bergamot flavoring to a blended tea base of Ceylon and/or other Indian black teas, or even African black teas; one can even use a green, oolong, or even a white tea, and these too would fall under the “Earl Grey” category. Also, a factor in the flavor of an Earl Grey is the type of bergamot flavoring added: oil, natural flavoring (taken from the bergamot fruit), or even artificial flavoring (the stars forbid!).

At Sereni-tea we have seven different teas that would fall in to an “Earl Grey:”

• Earl Grey Cream -our basic Earl Grey black tea
• Lady Grey -an Earl Grey with Blue Mallow Flowers
• Earl Green – a green tea with bergamot oil
• Earl Grey Rooibos – a Rooibos base with bergamot and orange pulp
• Lemurian Lavender Rooibos -a Rooibos with bergamot, orange pulp and lavender from our local farm (blended here in house)

Over the years we have heard of many different Earl Grey blends that we do not carry, here are some:

• An Earl Grey with Lapsang Souchong to make it smokey.
• An Earl Grey with lavender, which we have heard is called a Manhattan blend.
• And an Earl Grey that has had various flowers added to it, like an Oolong variety with chrysanthemums.

Let us know of any other Earl Greys that you’ve encountered.

Resources:

Heiss, Mary Lou and Robert J. The Story of Tea: A Cultural history and Drinking Guide. Berkeley, California. 2007. Print.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bergamot_orange. 7/21/2012, 11:30 am.