There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea. – Henry James
A post in collaboration with Tea Eats, The Beautiful Blog and C’s Style Diary to give you the ultimate guide to hosting a Spring High Tea! Be sure to read through to the bottom where you will find free printables and links to the food, decor and fashion aspects of your high tea!
IT ALL BOILS DOWN TO THE TEA
Good tea makes your tea party. Tea should take you on a journey, an adventure of sorts. This isn’t going to happen with a standard tea bag, that’s for sure!
LOOSE-LEAF TEA VS TEA BAGS
When you look at the detail, loose-leaf tea beats tea bags hands down. Here’s why…
Tea Bags
- Are often broken ‘dregs’ of tea leaves. This compromises the quality of the leaves, losing a lot of the aroma and nutrients found in tea.
- Lack “flow” in their material, resulting in the brew struggling to diffuse through the tea bag into the water.
- May also carry their own flavour, which does not belong in your tea! The flavor should be all about the leaves, not the bag that they come in.
Loose-leaf tea
- Doesn’t have the low-quality leaves, diffusion and flavour issues that come with tea bags.
- Provides more flavour, aroma, antioxidants and all-round deliciousness.
You can find some beautiful tea diffusers, which will also double up as décor elements at your table.
CHOOSING YOUR TEA
When it comes to choosing your tea, consider your guests and their personalities and tastes.
- For the normal, everyday tea drinker, Ceylon tea and herbal tea is your best bet.
- For the more adventurous tea drinker, consider green teas (matcha is a hot option at the moment), spiced teas and buchu.
Here are my Top Three Favourites, all from Lady Bonin’s Tea:
Moulin Rouge (Rooibos, Vanilla, Rose Buds)
This herbal tea is smooth, sexy and soothing. With real rose buds in the mix, it’s one of my top favourites and oh-so-glamourous!
To serve:
As it is, without milk. A spot of honey if you need to sweeten it up.
Follow the steep instructions on the packaging and don’t over/under steep.
Benefits:
Antioxidant, caffeine-free, antibacterial and contains Vitamin C & B.
Rooibos Chai
A beautiful twist on the standard Rooibos offering. It’s a gentle and playful mix for your guests to “ooooh” over.
To serve:
With or without milk. A spot of honey if you need to sweeten it up.
Follow the steep instructions on the packaging and don’t over/under steep.
Benefits:
Antioxidant, caffeine-free, anti-inflammatory, lowers blood pressure & cholesterol, improves digestion and lifts the mood.
Ceylon
For the traditionalists, a good ol’ Ceylon tea is always a win.
*Warning: if you try this tea, you won’t go back to tea bags off the Spar shelf, sorry (not sorry).
To serve:
With or without milk. A spot of honey if you need to sweeten it up.
Follow the steep instructions on the packaging and don’t over/under steep.
Benefits:
Rich in antioxidants, lowers blood pressure and boosts immunity
(Tea Photo Credits: Lady Bonin’s Tea)
FOR YOUR GUESTS TO TAKE HOME
Why not send your guests home with a little sample of their favourite tea leaves?
Here’s a handy printable mini-envelope template to use to create your own tea take-aways!
YOUR FULL HIGH TEA EXPERIENCE
Now that you’ve got your tea sorted, let’s take a look at your food, decor and fashion:
The Beautiful Blog for your decor
C’s Style Diary for your fashion.
Hint: There are some gorgeous and free printables for you there too…
It’s a lot of information to remember, so we’ve gone ahead and created a checklist for you (thanks to Tea.Eats and Lin Lopes for the design):
Happy High Tea!
