When the Garden View Lounge Tea Experience reopened at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort in March, it did so with a new tea program developed in partnership with Twinings of London (Website), one of the world’s oldest and most storied tea companies. At the opening, Orlando Shine had the rare opportunity to speak with Stephen Twining, the tenth generation of his family to work for the company his ancestor Thomas Twining founded in 1706.
Thomas Twining was a weaver’s son from Gloucestershire who arrived in London during an economic downturn and found his way into the tea trade through the East India Company. In 1706, during the reign of Queen Anne, he purchased a coffee house on the Strand called Tom’s Coffee House and began selling tea alongside coffee. By 1717, he had opened a dedicated tea shop next door, adorned with a golden lion above the entrance, which is the same address, 216 Strand, that Twinings occupies to this day.
The company remained a family business for nearly 260 years before being acquired by Associated British Foods in 1964. The Twinings logo, designed in 1787 by Thomas’s grandson Richard, is the world’s oldest in continuous use. The brand now sells tea in more than 100 countries.
Stephen joined Twinings in 1985 and has spent decades as the brand’s global ambassador, travelling the world to talk about tea culture and the company’s history. He is known to drink up to 15 cups a day (Assam is his favorite) and to close his talks by reciting a poem that has followed the family for centuries: “It seems in some cases kind nature hath planned / That names with their callings agree / For Twining the Teaman that lives in the Strand / Would be ‘Wining,’ deprived of his T.”
We had ten questions for him. Here’s what he said.
1) You’re a direct descendant of Thomas Twining, who opened the original shop on the Strand in 1706. When you walk into a room like this one at the Grand Floridian, do you feel that history as a weight or a gift?
Our history is an absolute gift. It makes me very proud of what Twinings has achieved over the years, and I take great pride in representing our team, who put in so much hard work to ensure that what we offer guests at the Garden View restaurant and beyond is excellent.
2) At what point did you understand that tea wasn’t just the family business, but it was going to be your life?
Quite early! When I was eight years old, our geography project for that year was on India. The geography master knew what my father did, so he wrote to him asking for some wall charts of India. My father happily provided these, but added a set of tea samples as well. At the end of the project, the Master decided it would be fun to have a tea tasting, which I was going to lead. I can still remember the reaction of my classmates, which was one of complete astonishment. They must have heard their parents talking about “having a cup of tea”, which they would have observed was an amber liquid to which milk was added. One word for one drink. So, when class saw green teas, a selection of very different black teas of different colours and tastes, they were amazed. This triggered a thought in me, which was “if my peer group know so little about this great gift of nature, then as a Twining, I could spend a productive lifetime in teaching the world about tea. That is when I decided I wanted to join the company, which is the family tradition. The next generation are not made to do tea, but if they inherit the passion for it, then they do!
3) Is there a Twining family recipe or blend that never made it to market but that you think about? Or one that is just super exclusive and kept for the family only?
With over 400 blends to choose from, the family have never needed to have their own special blend. Over the years, especially in the early days, we made bespoke teas for many of our individual customers, of which Earl Grey is the most famous. Charles Grey (2nd Earl Grey) was a British Prime Minister in the 1830’s. He received a gift of tea from China, which he and his wife really liked. They honoured us by asking the company to make more of it for them and also granted us permission to sell it under their name. We are very proud that we still have the endorsement of the Grey family today.
4) Disney sold out reservations in ten minutes after six years of closure. What did it mean to Twinings to be chosen as the partner for something that carries that much emotional weight for guests?
Twinings has had a very strong relationship with Disney, dating back to 1982, when my Father was honoured to open the Tea Caddy on the U.K. pavilion in EPCOT. Our relationship has grown stronger over the years. Both Disney and Twinings pursue excellent experiences for our guests /customers, as well as being great innovators and looking to the future. So, it is a matter of huge pride that Twinings is the tea offered to Disney’s guests in The Garden View Lounge.
5) Florida is hot and humid, and not historically a tea-drinking culture. Does that feel like a challenge or an opportunity to you?
English Afternoon tea is associated with hot tea. I think there is a great deal of interest in hot teas in the United States, combined with guests wanting to have the full English Afternoon Tea experience. From my experience, a hot cup of tea is just as refreshing as an iced tea, which we are equally proud to have on the menu as both delicious cocktails and non-alcoholic specialty (iced) teas.
6) Do you think most people are pairing tea with food correctly, or are we still largely missing that conversation?
My gut instinct says that I think tea drinkers work out fairly quickly what food pairs well with their favourite teatime food or snacks. For instance, the Orangery of Lady Grey is a light and fragrant tea with citrus notes. This pairs very well with many of the flavours of food that you may choose to eat at teatime.
7) American tea culture has shifted noticeably in the last decade to include wellness, craft, cold brew, and the matcha wave. Where does traditional English tea fit in that landscape, and does Twinings need to fight for its place or simply wait?
Yes, we have seen a great shift in tea drinking in America, which is very exciting. Twinings has evolved the teas, both traditional black teas, such as London Strand Breakfast tea, added to our range of Chai blends, tweaked our Green tea offering and added numerous delicious Herbal Teas such as Redbush Caramel Velvet, which is a Rooibos-based tea. So, we continue to move with the times and keep a close eye on what tastes tea drinkers expect from us, as well as the cold brew trend, which we are also proud to offer.
8) Is there a tea on this menu that you pushed for specifically, or something that reflects your own taste rather than market research?
What I really like about the choice of teas on the menu, is that the teas have been very thoughtfully selected to cater for a wide range of tastes and age groups. I think there is something for everyone and I am delighted that our two Refresher blends, Strawberry & Raspberry and Peach & Mango, were included, albeit with a twist of Disney magic. Refreshers are wonderful herbal-based iced drinks that are the easiest cup of tea to make, using just cold water, full of fruit flavour and real fruit pieces.
9) Six generations from now, what do you hope the Twining family is still getting right?
When Thomas Twining started the company, his ambition was to gain a reputation for doing one thing really well. Namely, selecting and blending fine quality teas. This has become the company philosophy and how we still work today. If we stick with the philosophy, then I am sure it will see the company thrive for many, many years to come.
10) What’s the future look like for tea?
I strongly believe that the future for tea is bright. Increasingly, both traditional black and green teas, as well as Herbal blends, are seen as being wellbeing drinks. That said, I always remind people that when you have a cup of tea, you drink what you like, when you like and how you like. In that way, it will be a pleasure to drink, which is of paramount importance.
