Blending with fruit, flowers or other flavorings can yield a tea that's uniquely appealing.
BY MAURA KELLER C
ustom tea blends are part art, part science, and a fairly big business. According to Joseph Simrany, president of
the Tea Association of the USA, the tea industry in the United States is doing exceptionally well, and for the first time ever we have exceeded the amount of tea typically imported into the U.S. "The U.S. is actually the second largest tea importer in the
world, second only to the Russian Federation," Simrany says. "We are also the sixth largest consumer of tea in the world, following China, India, the Russian Federation, Turkey and Japan." The wholesale value of tea sold in the U.S. has grown from less than $2 billion in 1990 to nearly $8 billion today. And while the single largest segment is ready-to-drink tea, followed by traditional tea (primarily teabags and instant tea)
22 | November 2011 • www.specialty-coffee.com
sold in supermarkets, specialty tea is about a $1 billion industry and the fastest growing segment. "The latest estimates on free-standing tea establishments
have them growing from about 200 nationally 15 years ago to about 4,000 today, excluding coffeehouses that also serve specialty tea," Simrany says. As such, blended teas are proving to be a hot commodity
with consumers looking for flavor enhancements that will bring their favorite beverage to the next level. So what are the key ways in which today's specialty teas are
blended? According to Michael Cramer with Adagio Teas, flavorings are typically added to the tea by spraying the tea leaves with the essence, or bits of dried fruit or other additives are simply mixed in.
