At Newby, we understand that tea has a rich and complex past. Over 5000 years of history are behind every cup of tea that we enjoy. Wars were fought over it, empires have risen and fallen over it, kings gifted it, and holy men meditated over the humble cup of tea. Now, tea is the most popular drink in the world (after water) and it seems such an essential part of life for many of us, but previously it was reserved for only the wealthiest and most powerful people in the world and was considered more precious than gold. Throughout history, tea was not only the drink of choice for the elite, but was also a favourite gift to show generosity and thanks. Of course it is brilliant that we no longer have to be royalty to enjoy a cup of tea, but something was lost during the democratisation of tea.

Newby Teas is part of the group that is home to the world’s largest private collection of tea ware in the world: The Chitra Collection. To see the pieces in this collection is to witness the glory and importance of tea throughout history. Many of the objects are the most extravagant and elaborate examples of craftsmanship imaginable. Many of these objects were gifts to and from nobles or aristocrats. One such example is an ornate tea glass and tea spoon, set in silver and hand painted with beautiful enamel. There is an inscription that tells us that this was a gift from a patient to Grand Duchess Vera Konstantinovna (1854-1912), granddaughter of Emperor Nicholas I, whose donations likely paid for the hospital in which they were treated. The collection also holds a silver tea set that was gifted by Queen Mary to her grandson, Prince Richard. The set was given as birthday and Christmas presents and it goes to show that tea (or tea ware) really was a gift fit for a king or queen.

Unfortunately, most people now consider tea to be a cheap commodity, rather than a precious gift. Newby Teas was founded to see the revival of the glory days of tea. Our founder, Nirmal Sethia, knows exactly how good tea can be, and he wants to turn the tide on bad tea and show the world what can be achieved through the craft of fine tea.

To demonstrate how far we have strayed from the heydays of tea I like to tell the story of when West met East. When President Nixon famously visited China, he exchanged gifts with the Chinese Premier. Nixon received a small box of tea from the Chinese premier and was confused, believing that this insult must be an act of war. A Chinese official had to step in and explain that he had been given half of the world supply of the most precious tea in China, and that it’s worth was about a quarter of a million dollars in today’s money. So what happened in the west that tea should have fallen so far?

When tea first arrived in the west, only the wealthiest could afford it, and the aristocrats who owned it would lock it up and wear the key around their necks for safe keeping. Eventually, tea became affordable to the general population and it became the drink of the nation. Tea was of a reasonably high quality at first, and was almost entirely handmade Chinese green tea. Britain gradually shifted to Indian produced black tea, as it was cheaper and better suited to survive the arduous journey by sea that it had to make.

Britain, being the industrial power-house that it was, sought to increase efficiency of production in India with machinery that would cut, tear and curl the tea, oxidising it completely and smashing the leaves into small pellets. This is how most tea is made today and is known as CTC tea. This was the first major downturn in tea quality in the west. It was at this point that the pursuit of quality tea was abandoned, and pursuit of profit began. The custom of adding milk and sugar began, in order to mask the bitter and tannic drink that this tea was producing. Good quality tea doesn’t need anything added, the character of the tea is more than enough. At Newby we understand all this and we are working to change it.

Tea is such an incredibly diverse and sophisticated drink if properly grown, processed and handled, but there are so few companies that have the respect and understanding that we do at Newby. That’s why we go by some simple rules to ensure that our tea is of the highest quality:

Source the best leaves - this means leaves from the best growing areas in the world, hand-picked in the prime seasons – in fact only about 5% of all tea in the world meets these standards. We taste and test rigorously, only utilising the highest quality. We don’t buy teas that don’t meet our rigorous tasting, pesticide or fluoride standards. It sounds so simple but this is far from the norm.

Look after the tea – fine tea is a precious thing, and like all beautiful things, it must be cared for. Tea will degrade if exposed to light, air, heat or smells. We understand the importance of this at Newby, which is why we built a state of the art facility for processing and packaging our teas in the centre of the tea growing areas of the world. By cutting down on transport times, handling each tea in their optimum environmental conditions, and packaging using cutting edge technologies, we ensure that the tea will retain its characteristics and remain fresh until it reaches your cup.

Many companies say that they sell the best, but ultimately they must all answer to the bottom line – they exist to make profit. At Newby, one hundred percent of profits go to charitable causes. Everyone who buys luxury tea from Newby also contributes to the revival of fine tea, and supports charities that protect the vulnerable, and give help to those in need. Newby exists to show the world how good tea can be, we refuse to cut corners and never compromise on quality. As evidence of our quality, we have won over 150 international awards, and are the most awarded luxury tea company in the world. With every cup of Newby tea that is drunk, we are one step closer to living in a word that truly understands what can be achieved through the craft of fine tea.