I love tea

Especially Persian tea

Tea didn’t find its way to Persia until the 17th century when it became an expensive luxury. Qajar attempts to grow tea in Iran had been unsuccessful until Haj Mohammad Mirza, also known as Kashef-ol Saltaneh, was sent to India as the Iranian consulate. He managed to learn the secrets of tea plantation and slipped home to Lahijan with some 4000 tea plants and the rest is history.

As of today, a big part of northern Iran along the shores of the Caspian Sea is suitable for the cultivation of tea. Especially in the Gilan province on the slopes of Alborz, large areas are under tea cultivation and thousands of people work in the Persian tea industry.

That region covers a large part of Iran’s need for tea. Iranians have one of the highest per-capita rates of tea consumption in the world and since old times every street has a Châikhâne (Tea House). Châikhânes are still an important social place where older generations gather with their friends for a chat over a delightful cup of Persian tea.