Question for my British friends across the pond

[ASHBERY76]

I regularly wear a bowler hat when I go out too.

[sprior]

ORIGINAL: redcoat


I think the British Army pretty much runs on “Strong British blend” NAAFI Break Tea.

NAAFI tea is currently for sale on the Ringtons website and 50p from the sale of each box goes to Help for Heroes.

Just don't drink the NAAFI coffee.

[Ossian]

ORIGINAL: ilovestrategy

Thanks guys! I never knew Starbucks was in Britain! [X(]

The only country I've never seen Starbucks in is Italy.

I love tea. I'm going to drink a big mug of it in about ten minutes. Nowt wrong with tea bags. It's not like instant coffee or anything. Personally I prefer Yorkshire, Ceylon or Assam. I also like a brew made with both Earl Grey and bog standard Tetleys.

I love coffee too but tea inhabits a special place in the psyche of your average Brit. It's like curry; i've never been entirely able to trust a Brit who says they don't like tea or curry.

"...Mrs. Gubbins came in with a tray of tea things and a plate of biscuits of the sort that I believe are called teatime variety, and everyone stirred friskily to life, rubbing their hands keenly and saying, 'Ooh, lovely.' To this day, I remain impressed by the ability of Britons of all ages and social backgrounds to get genuinely excited by the prospect of a hot beverage." --Bill Bryson, Notes from a Small Island

And that just about sums it up!

[Ossian]

ORIGINAL: Treale

There was a scene in A Bridge Too Far, where the Brits stopped to have tea instead of rushing towards Arnhem. That wasn't for real, was it??

Corporal Hancock: Sir.
[Offers mug of tea]
Major General Urquhart: Hancock. I've got lunatics laughing at me from the woods. My original plan has been scuppered now that the jeeps haven't arrived. My communications are completely broken down. Do you really believe any of that can be helped by a cup of tea?
Corporal Hancock: Couldn't hurt, sir.
[Urquhart accepts his mug of tea]



I like to believe every word of that is true.

[wodin]

yeah we drink tea..I have phases sometimes have 6 cups a day..but I've been on the coffee for awhile now.

[planner 3]

"Ever since that darn tea party in Boston, the shoreline here is a mess." .......a disgruntaled Cape Codder

[goodwoodrw]

I'm a ozzie lad and I love tea, primarily strong and white, and since being diagnosed with diabetes no sugar, strangely after years of milk and two I am enjoying a brew much more without sugar. At home will only drink tea from a fine porcelain china mug. My son for years always bought me a mug for father's day sadly mostly heavy china mugs, but of recent years he has bought porcelain.
I can remember my dear old dad's peculiar way of drinking tea years ago, after having a large cup filled he would tip some into a saucer and sip from it. He would hold the saucer between his thumb and fingers in peculiar manner. One of my fond memories of my dad long gone, [:)]

[redcoat]

One of the (many) things I loved about my short stint in Oz was the tea. It was just like being in Blighty ... with decent weather. The beer and wine were first rate too.

I’m not surprised that Australia is quite high up in the tea drinking league table – given that most Ozzies are of British/Irish descent. I’m not surprised to see Éire in third place either. My Irish relations south of the border like to tell me that they drink more tea than the British – and now I have the stats to prove they don’t. [:)]

The tradition of drinking tea from a cup and saucer is dying out in the UK. When I was a school kid in the ‘70s we always drank tea from cups and saucers at home. I think my parents must have started using mugs in the ‘80s. I’ve inherited a couple of fine bone china tea sets – one from my Irish grandfather and one from my parents - but I’ve never used them. I think I will use a set next time I have a family get together. The only people I know who use cups and saucers on a daily basis are my elderly Irish aunties – who pretty much drink tea all day. One of them won’t even allow coffee into her house.

[warspite1]

Mrs Warspite's mum is originally from Southern Ireland. When we go round to her house, the tea seems as though its on tap! She always has a brew on the go - not that I am complaining at that [:)]

[ComradeP]

On top of that, I've just come back from Holland on a 2 week break - and I was amazed at the different types and quantities of coffee available and I had to pretty much hunt for the smallest box of tea tucked away in the corner of the refreshment isle! And the bags didn't really make a nice cup either...the teabag had to sit in the cup for quite some time to get a decent brew out of it.

