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Earl Grey Tea

Wikipedia: Earl_Grey_tea | Teaviews: earl-grey-tea 
Last Updated: Sep. 17, 2015 

About Earl Grey Tea

Loose-leaf Earl grey tea from Lipton. Public domain photo by Chamaeleon, Wikimedia Commons.
Earl Grey tea is a black tea flavored with oil from the peel of the bergamot orange (Citrus bergamia). The tea is named after Charles Grey, a prime minister of the UK who was a member of the Whig party.

Most Earl Grey tea is made, as it was historically, with black tea, typically a Ceylon. Recently, as green and black teas have increased in popularity, green and white varieties have also become available. This style has even inspired Earl Grey rooibos, a caffeine-free herbal blend produced by substituting rooibos for tea.

Earl Grey tea has a strong and distinctive aroma that renders it easily recognizable as its own style, regardless of what variety of tea is used as a base. Many different varieties of black tea are used as the base for this tea. The amount of bergamot oil used also varies widely, ranging from blends where bergamot dominates the aroma to teas with only a hint of bergamot.

Earl Grey tea is a favorite of Captain Jean Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

The bergamot orange

Cross-Section of a Bergamot Orange, © Jacopo Werther, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Although tea enthusiasts generally know that Earl Grey is flavored with the Bergamot orange, deeper knowledge of this variety of orange is not common in the world of tea. The Bergamot orange is likely a hybrid of Citrus limetta (Mediterranean sweet lemon) and Citrus × aurantium (Bitter orange), which is itself a hybrid.[1]

This orange is mostly cultivated in south Italy, mostly concentrated in a very small stretch of land in Reggio Calabria. Other regions of production include Ivory Coast, southern France, and Antalya Province of Turkey. For Earl Grey tea production, the peel of the orange is pressed and the essential oil extracted; this oil is then used to flavor tea.

The fruit flesh itself is used in marmalade, and the juice is used for medicinal purposes, but not drunk as a beverage.

"Wild bergamot", Monarda sp.

Flowers of Monarda didyma. Photo by Nellswiki, licensed under CC BY 3.0.
The bergamot orange is not closely related to the "bergamot" plants (Monarda sp.), "wild bergamot", "Oswego tea", or "bee balm", which are all native to North America and in the mint family. These plants, however, have a very similar aroma, and make excellent herbal teas.

These herbs can also be blended with black tea to yield a flavored tea closely resembling Earl Grey tea. The variety on the right, Monarda didyma, is sometimes called Scarlet Bergamot for its scarlet blooms. This species was used as a substitute for black tea following the Boston Tea Party.[2]

Health benefits and concerns unique to Earl Grey tea

Earl Grey is a black tea and thus has similar effects on health to other black teas. However, oil of bergamot also has other bioactive properties and may have other health benefits. Although it has not been extensively studied, some preliminary research shows that it may have neuroprotective effects, protecting the brain against damage caused by a chemical known to damage neurons.[3] Like other citrus though, it may cause photosensitivity. Bergamot also contains one of the compounds responsible for grapefruit drug interactions, so it may also cause similar interactions.

References:

1. C.T. Federici, M.L. Roose, R.W. Scora, RFLP Analysis of the Origin of Citrus bergamia, Citrus jambhiri, and Citrus limonia, Acta Horticulturae (ISHS), 535, pp. 55-64, 2000.


2. Foster S, and Johnson R, Desk Reference to Nature’s Medicine, National Geographic, Washington, DC, 2006. (p. 34-35).


3. M.T. Corasaniti et. al., Cell signaling pathways in the mechanisms of neuroprotection afforded by bergamot essential oil against NMDA-induced cell death in vitro, British Journal of Pharmacology, Vol. 151, No. 4, pp. 518-529, June 2007.

Recent Earl Grey Reviews — RSS rss icon

85 / 100
Picture of Darling Grey (Teabags)

Darling Grey (Teabags) from Whittard of Chelsea

Style: Earl Grey Tea – Region: Blend
Feb. 24th, 2024

Given how much of a waste of time and steeping water Whittard's standard Earl Grey was, expectations for this version ran low. What a pleasant surprise instead!

Not only did this tea actually have a detectable and pleasant aroma upon opening the wrapper and sniffing the dry bag, that carried over quite strongly i...

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65 / 100

Culinary Teas Earl Grey from Culinary Teas

Style: Earl Grey Tea – Region: ?????
Jan. 29th, 2024

This is a pleasant EG, but very much on the lighter side. There is not a lot of bergamot flavor, and the tea is a little thin - but it makes a perfectly enjoyable cup. I would recommend this to someone who likes a mild Earl Grey.

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75 / 100

Lavender Earl Grey from Culinary Teas

Style: Earl Grey Tea – Region: ?????
Jan. 20th, 2024

This has a little lavender flavor plus a lot in the potpourri-like aroma, and there is plenty of bergamot too. With lemon or lime and sugar, it has a candied orange peel flavor. I preferred it with milk and sugar, which is a little more subtle. A good change of pace from the usual Earl Grey.

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70 / 100

Baroness Grey from Culinary Teas

Style: Earl Grey Tea – Region: ?????
Jan. 11th, 2024

I will always give a flavored Earl Grey a try; sometimes they are very impressive, sometimes not. It is interesting to see how the teamakers alter the EG formula - I have had them with lavender, chocolate, rose, and vanilla, maybe others too. This Baroness adds lemon, cornflower, and rose along with the bergamot (and...

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45 / 100
Picture of Special Blend Tea Bags with Earl Grey

Special Blend Tea Bags with Earl Grey from Sadaf

Style: Earl Grey Tea – Region: Blend
Dec. 17th, 2023

This tea came from a Middle Eastern eatery, and I took home an extra bag to try on home well water (instead of our heavily chlorinated city stuff that gets fishy this time of year when the lake turns over). Turns out not all the "fishy" element was from the water!

Here's the second Earl Grey tea in a row I've rev...

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Review 11 teas to get on this list!

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Most-Rated Earl Grey

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Earl Grey

Brand:Twinings
Style:Earl Grey Tea
Region:?????
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
28
43 Ratings
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Earl Grey

Brand:Bigelow Tea
Style:Earl Grey Tea
Region:Blend
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
17
22 Ratings
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Aged Earl Grey™ - Bergamot Black

Brand:Numi Organic Tea
Style:Earl Grey Tea
Region:Assam, India
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
60
11 Ratings
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English Afternoon

Brand:Ahmad Tea
Style:Earl Grey Tea
Region:Blend
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
42
7 Ratings
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Earl Grey Decaffeinated

Brand:Twinings
Style:Earl Grey Tea
Region:?????
Caffeine:Decaffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
4
7 Ratings

Top-Rated Earl Grey

Picture of Earl Grey Decaffeinated Black Tea

Earl Grey Decaffeinated Black Tea

Brand:Bigelow Tea
Style:Earl Grey Tea
Region:Blend
Caffeine:Decaffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
100
3 Ratings
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Sapphire Earl Grey Tea

Brand:Novus Tea
Style:Blue Flower Earl Grey
Region:Blend
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Sachet
80
5 Ratings
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English Tea No. 1

Brand:Ahmad Tea
Style:Earl Grey Tea
Region:Blend
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
76
5 Ratings
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Earl Greyer

Brand:Republic of Tea
Style:Earl Grey Tea
Region:?????
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
73
6 Ratings
Picture of Earl Grey Bravo

Earl Grey Bravo

Brand:Adagio Teas
Style:Blue Flower Earl Grey
Region:Sri Lanka / Ceylon
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Loose
62
5 Ratings

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