Chapter 15
The History of Tea (Book 2)
A Fortune for the East India Company
The mid 19th Century brought a sea change to the tea industry. Demand continued to grow all over Europe. China's artisanal tea growers and the challenges of the China market due to all the well-known political and social disasters happening there, raise concerns. The idea to make a go at growing tea in India is seriously discussed.
We also meet Charles Bruce, the Father of India's Tea Industry. The botanist, horticulturist, and man of adventure Robert Fortune is also discussed. We close the episode with the exploits of Fortune's first China trip and his discovery that green and black teas both come from the exact same species of plant, Camellia sinensis. The famous Guangcai porcelain of Guangzhou (Canton) is also briefly introduced.
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