The Steaming Changes of Tea-Drinking Traditions in Ireland
“In Ireland, you go to someone's house, and she asks you if you want a cup of tea. You say no, thank you,
you're really just fine. She asks if you're sure. You say of course you're sure, really, you don't need a
thing... Well, she says then, I was going to get myself some anyway, so it would be no trouble. Ah, you
say, well, if you were going to get yourself some, I wouldn't mind a spot of tea, at that, so long as it's no
trouble and I can give you a hand in the kitchen... you both end up in the kitchen drinking tea and
chatting.”
–
C. E. Murphy, Urban Shaman1
Listen, tea-drinking is important. But what tea-drinking isn't, is simple. Tea drinking is a common act of
hospitality in Ireland, and there are certain cultural expectations in this ritual which one must fulfill before a
cup of tea can be drunk; specific powers at play between host and guests. This view is suggested by C.E.
Murphy, who is an American-born writer with Irish roots, in this excerpt of her novel, “Urban Shaman”. To
many people, drinking tea is an integral part of life; a way of inviting guests to feel welcome in their homes,
or enjoying a half-hour of peace and quiet, indulging in the comfort of a familiar routine.
Amongst the plethora of stereotypes, an especially well-worn cliché is the tea-loving Englishman or woman.
There are many literary references to the English tradition of tea drinking2, and should you query a random
stranger on what their impression of a typical Brit. is, the answer will inevitably involve the phrase “loves to
drink tea”. Yet, if consumption is measured per capita, the nation whose citizens drink the most tea,
estimated at 3kg in 20113, is in fact Ireland, the Emerald Isle4.
Tea was first introduced to Ireland in the mid-17th century5 as an upper class luxury, but it swiftly evolved
1Murphy,
C. E., “Urban Shaman”, Harlequin Enterprises AU, 2011, Chapter Eight, retrieved from
http://www.amazon.com/Urban-Shaman-Walker-Papers-Book/dp/0373802986#reader_0373802986
2Some examples of literature which expound the British tea-drinking culture include the “Sherlock Holmes” short
stories by Arthur Conan Doyle and Douglas Adams' “The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy”.
3Retrieved 30/11/2013 http://www.chanui.com/tea-facts © 2011 for the assumed 2011 figure.
4Retrieved 30/11/2013 http://www.tea.co.uk/tea-glossary-and-faqs ©2013 and
http://dailyinfographic.com/50-insane-facts-about-ireland published on September 16, 2013 for statistic.
5Retrieved 5/12/2013 http://pouringtea.com/2013/03/21/tea-drinking-in-early-nineteenth-century-ireland/
March 21 , 2013
into an integral tradition on all levels of society, with the average Irish now drinking 1,184 'cupan taes'6 a
year7. Generations of Irish children have gathered 'round a table with hands outstretched, waiting for
benediction in the form of a steaming mug of hot tea. At first confined to the aristocracy as a high-priced
indulgence, tea began to fall in cost after the repeal of the Navigation Acts8 in 1849, allowing the larger
populace of Ireland to participate in the luxuriously time-consuming drinking rituals that had been
established.
The uses for tea are multiple and largely seen as beneficial; you can use tea as a poultice to treat infected
eyes, you can entice calm within an anxious father-to-be with it; dip biscuits into it; use the ritual of teadrinking as a means to bypass time or provoke nostalgia; keep a mug near you and simply smell the warm,
scented air rising from it; or employ tea as psychological reassurance - after all, we have all come to
appreciate that whenever there's a problem, the solution will always be to 'have a cup of tea, dear'. Of
course, you can also simply drink it. With such a variety of uses, it is no wonder that by the 19th century, tea
had become a staple beverage for the Irish. It became common to keep a pot of tea brewing all day, the
better to steep and strengthen it, as well as to provide constant sustenance and a way to entertain visitors
at a moment's notice.
However, this development proved controversial, especially in post-Union Ireland, due to the heightened
counter-revolutionary anxiety of England, which incited concerns about the indolence of the Irish
peasantry. Tea held negative associations for reformers, who, according to Dr O'Connell, saw it as the cause
of “addiction, illicit longing and revolutionary sympathies”9. Consequently, tea-drinking was associated with
6A
'cupan tae' is the Gaelic for 'cup of tea', and is a commonly used term for tea in Ireland. Other names for tea
include 'cha' (the slang version) and a 'cuppa'.
7Retrieved 5/12/2013 http://dailyinfographic.com/50-insane-facts-about-ireland published on September 16,
2013.
