In 1833, Earl Grey, the Earl of Howick Hall, at that time British Prime Minister, suspended the price monopoly the East India Company had over the tea trade with China. The originally pure Chinese tea was lightly flavored with fine bergamot oil. This additional fragrance, provided by the Chinese, was intended to protect the tea from the taste of mold and tar that could arise from the long voyage at sea to royal England. Thus this tea received its name and, still today, Earl Grey is the embodiment of the finest English tea.
Our Earl Grey is based traditionally on a China blend, and is a must to every standard tea assortment.