I wasn’t born a coffee drinker, but I sure am a coffee drinker now. I started drinking it my freshman year in college. I can remember sitting in the basement at Schwitzer Hall, studying. I’m not sure if it was finals week, but there was one of those big coffee pots down there — the stainless steel kind with the little black spigot at the bottom. I took a styrofoam cupful and drank it down because I needed to stay awake. And then I took another. Before long, that “need” became a “want,” and I found myself drinking coffee because I liked it. Not because I needed caffeine. That was 40 years ago, or so.
My parents were coffee drinkers too. We had a white Mr. Coffee, which sat right next to our dish drying rack on the kitchen counter. It was kind of crammed in there but it stayed plenty busy. Before that, we had some old-fashioned percolator. Sanka Coffee was a thing too. But what I’m trying to say is this. Coffee was the deal in our house.
Here is another thing that still is with me today. I don’t remember either one of my folks drinking hot tea. We never had iced tea, either. I don’t think they liked it. The apple does not fall far from that tree, as I do not drink tea. Not iced or hot, or even lukewarm. I’ve tried it many, many, many times, and the verdict is always the same. “Where’s the coffee?”
It appears that I am not alone. In the United States, 44% of adults consume 2 to 3 cups of coffee on average per day. On the other hand, only 25% of American adults drank one tea beverage per day.
But, according to National Geographic, after water, tea is the most popular drink worldwide.
And the most popular teas?
Black tea is number one. Then white tea. Then green.
Which brings me to this. If I do drink a cup of tea, it will be Earl Grey.
First, I like the name. And second, it contains oil of bergamot. And I’ve found I like bergamot. I first found it in soap, of all things. I wasn’t eating the soap, I was enjoying the smell as I showered. For those who don’t know, Bergamot (Citrus bergamia) is a type of citrus fruit native to Italy. It is sort of like an orange. But I’m getting away from things.
Back to the tea. Earl Grey.
It was named for Charles Grey, who was once the Prime Minister of Great Britain.
A bit about the man, the Second Earl, Charles Grey. He was a member of the Whig Party, and he became Prime Minister in 1830 after many years in opposition. His major achievement was pushing through “The Reform Act of 1832,” which made major changes to the British electoral system.
He did a lot of good things. Grey’s other parliamentary achievements included abolishing the slave trade throughout the British Empire in 1833. And he also put restrictions on the employment of children.
At some point, he married Mary Elizabeth Ponsonby, and boy, oh boy, did those two ever get busy. They had 16 children in all. That’s a load of Grey.
I’m not sure why they named the tea after him. But they did.
He was born on March 13, 1764. He passed away on July 17, 1845, at the age of 81.
The guy may have done some good things in his life, but I’m still not switching to tea.
I like this other guy much better. Sir Maxwell House.
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“It is inhumane, in my opinion, to force people who have a genuine medical need for coffee to wait in line behind people who apparently view it as some kind of recreational activity.”
― Dave Barry
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“Even bad coffee is better than no coffee at all.”
― David Lynch
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“Tea … is a religion of the art of life.”
― Kakuzō Okakura, The Book of Tea
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