Seeing is believing faq
What goes into Birchall Tea?
We taste over 5,000 teas a week and only the top 1% is deemed good enough to go into our tea. Our black tea comes exclusively from the very best estates in the East Africa Highlands where the climatic conditions are ideal for growing tea of unparalleled quality. Here the tea we use, is grown at high altitude where there is plenty of rainfall, sun, cold temperatures and rich volcanic soil all combining  to make the perfect tasting English Breakfast tea. Very few areas in the world bring all these climatic elements together, which means East Africa is a very special place to grow tea!
Why is Birchall different to other tea bags?
Our tea only ever uses 100% main grade black leaf tea. We never use any tea dust or stalk or other fillers to bring down the cost of our blends as it would debase the quality enjoyed by our customers. You can see the difference yourself! We have over 150 years experience in the tea industry, so like to think we know a thing or two about tea. This is why our flagship Great Rift blend is the UK’s most awarded tea for taste, winning 14 consecutive Great Taste awards. In fact, our entire range has won a Great Taste award, demonstrating our commitment to quality.
Why is tea black?
Tea turns black during the oxidation process, similar to how a banana will turn black once you peel it. Real tea leaves turn full dark black in colour, and the younger and softer the tea leaves the better.
Why does some tea look brown?
Many tea bags contain low grade (Off Grade) tea that comes from the stalk of the tea bush rather than the tea leaves and buds at the top of the tea bush. These ‘Off grade teas’ turn brown in colour during the tea making process, where as the tea leaves and buds from the tea bush turn black. These are classed by tea tasters as ‘main grade black tea’. The brown ‘off grade’ teas are much cheaper but lack flavour, strength, colour and are used to bring down the cost of a blend, but of course they change the quality of the tea that people are consuming.
Why don’t you use whole leaves?
Birchall does use whole leaf tea, and more importantly we select carefully handpicked tea leaves to ensure only the top two leaves and a bud from the bush are used. However, we then cut the tea leaves so they brew beautifully for a strong tasting English Breakfast tea. Large leaf tea has it’s place, but if you want a strong cup of tea you need to increase the surface area per gram to ensure it infuses properly, hence the reason for our Great Rift blend (The most awarded tea for taste in the UK) we take the very highest quality whole leaves and then cut them. Our Heritage blend uses the highest quality whole leaf tea (which we don’t cut) and this blend produces a lighter more delicate tasting tea, ideal for drinking with or without milk or with a slice Lemon. If brewing with Lemon we recommend you remove the lemon after 15 seconds, however this is down to personal preference.
Why do you cut the tea?
Cutting the whole tea leaves means there is more surface area, which is important when brewing. This means it releases much more flavour when infusing with hot water. The result is a strong and fresh tasting tea full of flavour after brewing for only one or two minutes. The difference is clear to see after brewing, and it of course it tastes delicious too!
What is tea dust and stalk?
The lower grade teas are often used to add weight to the tea bag and are normally the result of harvesting the tea with machinery or non-selective handpicking. Tea stalks are hard and flavourless and can even look like wood chippings. Tea dust occurs when the stalk of the tea bush has been ground up too much in the tea making process at the factory.
How do you filter out tea dust and stalk?
The low quality brow dust and stalk ‘Off grade teas’ are separated from the ‘black main grade’ tea in the factory at the end of the tea making process via a series of vibrating sieves and static electricity that separates the dust. At Birchall, we have offices and a factory at origin which means we are able to buy direct from source in East Africa. We only select teas from estates that achieve the highest picking standard and have therefore been carefully hand-picked. We have been in the tea industry for over 150 years, and will never compromise on quality, by using low grade tea.
Why are some teas green?
Green tea has been carefully heated after picking, so that it doesn’t oxidise and turn black. This locks in a lot of goodness from the tea leaves, and results in a more grassy tasting tea to enjoy without milk.
How can I check my usual tea against Birchall tea?
Simply take your usual tea brand in your kitchen cupboard, and buy a box of Birchall Great Rift (from birchalltea.co.uk, Ocado or Amazon). Then rip open both tea bags and pour the contents onto a sheet of white paper. You’ll easily be able to see the difference in Birchall Tea which only contains 100% main grade black leaf tea. Does your usual blend have low cost brown ‘off grade’ tea stalk and dust in the blend? Remember to share your findings using #checkyourbag. Hurry – Great Rift has 25% off from 1st -20th Oct from birchalltea.co.uk. We hope you enjoy Birchall tea as much as we love making it!
