Tea and Tea Drinking

Book excerpt: Tea drinking has changed dramatically since Samuel Pepys drank the first recorded cup of tea in 1660. Initially, tea was consumed by men in coffee houses and by women in the home following a strict code of conduct, and tea was so expensive that only the extremely wealthy could afford it. Today however, tea holds a unique position in British culture; it is hard to imagine the British without their afternoon cuppa. This lively and beautifully illustrated book tells the story of how tea has become Britain's national drink.