Freedom Walk participants commemorate Patriot Day.

Image Via  U.S. Airforce

At Bigelow Tea, the terms community and service are more than corporate catch-phrases. We embrace volunteerism as a means to give back to our community, which is really our extended family. Special days that honor our community and our country are important to us, as in the observance of Patriot Day, September 11.

Bigelow Tea knows that September 11, 2001 was a galvanizing moment that led to a myriad of emotions, images and contemplation. We instantly remember “where I was when…” and that date still evokes stories of faith and heroics. Ultimately, its memory reveals the resolve of a country and its people. In the face of a brutal attack came hope; from the ashes came a pressing need to heal the wounds of a country. All of us at Bigelow Tea are moved by the community of remembrance and tribute in honor of our fallen fellow Americans.

A flag flies over the WTC debris.

Image via Wikimedia Commons

Such was the thinking on December 18, 2001, when the observance of Patriot Day was signed into law with flags flown half-staff and a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m. EDT (marking the first plane’s impact). The President’s proclamation called on state and local governments, and all citizens, to actively honor the memory.

A memorial to fallen NYC Firefighters.

Image Via U.S. Air force archive

In 2009, the Patriot Day Presidential proclamation declared it a National Day of Service and Remembrance, imploring Americans to volunteer in their communities as a way of honoring the victims and heroes of September 11, as well as those who are currently serving in uniform. America responded, organizing many events and opportunities across the U.S.

President Obama joining AmeriCorps members and volunteers

Photo, by Ralph Alswang, via Corporation for National & Community Service

There are many opportunities to devote time in your workplace, amongst friends, online and next door on September 11. Through community-minded volunteerism, we each work to keep the United States a nation of caring and compassionate people. Bigelow Tea is grateful for your participation!

Since we here at Bigelow Tea are always looking at the health benefits of tea, we love to share all the good news we find.  And since September is National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, this is a great time to mention the findings from one study we mentioned previously.  Research suggests that properties found in tea may actually slow the progression of prostate cancer – good news for all of us this month, including the estimated two million plus American men who are currently living with prostate cancer.

Thanks to research and scientific studies, we know that antioxidants found in tea may have a positive effect on life-threatening conditions such as prostate cancer.  Prostate cancer is a disease in which malignant cancer cells form in the prostate; according to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, prostate cancer is the most common non-skin cancer in America, eventually affecting one in six men.

Luckily for tea lovers, studies have shown that the antioxidants – that naturally occur in green tea, as well as blueberries, pomegranates and acaì – are reported to help neutralize the free radicals that are linked to the development of cancer.  That’s one more reason to enjoy Bigelow Tea as part of your healthy lifestyle, and perhaps seize the opportunity to take another look at Bigelow’s herbal teas, or perhaps some of our green teas with pomegranate, acai and blueberry, or our many flavored teas, including pomegranate and blueberry. So many delicious possibilities!

Labor Day, the symbolic end of summer, is finally here. Beach houses are being closed up for the year, schools have opened their doors, and fall is in the air. At this point in the calendar year, we feel mixed emotions; while we lament the end of long summer days filled with iced tea, grilling and baseball, we look forward to the arrival of cool evenings, football season, and more reasons to drink hot tea!

The first Monday in September, Labor Day has been a legal holiday since 1894. At Bigelow Tea this is certainly a special day for us, and we are proud to salute laborers all across our great nation — especially our fantastic community of Bigelow Tea employees, who work so hard for our family business.

Labor Day march, circa 1900.

Image via the Library of Congress

So this year, as you enjoy your last big cookout, lazy boat ride or exciting ball game of the summer, make sure to raise your tea cup to all the workers whose labor is responsible for this holiday. As the U.S. Department of Labor states on its website: “It is appropriate … that the nation pay tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation’s strength, freedom, and leadership — the American worker.”

We couldn’t agree more. And, being blessed with a team of tireless and passionate employees here at Bigelow, we truly appreciate the value of their hard work and dedication these past 65 years — and counting!

Enjoy your day … and your tea!

Tea in Ireland is not a mixture of Shamrock leaves. It’s not even green! Rather, their tea is typically a mixture of Assam, Ceylon and other rich black teas. Called “Irish breakfast tea” in the United States, Irish tea is very similar to the robust Bigelow English Teatime and Bigelow English Breakfast Tea.

The Irish take their tea seriously. They drink a lot of it – 2.9 pounds per person per year (second only to the English at 5 pounds). And they like it strong.

Apparently, the Irish got used to drinking strong tea because early on all their tea came through England, which was willing to part only with its stronger, more bitter teas at the time. In any event, most Irish usually drink their dark, full-bodied tea with milk, and they are careful to pour the milk into the cup first, which traditionally kept their cups from cracking due to the heat of the tea.

