The tea-drinking habits of highly effective people: Londoners love a healthy green option, while up north they practically inhale a traditional brew
First thing in the morning, work takes a definite second place to tea – over half of the UK needs a steaming brew to get them up and ready for the day, and we are nine times more likely to head to the kettle than check our work emails when we wake up.
But our love of tea is not evenly spread – according to research by Tetley, while people in London and the rest of the South East are committed tea drinkers, they do not consume nearly as much as people elsewhere.
Wrexham in north Wales came top of the chart, with 91 per cent of its population having at least one cup of tea every day. Other than that, the passion for tea grows stronger the further north you go – in Newcastle, a fifth of the population gulps down no less than ten cups a day.
The type of tea favoured varies, too – unlike the rest of the nation, which goes for a traditional blend, 20 per cent of Londoners opt for green tea, viewing it as a healthier option.
A slight difference was also uncovered in the way the genders like to sip their tea – in the case of women, it is viewed more as a drink to be enjoyed alone and in peace, while for men a cup of tea is more of a social event.
Two minutes to perfection
It's no good dipping a tea bag in and taking it straight back out again – you have to let it stew if you want to reach the heights of perfection. The general consensus across the UK is that two minutes is the ideal stewing time if you want the best possible brew.
Other factors Britons take into consideration when creating their perfect cup of tea are:
- Where to drink it: the most popular place is a comfy sofa
- Brand of tea: over a third of us view this as imperative to a great cup
- Mug of choice: if it's not in the right container, half of us feel a cup of tea won't live up to much
- Milk versus tea bag: which goes first? This conundrum puzzles us all, but slightly over half go for the teabag first
- Favourite accompaniment: exactly half of us believe a fry-up is the best possible addition to a cup of tea