Issue 6: Yorkshire Proper

As this newsletter is entitled Tea and True Crime, I thought it was about time that I start including the tea portion a bit more. For those of you interested, my go-to cup of tea is a Yorkshire Proper Brew. Which I only discovered while writing this newsletter - is only in Australia.

Created by Author, but used images from Yorkshire Tea Australia

History

The roots of Yorkshire Tea date back to 1886 when Charles Edward Taylor and his brother created their company, CE Taylor & Co. This was later shortened to “Taylor’s”. The towns of Harrogate and Ilkley opened up “Tea Kiosks” and in 1962 a local tea room competitor ‘Betty’s’ took over the company. They renamed it to ‘Taylors of Harrogate’, and formed the Bettys & Taylors Group, which is still owned by the family of Fredrick Belmont, who founded 'Bettys Tea Rooms'.

Yorkshire Tea launched in 1977. It was originally marketed as a tea for Yorkshire people but grew to become a national brand in the UK. In 2009 the Prince of Wales (now King Charles III) granted Yorkshire Tea a Royal Warrant. In November 2019 Yorkshire Tea was the number one selling brand of tea in the United Kingdom with 28% of the traditional black tea market.

It is really a shame that we do not get the advertising campaigns that they have in the UK, here in Australia - as they have some awesome ads. Apologies if you cannot see it due to restrictions.

I found out from my fellow UK Teaspert (Tea Expert), that there is a brand of Yorkshire Tea called Hard Water. This is specifically for people in England, particularly London, where the water is hard. This means that there is more limescale which makes it taste gross. Unlike in Australia where we have room for tanks to store rainwater and filter, people in the UK drink filtered or bottled water. My first thoughts were that it sounds very similar to what people say about Adeliade’s Water Supply.

My Thoughts

For me, the Yorkshire Proper Brew is how I start my day, and also my default tea. I was surprised while researching that it is not sold in England. We also do not have the extensive range of ‘special teas’ that Yorkshire Tea put out, apart from a few selective department stores.

Before Proper Brew - I drank what would be considered the ‘normal’ brand of Yorkshire. I found that ok but needed something a bit stronger as I take a good dash of milk with mine.

I have tried a lot of different blends and brands - every time I come back to Yorkshire. Whether it is the taste, the memories I have to tea, or the English part of my heritage that I am reminded of when I drink, Yorkshire feels like a warm hug in a mug.