Queen Elizabeth II
A regular day at Buckingham Palace for Queen Elizabeth begins at 8:00am with a cup of Darjeeling tea (and milk) that is brought in by her Personal Assistant. The burning question is: is the Queen a Tiffy (tea-in-first) or a Miffy (milk-in-first) ? ? ?
The British Standards Institute has proclaimed that milk is best poured in before the tea, though this is debated by some tea lovers. Those in favor say that the hot water scalds the milk, which brings out the tea's flavor. Others have speculated that the milk-in-first theory prevents the china cup from cracking in reaction to the boiling water.
But I guess when you’re a Queen, broken tea cups don’t present a problem. Her Majesty reportedly enjoys her tea by adding the milk afterward.
How interesting with we started our Pictorial Tea Tour with Elizabeth I, and ended with Elizabeth II!
This concludes our virtual tea tour through the National Portrait Gallery, London. I hope you have enjoyed seeing the faces of some of the more well-known tea people throughout history.
Don't forget - you can experience the real tour next autumn (13-18 Sept 2010) on the Tea in London trip. Details coming soon!
3 comments:
I like knowing what the Brits call the different opinions on milk--Miffy and Tiffy. And personally I think this Elizabeth II was at least once upon a time more beautiful than Princess Diana. Of course that doesn't really matter; what's important is how they take their tea. --Jason
I greatly enjoyed your tour, and today I even learned new words, Tiffy and Miffy. Love it!
Thanks for this wonderful blog series, Denise. I thoroughly enjoyed it!
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