Teabagging

We all know the foundation of the British Empire was built on tea, and I’m partial to a few cups a day myself.

Normally I buy Tetley Tea, but at the supermarket yesterday I opted for a slightly cheaper brand at around £2.50. Then, at the very last moment, I swapped them for the scummiest, cheapest brand of tea bags at a cost of 38 pence.

My thinking was, just as gold is gold, tea is tea. No amount of money is going to change a tea leaf into something else. In fact, the packet even said, “Ingredients: 100% black tea.”

Now some might argue there are different qualities of tea leaves, and perhaps even slightly different varieties. But surely, after the leaf itself has been picked, dried out, crumbled up, shipped halfway across the world, placed into a little bag and then stewed in boiling water, the difference in taste will be negligible?