Black Tea - Historical Details

Historical facts about tea indicate that this ever-popular beverage originated in China some 5,000 years ago.

It was discovered in 2737 BC by Chinese Emperor Shen-Nun, who was considered a divine healer, when some tea leaves accidentally blew into a pot of boiling water.

Yet it took nearly 100 years for tea to reach other parts of the globe. Dutch traders were the first to bring tea to the West in the early 1600s where it later became an accepted staple of trade.

Those who know their facts about tea can tell you that all teas originate from the same evergreen plant: the Camilla Sinensis. There are over 3,000 varieties of the bush grown in mountainous areas around the world.

Whether you sip black, green, oolong or white tea depends on what happens after the “flush,” when the top two leaves and bud are harvested, processed and shipped.