Bergamot Oil and Earl Grey Tea
Answered by: Conrad Richter
Question from: Gayle Kohlenberg
Posted on: March 01, 2007

Please have someone respond as to whether the essential oil of bergamot sold by Richters may be used to blend my own Earl Grey tea. Also, is there anywhere that I may by the zest of bergamot orange? One more question: Is there anyone there with a ‘recipe’ for blending Earl Grey tea?

While it is common knowledge that Earl Grey tea is flavoured with the essential oil of the bergamot orange, a citrus tree that is grown in southern Italy, the exact recipe is reportedly still a secret. That said, there are numerous companies selling Earl Grey tea so the recipe can’t be that much of a secret -- or otherwise it can’t be too hard to replicate by experimentation. I was not able to find the recipe in our reference library or on the Internet so all I can suggest is that you add the oil to black tea and work out the recipe by trial and error. The flavour of the oil is very strong so you are well advised to start with the smallest amount of oil. You may want to think about using some sort of atomiser to spray tiny droplets over the tea spread out over a flat surface.

For more information about the bergamot orange, please see:

http://richters.com/show.cgi?page=./QandA/Culinary/19980814-1.html

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