It is common knowledge that the Chinese were the first to appreciate true value of tea leaves. However, there is no precise answer to the next question, “How long ago did it happen?” The first written testimony of tea brewing dates back to the first century A.D., the times of Han dynasty ruling. The hieroglyph “cha” appeared at about the same time. However, there exists evidence that the Chinese were already drinking tea in the third century B.C. Moreover, as another widespread and very frequently cited legend has it, Chinese emperor Shen Nung, who also came to be known as “divine farmer”, discovered wonderful flavour and usefulness of the drink as early as 2737 B.C. when tea leaves fell by chance into the bowls where his people were boiling water for the court. The emperor was amazed with pleasant flavour of the brew and its refreshing effect and started to drink it daily.

Spreading of tea throughout the world started much later – around 5th century A.D. when the Chinese started to sell it to Turkic tribes. Within the next 200 years tea became an essential part of the ration of nomadic tribes and Tibetans. Another 200 years passed before tea became the national drink of the Japanese.

The Europeans got their first chance to taste tea only in the 16th century but the true sizeable supply started to come even later, a hundred years afterwards in the 17th century when the Dutch began to deliver to Europe first commercial lots of “Chinese grass”. In 1664 the British East-Indian Company presented to the king Karl two pounds of tea and this was the beginning of the triumphant conquest of the Foggy Albion by tea.

In the beginning of the 19th century the seventh duchess Bedford, Anna, started to invite her friends for a cup of the afternoon tea. Thus appeared the famous English “five o’clock tea”. However, the British contribution to the world tea culture is not limited to the tradition of enjoying a five o’clock cup of tea. It is the British whom we owe the spread of the tea plant in various countries around the world – in Indian Assam, on the island of Ceylon, in Kenya.