National Tea Day: Tea Trends for 2019

Today (April 21^st) is National Tea Day; a day to celebrate the UK’s favourite brew. Whether you are drinking at home, in a café, an elegant tea room, the local pub or a hotel away from home – this is the day to celebrate tea and perhaps try a slightly different take on your usual cuppa.

Tea is often considered quintessentially British. While it has been around for centuries, it has never seen as much innovation as it is now.  And 2019 promises to be a great year for tea.

So, what are the tea trends to look out for? Belle About Town spoke to
Kim Havelaar – an accredited tea sommelier and the founder of Roqberry, a new brand of tea focused on bringing big flavour to the iconic drink.

A younger audience

The increased focus on health, and the subsequent lower alcohol consumption by younger generations, has meant that the average age of a ‘tea drinker’ has significantly decreased. Most tea companies report that the biggest rise in tea consumption has been with the 25-35 year olds. With new artisan brands entering the market and offering creative blends with exciting new flavours, tea is shaking off what might have been a dusty image previously and becoming a cool and highly versatile drink.

Quality

When tea was first introduced to the UK, it was a luxury whole leaf product that only the very rich could enjoy. When the teabag was introduced in the early 20^th century and as demand grew, the production of tea had to be expanded and purpose-built tea plantations were introduced, mainly in Africa. These often used machine harvesting and what is known as the CTC (cut-tear-curl) method. The quality of the tea inside the teabags was of a lower grade, also known as ‘dust’. For decades, this lower grade paper teabag continued to be popular across UK households and, in fact, it still is today.

Change has been happening over the last few years though, as hot drinks in general continue to become more premium. Higher quality whole leaf is becoming popular again and, at the same time, standard black tea is giving way to more novel speciality black tea varieties, green tea and herbal infusions.

Many other high-quality ingredients such as real cacao, freeze-dried fruits and whole spices are being used to create interesting flavour profiles. Artisan tea brands are raising the bar on quality and will generally blend by hand to keep the fragile whole leaf intact.

The emphasis on quality and flavour is certainly a trend we expect to see continuing – with the consumer willing to pay that little bit more for a cup of tea that really piques the taste buds.

Sustainability

As the world is growing more environmentally conscious, the demand for plastic-free increases. About 96% of teabags currently still contain polypropylene, a synthetic resin, which is added during the sealing process. High-quality, 100% biodegradable pyramid teabags have entered the market and the pressure is now on the large tea companies to change over to plastic-free teabags.

Health

There’s a marked increase in general consumer interest and demand for healthy food and drink, and lower sugar intake. Tea’s natural ingredients and minimal calorie content make it an attractive drink to many. Tea also contains L-theanine which is said to reduce stress and increase alertness.

In addition, tea is full of antioxidants, with green tea containing the highest levels of a very potent antioxidant called EGCG (Epigallocatechin-3-gallate) – and this has led to an increase in the popularity of green tea and green tea blends like Sencha Gyokuro and Long Jing.

Naturally caffeine-free herbal infusions containing ingredients with additional health benefits are also seeing a rise in demand.

Food and tea pairings

Restaurants and bars are seeing a significant increase in demand for alcohol-free drinks. Lunch time sittings, especially during business meetings, often require alcohol-free beverages. General demand is also increasing in line with health concerns and research suggests that millennials drink far less alcohol than previous generations.

Tea has a fantastic ability to complement food dishes with a variety of flavour profiles. Therefore, more restaurants now offer a tea and food pairing menu alongside their wine pairing menu. Tea can even be brewed cold overnight or served iced.

This is a trend that is just starting and one that will grow and grow. It opens up new avenues for food venues and allows diners to have a full ‘food and drink’ experience without over-indulging in alcohol.  

Flavours

While English Breakfast and Earl Grey are favourites that are here to stay, fresh expressions of these classics are becoming popular, such as the smooth and more modern Citrus Grey and The Big Smoke, a smoky breakfast blend that perfectly complements your full English. As the demand for green tea continues to grow, so do its flavour varieties. A

• With high quality ingredients, hand blended in the UK, Roqberry offers both unique flavoured blends as well as top quality artisan varieties.  Flavours include fresh expressions of classic blends, such as smooth and sunny Citrus Grey, as well as extraordinary new fusions like savoury Sushi & Spice. The naturally caffeine free infusions range from spiced Turmeric Chai to floral Bloom Box. And the speciality Tea Legends include artisan varieties like Jasmine DragonPearls that remain true to tradition.