Facts about Tea and Tea Consumption

One thing that is obvious is that tea is also enormously popular, but just how popular? Current annual production of tea leaves is in the region of two billion pounds and yes, that is a billion. Considering it only takes an ounce or so to make a cup, that sure is a lot of tea. And that is the annual production meaning every year.

Well, you say, at least tea has less caffeine than coffee. Yes and no. Tea leaves have about 1-3% caffeine by weight, more than twice as much as a similar weight of coffee beans. But, it's true that a prepared cup of coffee will have about 100mg of caffeine and tea only about 60mg. And, after all, people drink tea and coffee much more often than they eat the leaves or beans.

Beer, wine, coffee and tea all have health benefits some of which are the result of the very same compounds present in the drink. Antioxidants are present in both wine and tea. Caffeine, in moderate amounts, has been shown to have healthy effects.

But, let's face it. For most people it isn't history or economics or science or medicine that creates the huge, centuries-old and present-day demand for tea. Tea is simply wonderful to drink.

Whether you want a robust pick me up in the morning, or a relaxing hot cup at night, tea is - dare we say it - perfect. It clears out the cobwebs and at the same time relaxes. Iced or hot, green or black (or Oolong, which is in between), or even red or white (yes, they exist), tea tastes great and makes you feel wonderful.

Throughout history and up to the present day, drinking tea has been both a delightful experience and a social ceremony. Yes, people will certainly sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee or a mug of beer or glass of wine together.

But in very few cultures is there anything like a 'beer ceremony'. Ok, in a way there are, among college students. But, calling those 'ceremonies' is really stretching a point. Anyway, tea ceremonies aren't exclusive to Japan. In England it's practically an afternoon requirement. New York has clubs devoted to the fine art of tea.

East and west sometimes agree on very little. But all over the world - China, Turkey, Russia, Australia, the U.S. and the UK, and all the points on the map in between enjoy a cup of tea.

So wherever you are, you can now have a Wu Yi in a Yixing clay pot, or a Rooibos in a Danish glass cup. You can enjoy a lemon grass tisane or even a blueberry vanilla Ceylon. What you can't do, if you are among the over one billion tea drinkers in the world, is resist a perfectly brewed cup of the world's finest drink. Tea.