Oceanian tea
The United Kingdom is one of the world’s leading producers of black tea. This article discusses Oceanian tea production and tea culture as it relates to the global patterns of production and consumption.
Oceanian tea originates largely from the plantations in the Home Islands, Juristan, and most importantly the Royal Crown Colony of Sarnia and therefore encompasses several varieties of tea, most black. In the Home Islands, most tea is grown on plantations located on the New Brittany Islands, Rimbaldt, and Torvey. However, the teas grown in Juristan and the Home Islands derive from imported plants as camellia sinensis does not grow naturally in the subtropical United Kingdom.
Types of Tea
Black tea accounts for the majority of Oceanian tea production with the bulk of the current crop coming from the islands of Rimbaldt, Torvey, and now Sarnia. Formerly, the New Brittany Islands and Juristan also grew almost all black tea, but with the growing demand for green and white teas, UK producers in those islands have begun to shift away from an all black tea crop.
Sarnia now accounts for a near majority of UK tea production, doing so with a native variant of C. sinensis known as C. sinensis sarnia or C. sarnia which grows best in the fertile and well hydrated soils of southern Oceanian Sarnia where mild and moist, though not extremely hot, winds blow in from the ocean to the north. Among the many private plantations and tea estates is the Marquess of Salisbury who has created his own black tea from the several varieties grown across the island, referred to as Salisbury Black Tea. The tea, while extremely popular, is not often of the small and private estate but numerous blends attempting to replicate the unique flavour.
| Tea Name | Type | Growing Location | Brief Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Azazian | black | Islands of Rimbaldt and Torvey, Home Islands | Strong with a light hint of citrus taste and aroma |
| New Brittany | black | New Brittany Islands | Weaker tea with strong fruity flavouring, pale in colour |
| New Brittany | green | New Brittany Islands | Light flavour, though not too sweet |
| New Brittany | white | New Brittany Islands | Somewhat delicate, pale colour, sweet |
| Juristanian | black | Southern Juristan Province | Mild strength, bright colour and powerful aroma, slightly astringent |
| Juristanian | green | Southwestern Juristan Province | Very strong, just slightly sweet |
| Juristanian | white | Southwestern Juristan Province | Very delicate, sweet, light but very refreshing |
| Royal | black | eastern Oceanian Sarnia, near Port Royal | Very strong, smoky flavouring and strong aroma, noticeably pungent |
| Avalonian | black | southeastern Oceanian Sarnia, near Avalon-on-Avon | Very strong, hint of citrus, dark in colour |
| Salisbury | black | southwestern Oceanian Sarnia, Salisbury Estate near Atherton | extremely strong tea, noticeably strong smoky flavouring with a hint of citrus |
| Atherian | black | southwestern Oceanian Sarnia, near Atherton | extremely strong, astringent taste |
Oceanian Tea Culture
Oceanians consume, on average six cups of tea a day with many people in New Britain, Oceania, Artega, and Bennington consuming eight or nine cups. Owing to the large demand, many families and individuals settle for lower quality (though often not by much), but cheaper to acquire black teas, the overwhelming favourite among Oceanians. However, there is a significant portion of the population who prefer higher quality teas and it is the growing plantations in Sarnia that often fill the more specialised and demanding needs of the tea aficionado.
While coffee houses and cafés remain popular in the United Kingdom, even more popular are tea salons which specialise in specialty teas and unique blends often created in-house. Accordingly, breaks are often found in places of business and government at or around 15:00 local time. Often times, serious business and government meetings and conferences are held during afternoon tea. Dinner is held later in the evening and followed by an evening tea. Correspondingly for some there is also the morning tea, held early in the working day often at or around 10:00.
Oceanian Tea Business
Given the large domestic market and correspondingly large tea production in the United Kingdom alone, the agribusiness focusing on tea is a significant, strong, and growing field in the otherwise declining area of Oceanian agriculture. The amount of tea grown in the United Kingdom is a staggering 19 billion tonnes and as such has precipitated the creation of a tea bourse in Queensbury, which serves as a regional distribution centre for tea within the United Kingdom.
Given the small production of green and white teas, domestic production is incapable of meeting domestic demand and green and white teas are often imported in large quantities from numerous tea-growing countries where quantity does not always mean lesser quality. Correspondingly, the high quality of Oceanian teas has established the United Kingdom as a quality tea exporter to many countries.
