The more-than-predicted snowfall last Friday was not enough to dampen anticipation or cancel the lecture and tea tasting Leah Holdcraft and I partook in on Saturday afternoon (20-Feb-2024). In conjunction with the VA250 commission, local historian Tracy Gillespie gave a talk about the conditions leading up to the “Destruction of the Tea” (also referred to in period writings as “The Incident at Griffin’s Wharf” and “The Transaction of the Tea”) and provided details about the event and the customs laws that affected the Dartmouth, the Eleanor, and the Beaver. They couldn’t unload the tea, and they couldn’t ship back to England. The Sons of Liberty, some of whom took the secret of their participation to the grave, came up with a daring solution.
We then had a tea tasting and sampled all five of the blends that were in the chests dumped into Boston’s Harbor.
BOHEA, which became a slang term for tea in the 18th century, was contained in 240 chests thrown overboard. It is a black tea with a decidedly smoky (and somewhat bitter) taste.
CONGOU, also a black tea, had a transparent red cast to it (before milk and sugar were added) and probably a dozen or so chests or this sort was dumped.
Sixty chests of SINGLO, a buttery yellow green tea with a sweeter taste, were discarded.
It is reported that YOUNG HYSON was favored by John Hancock, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington, just to name a few. Another green variety, it tasted much smoother than the black teas, and 15 chests of that went over.
LAPSANG SOUCHONG was similar to the Bohea with its smoky flavor. I again added milk and sugar to my cup, but most of the other people in attendance commented how much they enjoyed it straight. There were 10 chests of this kind in the Destruction.
All the destroyed tea chests were marked EIC for East India Company. No other cargo was disturbed in the holds of the three ships at Griffin’s Wharf. The Sons of Liberty sent a 10,000-pound sterling message across the Atlantic—and there were consequences.
Incidentally, Oliver Pluff & Co. out of Charleston sells all five blends individually (loose leaf or bags) or in a sampler pack with a small bit of all five types (loose leaf). https://oliverpluff.com
Historian Tracy Gillespie gave the presentation about the December 16, 1773 “Destruction of the Tea” in Boston Harbor.
Leah Holdcraft and I went to the lecture on the Boston Tea Party at the Dodona Manor in Leesburg.