Weird, was that in a regular supermarket? Many Dutch supermarkets sell lots of tea and lots of coffee. There doesn't seem to be a bias towards tea or coffee, although in terms of regular consumption on a workday, most Dutchmen seem to prefer coffee. According to Wikipedia, the Dutch are on 5th place in terms of coffee consumption, at a whopping 8.4 kg a year.

Personally, I don't drink coffee aside from a few rare occasions. As sort of a running gag, I drink cappuccino once a year or so with a friend, but other than that I drink water and tea.

[wodin]

Tea is full of anti oxidents so it very good for you...helps against ageing and cancer.

[Gilmer]

ORIGINAL: Orm

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: Treale

There was a scene in A Bridge Too Far, where the Brits stopped to have tea instead of rushing towards Arnhem. That wasn't for real, was it??

Warspite1

There was a scene in the film Gallipoli. Apparently the Aussies were sent to their deaths while the British sat on the beach drinking tea [8|]. Yeah right.......

Sadly, the stereotype of our preoccupation with drinking tea, helps make us an easy target for Hollywood (and anyone else who wants to have a go) [:(].

Anyway enough of all that, its 7.30am and I need to get started as I have a full day of household chores to get through. Mmmmm....to hell with that, I think I'll have a nice cuppa instead.

According to Anthony Beevor in the book "The Battle for Normandy" a large portion of the Brittish soldiers made a cup of tea after they had landed on Sword beach. Some made the tea while they still were under enemy fire. This irritaded the navy personel that still had to run landing ships under fire.

HEY! I have that book and I remember the part where they were having a tea with dead people lying around and fire going off overhead.

As for tea, I was born in Massachusetts and they still drink a crapload there and I still drink it. My cousin who lives near Boston drinks a HUGE cup of it every day and sugars the hell out of it. I like my tea that wayt, too.

One question - in our pseudo-international store they sell PG Tips and claim it is the best selling tea in Great Britain. Is that so? I actually kind of like it.

[redcoat]

ORIGINAL: H Gilmer

As for tea, I was born in Massachusetts and they still drink a crapload there and I still drink it. My cousin who lives near Boston drinks a HUGE cup of it every day and sugars the hell out of it. I like my tea that wayt, too.

One question - in our pseudo-international store they sell PG Tips and claim it is the best selling tea in Great Britain. Is that so? I actually kind of like it.

I’m surprised tea is still consumed in Massachusetts of all places. I’d assumed that drinking tea anywhere near Boston Harbor would constitute High Treason. [:D] Is there some local tradition of tea drinking in the area?

PG Tips is one of the best selling brands of tea in the UK. I’m glad that you like it. Many Brits (and southern Irish) take their tea with lots of sugar. I don’t have lots of sugar nowadays because I know that diabetes runs in my family and I don’t want to push my luck. PG Tips is definitely preferable to the black tea that I have most often seen in the States: Liptons. I think Liptons black tea is only made for export. Lipton ice and fruit teas are OK though.

Something that should be remembered is that the taste of tea is dependent upon two things: the tea itself and the hardness of the local water. A brand/blend of tea which tastes good in one place may taste very differently in another. It is always a good idea to try several brands/blends to find the one you like most. I’ve been told that the water in many parts of the U.S. is quite hard. Some brands of tea taste a bit odd with hard water. There are some blends though – such as Yorkshire Hard Water Tea – which have been specially blended for such conditions.

[JAMiAM]

ORIGINAL: andym
I dont drink Lapsang Suchong as it tastes like burnt wood!

Oh man, that's my favorite tea of all. Then again, I'm a coffee-swilling colonial...[:D]

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: H Gilmer

ORIGINAL: Orm

ORIGINAL: warspite1


Warspite1

There was a scene in the film Gallipoli. Apparently the Aussies were sent to their deaths while the British sat on the beach drinking tea [8|]. Yeah right.......

Sadly, the stereotype of our preoccupation with drinking tea, helps make us an easy target for Hollywood (and anyone else who wants to have a go) [:(].

