tea

tea , an infusion of the leaves of Camellia sinensis evergreen trees, has been mixed with spirits since at least the early eighteenth century, when it was a common component of punch. The tea tree is native to South and Eastern Asia, where it is a major global cash crop, and its consumption there can be documented back to the third century ce, when it appears in a medical text written by the Chinese physician Hua Tuo (ca. 140–208). Its consumption bears striking similarities to that of distilled spirits, in that both were originally introduced for their medicinal virtues prior to being popularized as recreational drinks. As with spirits, the history of tea is laden with stories, myths, and legends surrounding its origin, and there is very little hard information to counter that. Whatever its origin, tea drinking carries with it long-established rituals and ceremonies, as of course does drinking spirits.

coffee drinks. Tea, however, was soon enlisted by punch-makers, with “Tea Punch,” which was made with green tea instead of water, appearing in Britain as early as 1728. By the end of the century, it was a staple of British punch making, and indeed punch making everywhere. See Regent’s Punch and Swedish Punch. In 1840, the London Magazine of Domestic Economy gave “using tea instead of water” as one of the bedrock rules for making punch.

Due to the tremendous variety and types of tea, its flavors are vastly varied, including but not limited to astringent, nutty, floral, bitter, cooling, grassy, smoky, and even sweet notes. (If not derived from the tea shrub, similar infusions made from flowers, fruits, or leaves from other plants are called tisanes or herbal infusions and can be consumed in the same manner as traditional tea.) That variety allows tea to blend into cocktails and other mixed drinks in a multitude of ways, adding flavor, aroma, and texture, making it a go-to ingredient for twenty-first-century mixologists. It can be used as dilution, as in punch, or made into syrups, infusions, ice, powder, and even smoke. Ironically, though, the most famous modern tea drink, the Long Island Iced Tea, has no tea in it at all. See Long Island Iced Tea.

See also mixology.

Heiss, Mary Lou, and Robert J. Heiss. The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide. Berkeley: Ten Speed, 2007.

“Miscellaneous Domestic Matters.” Magazine of Domestic Economy, January 1840, 218–219.

Saberi, Helen. Tea: A Global History. London: Reaktion, 2010.

By: Sother Teague