Tea has been consumed in Russia for centuries. The drink was first introduced to the country during the Tsarist era in 1618. The Chinese ambassador to Moscow at the time presented Tsar Michael Fedorovich with several chests of tea as a gift. Although the Tsar accepted the gift with legendary Russian grace, the tea was not very well received at first. Why? The Tsar and the people of his court were accustomed to drinking warm fruit and herbal beverages and found the new beverage to be slightly bitter. According to Russian folklore, it was one of Tsar Michael's chefs who struck upon the idea of adding fruit and spice to the tea in order to enhance its flavour.
Various blends were experimented with including combinations of ginger, salt, orange peel, rice, onions, and various herbs and spices. As it turned out, the most popular of these were the heavily sweetened blends that included citrus fruit. As the years wore on, tea consumed in this fashion spread throughout Russia and Samovars, a unique and traditional Russian teapot became ubiquitous throughout the continent.
To this day, Russians are among the highest per capita tea drinkers in the world and enjoy the beverage at all times of the day. In honour of Tsar Michael, (and his kitchen staff!), our Master blender developed this fantastic Russian Earl Grey. In keeping with Russian tradition we've added sweet orange peel and a mellowing herb - all natural lemongrass, in addition to the tart character of bergamot, (the citrus fruit used to flavour all Earl Grey teas). You will find this tea to be at once sweet and exceptionally soothing. A splash of milk will really bring out the citrus overtones of this blend - or, add some sugar and sweeten it up Russian style! Either way, this is one tea you'll want to savour all day long.
