Tea

According to Chinese mythology the first cup of tea was an accident: In 2737BC, the Emperor Shen Nung insisted that all water was boiled for hygiene reasons. One day leaves from a wild tea tree dropped into a pan of water his servant was preparing. The Emperor was taken with the refreshing flavour of the beverage and its popularity rapidly spread throughout China. During the Tang Dynasty (618 – 906AD), tea became China’s national drink and the word Ch’a was used to describe it. In 780AD the first book on the world’s most popular drink – the Ch’a Ching – was written. The rest, as they say, is history.