Today is president’s day and we wanted to celebrate the favorite teas of our Presidents thoughout the history of our county.
Disclaimer: This is made up for fun and based only loosely on guess work and a few facts. This article in no way is endorced, approved, or supported by the White House or any presdient. I have met Obama once, he came and talked to my class at my community college when I was 17 year’s old when he was running for Senate in Illinois. I’ve never had the chance to actually offer him tea. But if I do…
It all started with the question of, if Obama ever came to Ames and ordered a tea from Little Woods, what would it be? With a little digging, the recommendation was obvious: Eternal Youth Iced Tea!
And it just kept going from there. Here’s a round up of five presidents and the teas they would enjoy the most at Little Woods.
Biden:
Fireside
Not a tea drinker — we get it… you just haven’t found one you like… YET. Fireside is our gateway tea for coffee drinkers like Biden. When he visits the shop, it’s what we will recommend.
Obama:
Eternal Youth
Naturally caffeine free, it’s tart and fruity. Refreshing iced or hot. I like it unsweetened, but many love it with a little simple syrup or honey.
Roosevelt:
Lapsang Souchong
What started out as an accident has turned into a staple of russian tea drinking. A chinese black tea that is smoked with pine.
Jefferson:
Namaste Green Tea
A green tea that is smooth and subtly sweet. It has hand chopped freeze dried strawberries and lemon balm mixed with our Mao Jian green tea.
Washington:
Keemun Black Tea
One of our favorite black teas, it’s a chinese black tea (red tea) that has a malty robust flavor. It’s wonderfully smooth on it’s own or with a little milk.
Bush Sr:
Gyokuro
Our top shelf loose leaf green tea, we were lucky to meet this Japanese tea company two summers ago. Vegetal with a rich mineral tone. The color is a vivid yellow green when brewed to perfection.
Want to get a little steeped in the history of Tea at the White House?
I really enjoyed these articles and books about the subject, particularly the first by Sara Shacket of Tea Happiness.
- Tea And The Presidency by Tea Happiness
- Obama Used His Oval Office Red Button For Tea, According To Richard Branson on the Huffington Post
- Thomas Jefferson’s Love for Tea on the Tea Master’s Blog
- George Washington and Tea on the Tea Master’s Blog
- Haller, H. (1987). The White House Family Cookbook. New York: Random House.
- Tea with Presidential Families by Pearl Dexter and Beulah Munshower Sommer