Memorable Meals: Taking Tea

When I was a junior in college, I spent a semester interning in the parliament in Dublin, Ireland. Before I left, my parents helped equip me with the best backpacking-across-Europe luggage we could find for my petite frame, while I devoured travel and history books beefing up on my knowledge of the Irish culture. And I was sure to layer every U2, Pogues, and Van Morrison album into my music collection. But it was my grandmother who equipped me with one of the most valuable lessons of all: taking tea.

A self-proclaimed Anglophile, my grandmother had spent countless afternoon hours over many years sipping the deep amber, slightly astringent beverage with her dear friend, Doris Wright from Oxford, England. Before I left, she wanted to be sure I understood the importance of tea in the average Irish day.

Every time I visited her, she’d greet me at the door and announce that she was going to “put the kettle on.” She’d steep a strong pot of loose-leaf black tea, usually English Breakfast, or the bergamot-infused Earl Grey. Then she would set out a couple of rose-patterned tea cups, a bowl of sugar, a small creamer of milk, and a plate of assorted cookies.

At first, I wasn’t a fan of the bitter beverage. But I soon learned to take my "cuppa" as the British and Irish do, with a little sugar and a dash of milk. Suddenly the afternoon treat took on a smooth, silky texture that partnered nicely with crumbly shortbread or an assortment of sugar cookies.

For the next hour or so we’d engage in conversation on just about everything: family, politics, travel, religion. Nothing was sacred when we shared a cup of tea. Before long I realized I was not only learning the finer points of taking tea, but also deepening a relationship with an invaluable influence in my life.

In Ireland, I quickly learned that tea wasn’t only a leisurely afternoon pastime, but a short, abrupt break to the morning as well. You’ve heard of “elevens-ies?” It’s for real. If you’re in class, in a meeting, working on a test or writing a formal Parliamentary Question, if it’s mid-morning and the people around you are breaking for tea, you do too. (If only for a brief 15 minutes) This ritual reminded people that work was important, but life was more important—something you didn’t see much back in the States...and still don’t.

While on the Emerald Isle I’d take tea with colleagues, strangers, and new-found friends. I tried all sorts of black teas, green teas, and flavored teas. And I loved pairing it with thick cuts of Irish brown bread for breakfast or a couple of digestives-- a semi-sweet cookie made with course brown wheat (sometimes dipped in chocolate). It became a regular way of life; something I wished I’d be able to take back home with me. As if I could somehow re-introduce this tradition to the States. Unfortunately, I think the appreciation for taking tea went overboard with the large crates of it at the Boston Tea Party.

Still, it’s something I know I can count on when I visit my grandmother. I lived in Ireland more than 10 years ago. But to this day, when I visit my grandmother, she still puts the kettle on, breaks out the China, and serves up a rich pot of tea. Perhaps that’s all that really matters.