TWO
INVENTIONS
Americans were never again as heavy tea drinkers
as Canadians, who did not experience this interruption,
although after the revolution George Washington took
three cups at breakfast. The United States, however,
was the site of the two striking inventions that changed
tea style iced tea and the tea bag.
The first was born at the St. Eouis World's Fair
in 1904. The tea merchants had set up a colorful Far
East House complete with several turbaned Indians
to promote Indian black tea. The weather was scorch-ing
and nobody was buying the hot beverage. The British
Richard Blechynden, who was in charge, in desperation
thought of pouring his tea over ice. This was a hit.
Iced tea is now drunk by the gallon in the, southern
United States, and out of the total of 46 billion
servings in the nation as a whole, 37 billion are
iced. Until that time tea drinkers in the J States
had clung to their early preference of China green,
but black soon outstripped it. As for the tea bag,
in 1908 New York importer Thomas Sullivan sent out
samples of his various kinds sewn into little silk
bags. Someone j mistakenly made an infusion with the
leaves still in the bag, and soon Sullivan's customers
were complaining when his tea was not in bags. Now
half of all tea drunk in the United States is made
with tea bags, and the amount used continues to grow.
Today the United States has become the world's second
biggest tea importing nation, purchasing a total of
100 million tons from all countries. It is also China's
second largest customer, taking 20,000 tons in 1988.
U.S. buyers spent $15 million on Chinese tea in 1985.
The price averaged $1.20 per kilogram, while the British,
who prefer higher grades, paid $1.55 per kilogram.
U.S. imports are mostly black tea for use in instant
tea and tea bags, but more Americans are now showing
an interest in Chinese green and oolong teas.
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