You simply cannot  talk about tea in England without talking about Bettys. The story of Bettys began more than 90 years ago with Frederick Belmont, a young Swiss orphan who trained in baking and confectionery in Switzerland and France before travelling to England to seek his fortune. Settling in Yorkshire, he opened the first Bettys Tea Room in Harrogate in 1919 and the combination of mouth-watering Swiss confectionery and Yorkshire warmth in such an elegant setting proved irresistible. Bettys was an instant success and was soon able to boast of ‘Royal and Distinguished Patronage’ on its letterhead.

With six Bettys Tea Rooms across Yorkshire, their own Cookery School (on my Bucket List!), and  now a home delivery service, Bettys has certainly grown over the years but amazingly, it is still run by Frederick Belmont’s family.

I have been a customer of  Bettys for a long time and over the years have probably ordered, among other things, at least a dozen of their adorable Birthday Cakes for delivery to family and friends. These little cakes are real gems, but my favourite Bettys products are those that come available just before the holidays, so I wanted to share with you a few of the ones I like best from this year’s Christmas collection, courtesy of Bettys.

Bettys Tea Room Blend Tea

The boxes and tins of Bettys Tea Room Blend Tea have been updated with a charming new design created by Yorkshire artist Emily Sutton. The illustration was inspired by the Bettys Tea Rooms. The tea is a blend of East Africa and Assam black teas and is served in their tea rooms. It is a lovely, full tea – so lovely that I am already over halfway through a box received only a few days ago. Highly addictive. In a good way.

Bettys Mug

Finally! A Bettys mug! I don’t know about you, but I love ‘branded’ tea mugs and this is one of the prettiest I’ve seen. Emily Sutton is the artist and even Mr. Tea likes the design; he said it works for a man or a woman. It’s a nice size (not too large, not too small) and has a thin rim and generously sized handle. Fine bone china, and made in England.

Bettys Spiced Christmas Tea

I think I’ve tried just about every Christmas tea blend out there, but this one ranks high on my list. Why? Because it’s not so darn overpowering! It is so easy to overdo it with spiced holiday tea but the tea-to-spice ratio with this one is just right. Bettys Spiced Christmas Tea is black tea blended with lemon, orange, and mellow, warming spices. I have been enjoying a mug of this tea late in the evening. It smells as good as it tastes. Available as teabags or loose leaf.

Visit Bettys Online to place an order, but I warn you that it is going to be hard to choose because their entire selection is tempting. And if you’re curious as to why they are called Bettys, take a look at the Bettys Story.

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