Blue garden in a teapot

On a balmy Saturday afternoon, a luxury at Towerwater is to relax while having tea under the great oak on the lawn.

Our love of tea is well-known. Wherever we go, a proper teapot and loose-leaf tea is a must. In a time where teapots are a growing curiosity and tea is generally made with a bag in a mug, we still prefer to enjoy our tea properly brewed, from a cup and saucer. It is after all more than a functional exercise for us, it is an occasion.

We decided to enjoy some tea we bought in Bruges during our recent visit. The selected tea for this Saturday afternoon under the oak, was Het Brugs Theehuis’s Jardine Bleu. It is an aromatic tea that conjures up images of country gardens with fruit flavours and floral hints.

The names of the teas in the shop were what first attracted me. I liked Winter Dream. The idea of cooler weather appealed to me on that extraordinarily hot day in Bruges. The cooler interior of the shop and the spiciness of the black tea were in themselves refreshing.

The Jardine Bleu tea reminded me of the Towerwater Garden blue agapanthus, cornflowers, forget-me-nots and blue roses. The tea had the fragrances of summer at home, and after five weeks in Europe, home was becoming a happy longing.

Enjoying the tea in the Towerwater garden, brought back happy memories of an amazing sojourn. Our friend Susan joined us. As Dorothea Johnson said in “Tea and Etiquette”, “Tea beckons us to enjoy quality time with friends and loved ones, and especially to rediscover the art of relaxed conversation.”

Relaxed conversation was had and the afternoon sped away into dusk. After we had solved the world’s problems over cake and tea, we left world peace for another day as we bid Susan goodbye.

I am reminded of what Okakura Kakuzo says in ‘The Book of Tea’. “Teaism is a cult founded on the adoration of the beautiful among the sordid facts of everyday existence. It inculcates purity and harmony, the mystery of mutual charity, the romanticism of the social order. It is essentially a worship of the Imperfect, as it is a tender attempt to accomplish something possible in this impossible thing we know as life.”

Having a garden within and around a teapot, remains one of the higher indulgences at Towerwater.