Colonial Bohea- Tea by the Pound
Description: Bohea tea, (pronounced “Boo-hee” - Ukers 510), was by far the largest tea import during colonial times. Sometimes called Bohea Souchong or Lapsang Bohea, the blend originated in China with trade to the British and Dutch East India Companies. It was so popular that the word bohea became the slang term for tea. The blend varied wildly, consisting of broken orange pekoe, pekoe, and souchong dumped in a pile and then sifted, typically the scrap tea of lower quality leaves, but was considered high quality by the colonists.
Notes: Smoky, winey, warm. Lighter smoky flavor than lapsang souchong.
History: In the Boston Tea Party, 1586 chests of Bohea were destroyed.
Source: Oliver Pluff & Co. offers the historical black tea bohea blend. Originally from the Wuyi Mountains in Fujian, China, the name Bohea is the same as the name Wuyi (武夷). The modern tea market offers tea from the Bohea (Wuyi) region, as well as the historical black tea blend version.
Hand Blended and Packaged by Oliver Pluff & Co. Charleston, South Carolina