The Tea Lover's Gift Guide

Buying for someone who loves tea is actually easier than it looks. Tea people tend to be particular about what they drink and how they drink it, which means there's a whole world of gifts that will genuinely delight them - from the everyday practical to the gloriously indulgent.

Here's a roundup of our favourite ideas, at every budget.

The everyday essentials

A good teapot. Our Stump Teapot is the one we reach for every day. Unpretentious, functional, and it brews a full pint - which fills a pint mug perfectly in one pour. Available in a few colours.

A pint mug. The case for the pint mug is simple: fewer trips to the kettle. Our Bone China Pint Mug is properly made and holds its temperature well.

A tea caddy. Tea needs to be stored away from light and air. The Kaikado chazutsu caddies - handmade in Japan and available from a few UK stockists - are the most beautiful tea storage objects we know of. Worth every penny.

A tea caddy spoon. A small thing, but the right spoon makes measuring loose leaf tea satisfying rather than fiddly. Rebecca Joselyn makes lovely contemporary silver ones.

A tea strainer with a drip bowl. If your favourite teapot doesn't have a built-in strainer, a proper swivel strainer with a drip bowl is worth having. The Wolseley sells a classic version.

The proper cups

Our Stuart Carey tea cups are handmade ceramics with a fine edge and a beautiful balance. They make any cup of tea feel like a small occasion. One of our absolute favourite things we sell.

For the tea itself

The Bellevue Belter. Our award-winning house blend is a strong, satisfying leaf tea that proves you don't need to spend a lot of money to get an excellent cup. A good starting point if someone is new to loose leaf.

A mixed selection. For someone who wants to explore, a selection of teas across different types - a Darjeeling, a green, a Rooibos, an Earl Grey - is a genuinely useful gift. Browse our full range to put one together.

Books worth reading

Tea Classified by Jane Pettigrew is the reference book for anyone who wants to understand tea properly. Thorough, readable, and the kind of book that stays on the shelf for years.

The Tea Cookbook by Tonia George uses tea as an ingredient across both sweet and savoury recipes. It surprises people who haven't considered tea as anything other than a drink.

Something for the wall

Macdonald Gill's 1940 print 'Tea Revives the World' is a glorious piece of tea history. Large-format prints are available from a few art print retailers and look wonderful in a kitchen.

For the adventurous

A tea tasting or blending class is one of those experiences that tea drinkers genuinely appreciate. Several are run in London throughout the year by tea professionals.

And at the very top of the wish list: a stay at Glenburn Tea Estate in Darjeeling, surrounded by the Himalayan foothills, or at Lujeri Lodge in the Mulanje tea-growing region of Malawi. Not an everyday gift, but one that wouldn't be forgotten.

The stocking filler

A single packet of good tea, beautifully packaged, is always right. Our boxes are designed to look as good as they taste. Browse the full range on the website.

Happy brewing, The Bellevue Team