Smells like...Earl Grey

If the thought of Infusion perfume doesn't appeal, how about perfume based on Earl Grey? The French skincare/perfume compant L’Occitane is offering a "limited-edition Bergamot Tea fragrance collection that will delight both men and women alike". For the perfume collection, Earl Grey tea is reinvented into an original and contrasted fragrance, associating the distinction of tea leaves to the subtle freshness of the Calabrian bergamot.

Grow your own tea?

Last year Jacky reported on home-grown British tea, and yesterday Radio 4's On your farm visited the Tregothnan Estate in Cornwall which now sells a range of fourteen teas: four black teas (including Earl Grey) and ten herbal infusions.

Tregothnan teas are now served and sold at a select number of establishments throughout the UK including Claridges and Fortnum & Mason’s in London. They are also available online and you can even buy a tea bush (Camellia Sinensis) to grow your own tea at home!

"I'll have those trousers in Earl Grey, please"

I received the new Craghoppers catalogue over the weekend and noted two features of interest: that one of this season's colour choices for clothing is Earl Grey, and that Craghoppers are now including a small range of Fairtrade clothing (trousers, shirt and fleece) - although this is only a option for menswear.

The perfect cup of tea

If you're new to the Infusion blog, you'll spot lots of posts about tea, reflecting what may be viewed as an obsession on behalf of some of us. So it was with interest that I noted a British Library blog entry alerting me to the existence of a British Standard for a cup of tea. The writer comments that his is probably "the logical result of something the British do best, tea and bureaucracy"! You can read read the full scientific detail in the Standard document.

If Infusion was a drink....

....it would be a pot of Earl Grey tea. As you might deduce from the name and logo of the group, a number of us enjoy a nice cup of tea - particularly at the end of a long walk - and Earl Grey tends to be the tea of choice.

Some websites on the topic of tea:

• Tending Toward Tea: a site reviewing over 100 current brands of Earl Grey tea


• Twining's Tea Tasting Notes: so you can match the occasion and have the right food to accompany every blend


• Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down: quirky site about a couple's never-ending international quest for the best tea and biscuits