The world is celebrating International Tea Day, and perhaps none are celebrating it as strongly as the Irish. 

The average Irish person drinks between six and seven cups a day, lagging only behind Turkey when it comes to consumption. 

The origin of tea, however, is nowhere near this island – our favourite drink instead has its roots in China, where legend says Emperor Shen Nung invented tea when leaves from a tree blew into a cup of boiling drinking water. 

If tea doesn’t come from Ireland itself, then why do the Irish love it so much? To find out more, Newstalk Breakfast spoke to UK Tea and Infusions Association Chief Dr Sharon Hall. 

Bertie Ahern and Mary Harney enjoy a cup of tea wit John Bruton outside the Dáil, 2000 Image: Paul Sharp/RollingNews.ie

She conceded the Irish are the "champion tea drinkers", citing simple good taste as the reason.

“The number one reason [people] tell us is they love the taste,” she said. 

“I think it also brings comfort, it brings people together, they love a chat over a cup of tea. 

“33% of people say they have a cup as soon as they get up in the morning. 

“Many say they can’t even tackle their day without their morning cuppa.” 

The growth of tea in Ireland

Within Ireland specifically, tea arrived on this island in the 1800s. 

At the time, imports came via Britain and were incredibly expensive, making the drink a delicacy reserved for the wealthy upper class. 

Tea parties for the wealthy became incredibly popular and as imports lowered in cost due to improved trade routes, teapots became a common feature in an Irish kitchen. 

The real dedication to the drink ramped up most likely during World War II, when the British limited the amount Irish traders could buy. 

Ireland had the highest tea consumption in the world at the time, with the Government listing it as a “principal” food item for the poor, putting pressure on them to source the drinl. 

Irish traders then went directly to the source and imported tea directly from India and after the war often traded with India. 

The perfect cuppa

Dr Hall said black tea remains the most popular in Ireland and abroad, with the Irish typically loving a drop of milk to go with it. 

To achieve a truly great-tasting cup every time, she recommended the “smart boiling method”. 

“We are guilty of filling the kettle to the brim, boiling it, leaving lots, boiling again later, wasting energy,” she said. 

“If you’re making one mug, measure the mug and just boil that. 

“You'll get a better-tasting cup because that water will be full of oxygen which will get all the great flavours and compounds out of your leaves.” 

So go on, you’ll have a cup of tea.