Tea plays an important role in Irish culture. There always seems to be a kettle of water boiling for another pot of tea to welcome guests, stimulate conversation or just pass the time. The Irish drink tea all day and night but there are at least three ritualized tea times: “elevenses” at 11:00 a.m.; afternoon tea at 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., typically served with scones or other tasty treats; and high tea at 6:00, which is actually the evening meal.

Photo via compfight.com

And tea in Ireland goes way back. In 1744, George Berkeley, the Bishop of Cloyne in County Cork, gave it his blessing. “Tea water,” he said, “is of a nature so mild and benign as to cheer but not inebriate.” We heartily agree, so drink up! Enjoy your cuppa tea, which comes from the Gaelic “cupan tae.”

Touch and Pour Red Tea Kettle from Bigelow Tea

A tea kettle is a simple thing, really, just a vessel for getting water hot enough to turn tea bags into a glorious cup of tea. But the pleasure of listening to the water hissing and bubbling and anticipating that first sip of hot, fresh tea is undeniable. Yes, kettles can be used for other hot drinks, but we at Bigelow Tea are especially partial to a tea kettles first and primary function: making tea!

Though electric kettles are convenient, the traditional stovetop kettle continues to be the most popular type in the United States.  Sometimes the comfort of tradition is more important than speed! And each kettle has its advantages:  stainless steel kettles are efficient and, like glass and ceramic kettles, don’t affect the taste of the water.  Cast iron kettles on the other hand, are heavier and more durable – and even put a little healthy iron into the tea!

Always run a little cold tap water for a few seconds to aerate kettle, and then fill; bring your water just to boiling, then pour into over your tea bag in the cup. (Using loose tea from Bigelow? Steeping time is a matter of personal taste, but generally, black teas steep the least amount and herbals the most.)

Kettles are not just functional they can make a statement. If we didn’t care about appearances, any old pot on your stove would do, wouldn’t it?  But the appearance matters: beauty and style can also be soothing, just as the tradition of a cup of hot tea is comforting. That is why in addition to our many delicious teas, Bigelow Tea also provides both pretty and practical kettles . No matter what your style, we want you to be soothed and satisfied with your great tea and great tea kettle!

Image via David C. Bigelow’s Archive

You know that family and community are both very important here at Bigelow Tea, ever since the very beginnings of Ruth Campbell Bigelow’s foray into the world of Constant Comment® now 65 years ago. With Bigelow Tea, we know that keeping company with family and friends makes life that much all the more delicious.

In that spirit, we believe one familial branch deserves a more prominent place in our vast family photo album. Enter Camellia Sinensis, the granddaddy and chief contributor to cup after cup of our storied past. In fact one could argue it is our family tree. Muse enough for David C. Bigelow, Co-Chairman Bigelow Tea, to grab his trusty camera and snap these family portraits during recent visits to the Charleston Tea Plantation, documenting our favorite evergreen.

Image via David C. Bigelow’s Archive

More than just a pretty face, the tea tree is capable of prodigious growth. Here you see the stages of growth, starting with the tiny cuttings…

Image via David C. Bigelow’s Archive

And with plenty of nurturing, the tea plants grow and grow….

Image via David C. Bigelow’s Archive

And zoom to the mature healthy plants, getting ready for harvest time. How quickly the kids have grown!

Throughout the celebrated history of Bigelow Tea, Camellia Sinensis has reigned alongside our fantastic Herbal Teas. Tea appreciation has generated tea societies and countless tea experiences across the globe. Author Erika Dillman writes that “After water, tea is the most consumed beverage in the world. It’s drunk hot, cold, plain, with sugar, with milk, and in the Himalayas with yak butter.” (We wonder if that’s for special occasions only.)

Suffice it to say, Camellia Sinensis has deep roots in our Bigelow Tea history, so welcome its bounty home to your family for a picture-perfect sip.

Harmony (wa) – Respect (kae) – Purity (sae) – Tranquility (jubuo)

These four words are the essential principles of the Japanese Tea Ceremony (or Chanoyu, meaning “hot water for tea”) –  words to live by. In Japanese culture, the tea ceremony is an elaborate event, dating back more than 1000 years, when tea leaves were brought from China to Japan by Buddhist priests, who incorporated the tea ceremony into daily religious life. Later the ceremony became a social occasion focused on aesthetics, spanning a spectrum of Japanese culture –attire, ceramics, décor, floral design, cuisine and even the delicate sculpting of ashes in the fireplace! The Japanese tea ceremony became an art form, taken so seriously that each participant – whether the host (teishu), the host’s assistant (the hanto), or the guests – is required to perform the ritual according to specific guidelines:

