Interesting facts and questions about the perfect cuppa by Gillian Kyle

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* Britain’s favourite drink: there are a mere 172,000,000 cups of tea drunk every day in Britain – approximately – making it by far the most popular drink in Britain. according to the Tea & Infusions Association.

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* Teabags: of this number of cuppas, 96% are made using the ubiquitous tea bag

* Coffee is pretty popular too: 95,000,000 cups of coffee drunk every day in the UK, as we are informed by the British Coffee Association

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*The best thing since sliced bread: it is commonly recognised that the pre-sliced loaf was first introduced in 1928, but with tea being pre-bagged from 1908, surely this is the greater of these two transformative inventions?

Obsession: with this volume of tea consumed, its fair to say we Brits are somewhat obsessed with the whole topic of tea!

So what is the perfect cuppa? In my humble (but very well tested) opinion, the perfect cuppa is the cuppa that’s perfect for you.Take your pick:

* tea bag or tea leaves?* builders or fancy?  (mine"s a Lapsang Souchong)

* black or milk? (cow, almond, oat or soy?)

* one lump or two; if at all?

* morning, noon and/or night?

An experts opinion: to shed some light on this weighty topic, I enlisted the wisdom and insight of a man who certainly knows a thing or two…

To really get the lowdown on the perfect cuppa, I asked Boyd Tunnock (the chairman of Tunnock’s and the inventor of the Tunnock’s Teacake) these really testing questions…

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GK: What is your hot drink of choice?

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BT: Breakfast tea, at all times of the day

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GK: Teabag or loose-leaf?

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BT: Teabags are so much easier don’t you think, I gave up on loose leaf tea years ago

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GK: Do you prefer your tea made in a mug or teapot?

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BT: Teapot, definitely. There is a real difference as it cuts out most of tea’s naturally occurring tannins and therefore makes for a much smoother cuppa

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GK: Do you take anything in your tea?

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BT: No thank you!

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GK: And my final question, what is the perfect complement to your perfect cuppa?

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BT: Oh that’s a tough one, after my many years of experimenting, I’ve yet to decide whether its a Tunnock’s teacake or a caramel wafer. But I’ve never tired of trying to decide!

The Perfect Cuppa by Gillian Kyle with Boyd Tunnock

Tunnock's Teacake teapot by Gillian Kyle

The perfect cuppa is the cuppa that’s perfect for you, right? But taking Boyd’s advice I’m increasingly a convert to the cuppa brewed in the teapot.

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So, I"m pleased to introduce our two brand-new Tunnock’s teapots. If you have friends and family who love a cuppa and a Tunnock"s treat every now and then, these beautiful fine bone china Teapots in our classic Teacake and fun Love Tunnock"s designs could be the perfect Christmas pressie.

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This could just be the most used and cherished present this festive season. Or, EVER!  Heehee. It"s definitely a future heirloom.

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Merry Christmas and long live the Perfect Cuppa – however you like it.

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Till next time,

PS I"d LOVE to share my newest art, contemporary Scottish designs and Scottish Stories with you as they are released. Join our mailing list here for regular doses of all things Scottish!

Tunnock's teacake 'Love Tunnock's' fine bone china teapot by Scottish Artist Gillian Kyle

Love Tunnock's find china mug with red Tunnock's Teacake Wrapper heart by Gillian Kyle