8Also known as the British Acts of Trade, these laws were passed due to the rise of mercantilism and were
enforced in England throughout the 17th, 18th and early 19th centuries. Ireland's classification as a foreign
country led to a loss of benefits which England, and Scotland subsequent to the 1707 Act of Union, received
through their preferential position in the Acts. This was because tariffs were enforced on Irish goods in
English markets, while none were permitted to be placed on English goods in Ireland. Retrieved 5/12/2013
http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/history/navigation-acts.html,
www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/406991/Navigation-Acts ©2013 and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Ireland_%281691%E2%80%931801%29#.22Grattan.27s_Parliam
ent.22_and_the_Volunteers, last edited 17 October 2013.
9Retrieved 6/12/2013 http://pouringtea.com/2013/03/21/tea-drinking-in-early-nineteenth-century-ireland/
Direct quote taken from referenced source: “'A Raking Pot of Tea' : consumption and excess in early
nineteenth-century Ireland”, Literature & History. October 2012;21(2):32-47
a variety of social issues, as the lower-classes, especially rural dwelling Irishwomen, were targeted with
accusations of social backwardness, laziness and an inability to do their wifely duties due to time-costly tea
consumption. English reformers dispensed pamphlets denouncing tea to many Irish households,
highlighting the wastefulness of buying the unnecessary, non-nutritional substance and the squandering of
sugar; a scarce resource at the time. It became increasingly evident that the drinking of tea was subverted
as a class definer through the upsurge of lower class citizens drinking it, and the change in subtext related
to tea-drinking; no longer a sign of wealth, it transformed into a signifier of laziness.
Despite (and in spite of) the reformist discouragement of tea-drinking, the Irish maintained a pot of tea at
all times10, with some Irishwomen using this act to manifest their defiance towards the English. Tea
continued to be the standard Irish hot beverage, with robust blends from English auction houses being
purchased until WWII11. Resultantly, Ireland began importing tea from their countries of origin; Assam tea
from India, Ceylon tea from Sri Lanka, and more recently, Kenya tea from Rift Valley12. These teas form bold
blends with high tannin content which retain their distinct flavours and are able to withstand the customary
addition of up to one third of a cup of milk13. While the rest of the world views these often malty blends as
variations of Irish Breakfast Tea, to the Irish, strong tea is simply the norm. Traditionally, when drinking tea,
the Irish will first pour the milk, and secondly the tea, stirring in sugar to taste14.
“In an ever changing world, tea provides much needed consistency”15, claims Orla Donohoe after her Irish
semi-state company, Bord Bia, conducted research about products in supermarket shelves. The familiarity of
tea, not because of its unchanging qualities, but its steadfast companionship to people throughout their
lives for generations past, plays no small part in its popularity today. The inclination to drink tea is a cultural
10Retrieved
6/12/2013 http://oldfashionedliving.com/irishtea.html
stopped as a result of the Irish choosing to remain neutral in WWII and forbidding the English from using
their western ports. England reduced Ireland’s ration of tea, a consequence attributed to either vindication,
or the assumption that the German blockade was keeping England from getting enough tea. Retrieved
5/12/2013 http://www.examiner.com/article/how-the-irish-drink-tea March 18, 2010
12Retrieved 14/01/2014 http://ratetea.com/topic/breakfast-teas/41/ Last updated: November 8, 2011 and the
first two comments about Twinnings Irish Breakfast Tea; mpierce87 and teabrat
http://steepster.com/teas/twinings/739-irish-breakfast circa 2011 and 2010 and
http://tea.wikia.com/wiki/Irish_breakfast_tea
13Retrieved 6/12/2013 http://oldfashionedliving.com/irishtea.html ©2013
14Retrieved 5/12/2013 http://www.examiner.com/article/how-the-irish-drink-tea March 18, 2010
15Retrieved 6/12/2013
http://www.bordbia.ie/industryservices/information/alerts/Pages/TearetainsappealwithIrishconsumers.as
px?year=2011&wk=10 Donohoe, Orla (Consumer Foods Division, Bord Bia), published 11/03/2011
11This
one, a tradition which is ingrained into children as they watch their parents conduct themselves
ceremoniously into the kitchen; striving to pour the perfect cuppa. The social customs that have integrated
themselves into the act of tea-drinking remain largely the same as when tea was first imported into Ireland,
and this constant has become a comfort to people all over the world, as they hold in the recesses of their
mind that no matter if they have had an awful day at work, no matter if the Internet is evolving too fast for
them to catch on, they will always be able to brew their own cup of tea “mar ba chóir dó a bheith16”.
Livné Ore
16This
is the Irish translation of properly/ as it should be (i.e. comme il faut) from an online translation system.
Apologies for any inaccuracies.