“Tea’s proper use is to amuse the idle, relax the studious, and dilute the full meals of those who cannot use exercise,” declared the 19th-century English writer Samuel Johnson. Join us for a slideshow on the fascinating history of this world’s most-popular beverage–from China, Tibet, and India, to England, Russia, and the U.S. Along the way, we’ll also discuss the many types of tea, tips and hints for brewing it, its health benefits—and how tea influenced human societies: cultural mores (meditation, mixed-gender parties, high tea), craftmanship (porcelain, caddies, clipper ships) and politics (the Tea Route, Opium Wars, American War of Independence).

Register before January 15th to receive sample teas. Packets of tea samples available to pick up from the high school before the class, so you can brew them yourself (instructions included) before or after the class. Please not that tea sampling is not the main focus of this class; this is intended to be about the history of tea–its varieties, culture, arts & crafts, historical figures (Sir Thomas Lipton!), politics, and on.