Review of The Tea Book by Louise Cheadle and Nick Kilby

The Tea Book: All Things Tea is written by the owners of Teapigs, a tea shop centralized in New Jersey, USA.

The book is a beautiful tour around the world of tea without becoming dry and boring. It comes in five parts.

Part one is about tea-drinking traditions in various parts of the world, from Russian samovars to tea shacks serving masala chai in India. The world has developed so many ways to drink this one type of drink, and the variety and beauty in it is astounding.

Part two is about the history of tea, explained through engaging illustrations with humorous undertones. I would have liked a deeper dive into the history, but that is a book on its own.

Part three is about the journey of tea leaves from the plant to the pot. It highlights the differences in treatment and environment that produce different kinds of tea. The differences between white, green, and black teas are clearly explained, as well as the different varieties of each type of tea. The delicate leaves take on such a wide variety of flavors, it's hard to believe it's all the same plant.

Part four explains the details about drinking tea—what's acceptable or rude in different areas of the world. It also gives the results of a Teapigs poll on what type of biscuits (to use the British term) are best for dunking. They list the types of tea good for different moods. The flavor of this section is quite playful, even more so than the rest of the book.

Part five is recipes. Some use tea in the food, and some are made to pair with certain types of tea. They looked absolutely delicious.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book and it made me want to explore Teapigs as a source for possibly ordering tea in the future. I have the website bookmarked in my folder of a dozen or so tea shops, and I'll be making a thorough study of it very soon.

If you love tea like I do, definitely check out this book!

Photo Credit: Katherine Elizabeth

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