The Book of Tea

Tea is a beverage with roots all over the globe, from English tearooms to the mountains of Tibet. This exquisitely illustrated volume leads readers on an investigation of the many faces of tea: a mythic plant, a ceremony, the instigator of wars, and ultimately one of the world's favorite beverages.

More tea is drunk worldwide than any other beverage except water. From China to England, from India to America, tea has acquired a vast multitude of followers, leaving its mark on every civilization. Each day, over one and a half billion cups of tea are consumed on the planet. Perhaps no other beverage has been the object of such sanctification and ritual. In China tea was idealized by poets and codified by tea masters, while all the beauty of the Japanese way of life is embodied in its tea ceremony. Seventeenth-century Russia discovered tea through a gift from a Mongol prince, while "tea time" in Britain has dominated daily schedules for centuries. In the New World, the Boston Tea Party sparked off a series of events that changed the course of history.

The Book of Tea traces the history, myth, and rituals of tea growing and tea drinking from the tea gardens of Burma to the tea rooms of London. Anthony Burgess and a team of histories, writers, and journalists introduce us to the techniques of tea cultivation, and follow the great clipper ships to the Far East in their quest for the most extraordinary varieties. They paint fascinating portraits of the kings of the tea trade such as Thomas Twining, whose London tea room was the first to serve tea by the cup. Robert Fortune slipped into China to steal tea plants and learn the secrets of tea production, and the adventurer Sir Thomas Lipton conquered America with his quality teas.

Extensive annexes, updated for this new edition, include a guide to teas and blends that provides everything one needs to know to fully appreciate the richness and infinite variety of tea, and a list of the best tea shops and the most elegant tea rooms in the United States and Europe. This beautifully illustrated and designed volume, with its selection of archival and contemporary documents, makes a delightful contribution to our understanding of the culture and traditions surrounding one of the world's most popular and extraordinary beverages.