Image via Asia-art.net

Traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony Procedure

The Host:

1. Clean the serving bowls.
2. Boil a pot of water.
3. Serve a sweet treat before the tea – combination of the sweet and bitter (tea) flavors symbolizes Harmony.
4. Mix powdered bitter green tea (Matcha) and water, then serve the tea to guests

The Guest:

1. Bow when you receive the bowl of tea (chawan)
2. Take the chawan with your right hand and place in palm of your left hand.
3. Turn the chawan clockwise, three times, before taking a sip.
4. When drinking your tea, slurp loudly – this lets the host know that you enjoyed the tea.
5. With your right hand, wipe the the chawan where your lips touched.
6. Turn the chawan counterclockwise, once, and return it to the host.

Bigelow Tea knows that tea is a wonderful ritual to be enjoyed in good company and in peaceful solitude, like our Japanese friends! (Cheers!)

Tea does play a lovely and important supporting role in two films based on Jane Austen’s novels: Sense & Sensibility and Pride & Prejudice. In both movies there are several scenes where the main characters—sisters—are pouring tea, sharing tea and drinking tea. It’s all very proper and English and civilized.

Image via Coffeeworks.blogs.com

Quite on the opposite end of the spectrum are the scenes from this year’s Alice and Wonderland and the original classic Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971) where the Mad Hatter and Mr. Wonka certainly enjoy their tea. In the recent Alice, Johnny Depp’s Mad Hatter joins a tea party in a bizarre world filled with characters like the Cheshire Cat and the White Rabbit.

And Willy Wonka, played by Gene Wilder takes a few moments to sip from a daffodil teacup at the end of the song “Pure Imagination” … and then he eats the teacup itself!

Image via Coffeeworks.blogs.com

We know tea has played a role in other great films over the years…but we’d love to hear from you, our tea-drinking fans. What’s your favorite movie that features tea in a scene? Let us know!

It’s sweltering outside and the air is heavy with humidity. Waves of heat are radiating off the streets and the pavement is nearly melting. The Dog Days of Summer are here. Naturally, you reach for… a steaming hot mug of tea. Sounds crazy, right?

But maybe not. It was British Prime Minister William Gladstone who famously remarked in the late 1800s, “If you are cold, tea will warm you; if you are too heated, it will cool you…”

People in the warmest climates such as central Asia, India, and Africa have sworn by this age-old custom. The theory is that drinking a beverage closer to your body temperature does a better job of cooling you off, because the body doesn’t have to expend energy (producing heat) to warm up the cold liquid. You’re better able to absorb the liquid, the thinking goes, when its temperature is closer to 98.6 degrees. In contrast, an icy Frappuccino, for instance, can make the heat of the day seem even more unbearable.

Photo via www.flickr.com

Another school of thought holds that a hot drink makes you sweat, which works to cool you off the same way perspiration does. Naysayers who doubt that a hot drink can make you feel cooler say that you’ll raise your body temperature more than the sweat will lower it.

But even skeptics agree that taking in fluids – whether it’s iced or steaming – is the right prescription for avoiding heat stroke on a sweltering day. Here at Bigelow Tea, we strongly concur. Hot tea, cold tea: it’s all good. Gladstone was on to something after all.

Dutch East India ship building site in Amsterdam, 1750

Image via en.wikipedia.org

Tea is sometimes thought of as the quintessential English drink, but it was the Dutch who introduced tea to Europe and America. Holland began importing tea to Europe in 1610 when it was the world’s most successful seafaring nation.

Initially, tea was a luxury item throughout Europe, costing what would today be $100 a pound. Early on, the Dutch began to drink tea with milk and sugar, which contributed to its growing popularity. The introduction of clipper ships in the 1730s brought the price dramatically lower and helped make tea ubiquitous.

Image Via copyrightexpired.com

Some historians say that Dutchman Peter Stuyvesant brought the first tea to America in 1647, when he arrived from Holland as governor of New Amsterdam, the Dutch settlement later renamed New York.

Along with tea, the Dutch imported Chinese tea ware too, since European pottery, including Delft pots, couldn’t handle boiling water. Later, the Dutch were the first Europeans to fabricate the ceramic vessels for making and serving tea that are similar to the ones we use today. The Dutch also introduced the term thee (“tay”), the Chinese word for tea. Tea is still pronounced “tay” in Holland, Ireland, France, Spain and many other countries.

After it began importing tea, the powerful Dutch East India Company established a tea monopoly that lasted most of the seventeenth century. Its best customers were England and the American colonies. In the mid 1700s, the Dutch aided the American revolutionaries by providing a steady supply of tea to smuggle past the English!

So, even though Holland is a relatively small country, it has played a big role in spreading the wonder of tea around the world.