The origin of English afternoon tea culture, the Victorian era of England was the most powerful era in Britain, occupying many colonies and dependent countries all over the world, which is known as? Empire when the sun never sets? . The strength and wealth of the country make people pay attention to the pursuit of a tasteful life, especially some rich and noble people hope to pursue new excitement in boring days to fill the emptiness and boredom of life. 1840 in the afternoon, Lady Anna, Duchess of Bedford, woke up for a nap, feeling helpless and bored, but not interested in anything. At about 4 o'clock, I suddenly felt a little hungry, so I asked the maid to go to the kitchen to find her something to eat. The servant girl went to the kitchen and saw that there was no suitable food, so she simply baked some snacks for her wife and made a pot of black tea. The Duchess of Bedford ate freshly baked bread and drank black tea, which was very useful. A few days later, several friends of the Duchess of Bedford visited, and the Duchess ordered the maid to entertain her friends with snacks and black tea. Unexpectedly, these friends praised them with one voice, visited them after they came back, and gradually expanded and extended, forming afternoon tea that was popular in the British Isles.
With the widespread popularity of afternoon tea, this way of drinking tea has become more and more complicated, and more and more attention has been paid to the equipment, decoration and refreshments of afternoon tea. As for the tea set for afternoon tea, the porcelain teapot is exquisite, and nine cups of different sizes should be selected according to the number of guests. For this reason, sugar pots, snack plates, jam, cream, forks, napkins, tray mats and other utensils are also readily available, and the decoration of these tea sets also has strict requirements. Exquisite tea set, elegant living room, melodious classical music as a foil when drinking afternoon tea, make the mood relaxed and comfortable when drinking afternoon tea, and form a simple but not shabby, gorgeous but not vulgar elegant atmosphere.
Afternoon tea is served at 4 pm. Afternoon tea is mostly black tea, such as Darjeeling black tea, earl grey (made of China black tea and bergamot), gunpowder green tea and Ceylon tea. Afternoon tea is served with smoked salmon, ham, cake, sandwich, English muffin, jam, cream and fruit.
With the development of the times, Victorian afternoon tea has gradually fallen out of favor, but it is still in the form of drinking afternoon tea at home and in the office. Have afternoon tea at about 3: 30 every afternoon. At ordinary times, several white-collar workers sit around the round table, drinking afternoon tea and eating snacks, taking a rest and adjusting their spirits. As for blue-collar workers, they are often not so laid back. They often eat and drink tea after work in the evening. This loses leisure, and drinking tea is entirely out of physiological needs.
The history of afternoon tea culture in Britain can be traced back to16th century. Westerners learned about the existence of tea through the description of missionaries. But the real taste of tea was at the beginning of17th century, when Dutch businessmen presented tea as a rare gift to the British upper class. Soon, with the rapid popularization of drinking tea in the British court, tea began to appear in various social places in Britain, and gradually replaced wine and coffee and became a favorite thing in the cup. As time goes by, tea is becoming more and more popular in Britain. In the18th century, drinking tea has become an indispensable habit of the British people and a daily activity of every household. After living in Britain for many years, I feel that English people love tea more and more, which makes China people who have been sitting on tea culture for thousands of years sigh.
The tea culture in Britain is not exactly the same as that in the East. Oriental people pay attention to introversion, charm and taste when drinking tea. Tea tasting requires meditation, and we should carefully experience the different smells of different kinds of tea, whether sweet or bitter, each with its own merits. Tea culture in Britain mainly refers to afternoon tea. Its founder is the famous Duchess of Bedfield in British history. As a close friend of Queen Victoria, the Duchess often goes in and out of the palace to chat and relax with the ladies. Due to the late dinner time of the British royal family, female companions often complain that the afternoon of dinner is too long, doing nothing and getting hungry easily. The clever duchess found that making a pot of tea with some muffin cakes can kill a long afternoon and make social conversation more interesting. So she began to invite the ladies to have tea and snacks together. Gradually, other nobles followed the example of the Duchess of Bedfield, and afternoon tea became popular in Britain. Later, with the British colonial expansion in the world, English afternoon tea has become a world-famous cultural form.
Although the reputation of afternoon tea in Britain has a long history, the varieties of tea that British people drink are actually very single, mainly black tea, which is not as good as green tea, white tea, black tea and black tea in China, and they don't pay attention to what kind of tea they drink in any season. This is probably related to the cold climate in Britain. On a rainy afternoon, when I am exhausted from lunch, drinking a cup of hot black tea and eating some salty and sweet snacks really makes people feel very warm.
What's more, in Britain, English afternoon tea? It is not only a dietary habit, but also a social behavior. See how English people drink afternoon tea. The classic way is: soak a pot of Darjeeling black tea in a bone China tea set, pour the tea into a bone China tea bowl a few minutes later, add fresh milk, sugar and whipped cream, and stir it into a thick white brown. When drinking tea, be sure to match snacks. Authentic English afternoon tea snacks should be salty mini sandwiches, English jam and cream scones, sweet cakes and gingerbread. These snacks should be placed on a three-story cake tray tower with gold-plated flowers on it, which looks very delicate. The ceremony of drinking tea can not be ignored. Both men and women should dress up as if they were attending a grand event. People can't just eat and drink when drinking tea and snacks, but mainly exchange information, comment on current events or talk about literature and art.
Tea has been introduced to Britain for nearly 500 years. In this long time, things have changed a lot. In today's diversified world, the traditions of many countries or nations have been quietly changed by the influence of emerging cultures or foreign civilizations. However, the afternoon tea culture in Britain has always been able to maintain the traditional production methods and etiquette, and even the supporting snacks have never been different in quality and quantity. In Britain, there may not be Starbucks in every town, but no matter where you are, you can find a teahouse to enjoy afternoon tea and taste afternoon tea with the same style and content. Rain or shine, holding a cup of warm English black tea, talking and laughing with new and old friends, such feelings and happiness are both present and eternal.