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October 30, 2018

Teapot Tuesday – Tea Goes American – A Must See

13 Comments/ 148/ 1

Don’t worry.   It’s Just Life has not been overtaken by the Russians.

A recent change to Google settings has prevented many folks from leaving comments on my blog due to the increased awareness of security.  I joked with my IT manager (my son) that I was sure the Russians were going to take over my blog and use it for nefarious shenanigans.

Of course the conversation digressed and I was absolutely POSITIVE that Putin is looking at Teapot Tuesday and going to infiltrate my friends and readers somehow.  So rest assured that my blog now has that sacred “S” after the http and you are all safe.  Sorry it took me so long to get that accomplished but now you can comment away freely without fear of lack of security.


 

Today I thought I would share a little blast from the past.  Enter this little booklet that my sister gave to me that she found in a stash of stuff she had tucked away.  Who knows where these things come from but when anyone sees anything tea related (as well as llama related, book related, googly eyes related, the list goes on and on) they think of me.  That makes me smile. This gem is copyrighted from 1939 by the Tea  Bureau out of New York City.

I am amused by a lot of the text and the pictures.  The booklet is geared for the American tea hostess and urges the American hostess to become “acquainted with modern smart fashions in American tea drinking.”

Apparently, according to their research, Americans drink “rivers of tea”.  Now I am not sure what a river of tea consists of now but apparent in 1939 the United States was  the world’s second largest importer of tea and Americans consumed a whopping 20 billion cups annually.  I had to look up some stats for today and according to The Tea Council in 2017:

Americans consumed over 84 billion servings of tea, or more than 3.8 billion gallons. About 86% of all tea consumed was black tea, 13% was green Tea, and the small remaining amount was oolong, white and dark tea.

It appears the river is growing.

The booklet goes on to describe tea drinking as :

  1. A social trend
  2. A Collegiate activity where tea was on the training table menu and was used as a pick me up.  “Smile”
  3. Tea in the office became a norm around the “rest pause” at 4 pm
  4. The national obsession with skiing encouraged tea drinking and a new drink – the Ski-Ball- was created. The Ski-Ball was a hot spiced tea served with sugar in a mug like glass with cloves and lemon and a cinnamon stick used as a muddler.
  5. Smart spots created “tea bars” where folks could gather for a spot.

Oh the things that can be learned from reading a booklet from 1939.  Favorite word of the day appeared to be “smart” as everything described was smart as in a smart hostess or smart ways of serving various types of tea.

The booklet goes on to describe the different kinds of tea and the benefits of tea (mainly digestive) that have led Americans to embrace the beverage.  Of course with this rage over tea comes recipes that will accompany the teatime.

For Casual Tea a Beignet Souffles perhaps while a Debutante Tea just screams for a plate of Madeleines.

The Collegiate Tea might have Croute Savoyarde while the Bridge Tea guests might love Stuffed Clams.

Let’s not forget the Cafe Society Tea where Pineapple Fritters might be found.

The He-Man’s Tea shows off with a Hot Melted Cheese Sandwich.

The Bride’s Tea might feature  Honeymoon Frozen Chocolate as the perfect accompaniment.

I don’t know about you but I am thinking my cup of tea is definitely lacking something now. I need to up my game and whip up a quick recipe of Chicken Crumpets to go with my afternoon cuppa.

Do you have something special with your cup of tea?  A cookie or biscuit perhaps? Please let me know in the comments section .  We have a few days left to Comment for a Cause for UMCOR Hurricane Florence Relief.

 

 

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13 Comments

Leave a comment
  1. Dianna
    October 30, 2018 at 06:45 am

    Oh, this was fun! I just love old magazine/newspaper articles. Isn’t it amazing how much our country has changed? Each photo caption was more interesting than the one before. Thanks for sharing…guess I need to make sure I have an “s” after my http. And if I don’t, I have NO idea how to fix it!!

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann Chiles
      October 30, 2018 at 07:14 am

      So glad you enjoyed it, Dianna. I was just cracking up at some of the captions and thought it was a fun thing to share today. The “S” thing is a Google thing. A red flag pops up if you are using a browser like Chrome (which I don’t use) and it makes folks think twice about leaving a comment as it says the site is not secure. I doubt it is very difficult to change it but I knew Aaron could do it in a minute while it would take me so much longer to figure it out. 🙂

      Reply
      1. Dianna
        October 30, 2018 at 08:43 am

        Checked and mine has the “s”! Yay!

        Reply
  2. Darlene
    October 30, 2018 at 06:59 am

    What an amazing find. I love it!! Nice to see how people thought years ago.

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann Chiles
      October 30, 2018 at 07:12 am

      Isn’t it great? I just loved the captions and the whole idea of the Collegiate Tea cracked me up. Somehow I can’t imagine a bunch of college guys standing around with pinkies out having tea. Oh wait —THEY used sturdy mugs instead of china cups. 🙂

      Reply
  3. treadlemusic
    October 30, 2018 at 09:41 am

    I try not to accompany my tea with anything considered a “nosh”, as I do plenty of that at other times…..sigh……….. BUT my absolute fave tea is Dragon Pearls Jasmine with a fine drizzle of a very floral honey. Loved all the info/history on America’s history with tea. I think it’s coffee today, though!!! Or, maybe, it’s the caffeine!!??

    Reply
  4. Mama's Empty Nest
    October 30, 2018 at 10:23 am

    Oh my goodness, what a great find! I love looking at old pamphlets, articles, and books. So entertaining. I think it’s time for tea, don’t you?

    Reply
  5. Shirley Matthews Dunn
    October 30, 2018 at 03:35 pm

    Who knew tea had such a amazing history. The book is very full of charming ideals.

    Reply
  6. susi_snaps
    October 30, 2018 at 09:05 pm

    I love stuff like this. It’s so interesting to see what it was like back then.

    Reply
  7. Josh
    October 31, 2018 at 10:40 am

    The-options-are-plen-TEA-ful!

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann Chiles
      October 31, 2018 at 05:47 pm

      Hehe—you are so witty!

      Reply
  8. priscillaking
    November 07, 2018 at 02:05 pm

    Oh crumpets, of course! ;-D The gluten-free alternative to tea cakes, crumpets, scones, and muffins is rice cooked in tea. It’s a fine old Japanese tradition that has never appealed to the American palate, somehow. Mine either.

    Reply
    1. Beth Ann Chiles
      November 08, 2018 at 07:20 am

      Haha. To each his own, right? I guess the traditions we grow up with are what we tend to gravitate towards.

      Reply

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