Anyway enough of all that, its 7.30am and I need to get started as I have a full day of household chores to get through. Mmmmm....to hell with that, I think I'll have a nice cuppa instead.

According to Anthony Beevor in the book "The Battle for Normandy" a large portion of the Brittish soldiers made a cup of tea after they had landed on Sword beach. Some made the tea while they still were under enemy fire. This irritaded the navy personel that still had to run landing ships under fire.

HEY! I have that book and I remember the part where they were having a tea with dead people lying around and fire going off overhead.

As for tea, I was born in Massachusetts and they still drink a crapload there and I still drink it. My cousin who lives near Boston drinks a HUGE cup of it every day and sugars the hell out of it. I like my tea that wayt, too.

One question - in our pseudo-international store they sell PG Tips and claim it is the best selling tea in Great Britain. Is that so? I actually kind of like it.

Warspite1

PG Tips is certainly my Tea of choice [&o]. Tea to avoid - Tetley, YUK!

[ilovestrategy]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Mrs Warspite's mum is originally from Southern Ireland. When we go round to her house, the tea seems as though its on tap! She always has a brew on the go - not that I am complaining at that [:)]

That is so cool. [&o]

[Perturabo]

Here we have mostly generic stuff like Lipton. I'm drinking mostly Lipton (which is crazily strong - a 1 bag is enough for 1,5 litres of tea) or Ahmad Tea.

[andym]

ORIGINAL: sprior

The RN drinks tea almost th the exclusion of coffee at sea. Even the Missile Comprtment of SSBNs has a boiler for making tea. (First thing you do when taking over the watch - drink tea. One of the last things, make sure the boiler is full and hot for the next watch).

Ah then theres the pot mess in a fanny stuck under a high pressure steam cock for a few seconds.Then dont forget Kye!

[sprior]

ORIGINAL: andym

ORIGINAL: sprior

The RN drinks tea almost th the exclusion of coffee at sea. Even the Missile Comprtment of SSBNs has a boiler for making tea. (First thing you do when taking over the watch - drink tea. One of the last things, make sure the boiler is full and hot for the next watch).

Ah then theres the pot mess in a fanny stuck under a high pressure steam cock for a few seconds.Then dont forget Kye!

Good luck doing that in the TG room of a nuke boat.

[Gilmer]

ORIGINAL: redcoat

ORIGINAL: H Gilmer

As for tea, I was born in Massachusetts and they still drink a crapload there and I still drink it. My cousin who lives near Boston drinks a HUGE cup of it every day and sugars the hell out of it. I like my tea that wayt, too.

One question - in our pseudo-international store they sell PG Tips and claim it is the best selling tea in Great Britain. Is that so? I actually kind of like it.

I’m surprised tea is still consumed in Massachusetts of all places. I’d assumed that drinking tea anywhere near Boston Harbor would constitute High Treason. [:D] Is there some local tradition of tea drinking in the area?

PG Tips is one of the best selling brands of tea in the UK. I’m glad that you like it. Many Brits (and southern Irish) take their tea with lots of sugar. I don’t have lots of sugar nowadays because I know that diabetes runs in my family and I don’t want to push my luck. PG Tips is definitely preferable to the black tea that I have most often seen in the States: Liptons. I think Liptons black tea is only made for export. Lipton ice and fruit teas are OK though.

Something that should be remembered is that the taste of tea is dependent upon two things: the tea itself and the hardness of the local water. A brand/blend of tea which tastes good in one place may taste very differently in another. It is always a good idea to try several brands/blends to find the one you like most. I’ve been told that the water in many parts of the U.S. is quite hard. Some brands of tea taste a bit odd with hard water. There are some blends though – such as Yorkshire Hard Water Tea – which have been specially blended for such conditions.

I cannot speak for everyone else from there, but my family drank it all the time. My cousins as well. When I visit my aunt and uncle and hang out with my cousins, my aunt is always asking, "Would you like some tea?" Any time of the day.

I'm glad PG tips isn't just some brand that we're told is popular in England but really is not. But, even if it wasn't, I'd still like it. I forget who told me about it, anyway. My sister bought some and didn't like it, so she gave me an almost full box. Bingo!