Jacksons of Piccadilly was a

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

tea house A teahouse (mainly Asia) or tearoom (also tea room) is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. A tea room may be a room set aside in a hotel especially for serving afternoon tea, or may be an establishment wh ...

, tea wholesaler and retailer, grocer, wine merchant, and deluxe department store, founded by Robert Jackson in Piccadilly in 1700. It is now a brand owned by R. Twinings and Company Limited, a former tea business rival. By 1815, Jacksons had earned a reputation for selling pre-blended teas direct to customers, which was uncommon at that time because people blended different teas themselves at home. The Jacksons trade empire expanded and earned several Royal Warrants for tea from numerous royals through the 19th and 20th centuries. By 1905, Jacksons had moved to 171-172 Piccadilly. An example of Jacksons' blending ability was its "The Lady Londonderry Mixture Tea". It was a blend of teas from the foothills of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), the hills of

Darjeeling district Darjeeling District is the northernmost district of the state of West Bengal in eastern India in the foothills of the Himalayas. The district is famous for its hill station and Darjeeling tea. Darjeeling is the district headquarters. Kurse ...

(in

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...

state in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

), and the tea gardens of Formosa (now the island of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

, Republic of China). The blend was originally prepared for the Marchioness of Londonderry, Edith Vane-Tempest-Stewart (1878-1959), and in 1932 she gave her permission for the blend to be registered in her name. Under Twinings, the Jacksons of Piccadilly brand offers six tea varieties, three of which are actually tisanes (

herbal teas Herbal teas, also known as herbal infusions and less commonly called tisanes (UK and US , US also ), are beverages made from the infusion or decoction of herbs, spices, or other plant material in hot water. Oftentimes herb tea, or the plain term ...

). The company also claims (although this is contested) to have invented the "original" recipe for

Earl Grey tea Earl Grey tea is a tea blend which has been flavoured with oil of bergamot. The rind's fragrant oil is added to black tea to give Earl Grey its unique taste. Traditionally, Earl Grey was made from black teas such as Chinese keemun, and there ...

Grey Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

having given the recipe to Robert Jackson & Co. partner, George Charlton, in 1830.

Gallery

Lady_Londonderry_Tea_tin_front.jpg, The Lady Londonderry Mixture Tea blended by Jacksons Lady Londonderry tea tin left side.jpg, The Lady Londonderry tea sources Lady Londonderry tea tin right side.jpg, The Lady Londonderry's consent

References

External links

*{{official website, http://www.jacksonsofpiccadilly.co.uk/ Drink companies of the United Kingdom British companies established in 1815 Retail companies based in London Companies based in the City of Westminster Tea brands in the United Kingdom Tea houses of the United Kingdom 1815 establishments in England