19th Century Beverages

Tea

King Charles II had married the Portuguese Infanta Catherine de Braganza in 1662. Charles himself had spent time in the Dutch capital, while in exile. The Dutch and Portuguese had been importing tea from China since early in the 1600s. As a result, both Charles II and his Portuguese bride were confirmed tea drinkers. When the monarchy was re-established, the two rulers brought this foreign tea tradition to England with them. Tea mania swept across England as it had earlier spread throughout France and Holland. Tea importation rose from 40,000 pounds in 1699 to an annual average of 240,000 pounds by 1708. Tea quickly proved popular enough to replace ale as the national drink of England. It was a hot beverage and boiling the water made it a safe drink. Tea became the favorite English beverage after 1750. In 1785, tea imports reached 11 million pounds. By 1797, tea consumption reached an annual rate of 2 pounds per capita and would increase five fold over the next ten years.

Also see Afternoon Tea

Mrs. Isabella Beeton, Book of Household Management, 1861

1789. Beverages are innumerable in their variety; but the ordinary beverages drunk in the British isles, may be divided into three classes:--

• 1. Beverages of the simplest kind not fermented.
• 2. Beverages, consisting of water, containing a considerable quantity of carbonic acid.
• 3. Beverages composed partly of fermented liquors.

Of the first class may be mentioned,-- water, toast-and-water, barley-water, eau sucré, lait sucré, cheese and milk whey, milk-and-water, lemonade, orangeade, sherbet, apple and pear juice, capillaire, vinegar-and-water, raspberry vinegar and water.

1790. Of the common class of beverages, consisting of water impregnated with carbonic acid gas, we may name soda-water, single and double, ordinary effervescing draughts, and ginger-beer.

1791. The beverages composed partly of fermented liquors, are hot spiced wines, bishop, egg-flip, egg-hot, ale posset, sack posset, punch, and spirits-and-water.

She then goes into a long discussion about tea and coffee. Her book includes recipes for making