A warm welcome to one of the latest additions to the Taste of Bath family: Comins Tea! If you’ve visited them here in Bath, you’ll know they have a wonderfully tranquil cafe where you can explore a whole menu of teas from all over the world, and pair them up with delicious dishes from the appropriate country – think Japanese gyoza or Sri Lankan egg hoppers – or perhaps just a really good piece of cake.

But Comins aren’t just a teahouse, because they also sell their teas to take home, and we’re delighted to be adding their favourite breakfast tea to our hampers. They’ve chosen a rich, malty Assam from the Khongea estate in India just for us, so it’ll only be available through Taste of Bath, and we think it’s the perfect way to start the day!

Rob and Michelle Comins are on a mission to introduce their customers to proper tea, and they personally source and select their loose leaf from single estates all over the world. Rob started out in life as a tea sceptic, but was converted when Michelle took him to visit the plantations in Darjeeling, where he discovered the difference that proper tea leaves make and the fascinating stories, history and culture behind this ancient drink. Determined to share this with more folks in the UK, he and Michelle started their business and began to import their own tea. The experience of drinking it was always just as important to them as the tea itself, and so they came to create their teahouses – first one in Dorset, and then their second teahouse here in Bath.

We can highly recommend a visit to the Bath café, where their lovely friendly staff will be more than happy to talk you through the menu, or you can look out for one of their brilliant events, which range from tastings guided by Rob himself (what he doesn’t know about tea now could fit on the back of a teabag) to talks, tea ceremonies and more from all sorts of excellent guests, usually friends and partners they’ve made along the way on their travels. Rob and Michelle have also written a wonderful book, Tales of the Tea Trade, which combines an enchanting collection of stories from the people behind the industry with thoughts on how tea and the traditional ceremonies associated with it can make a difference to our busy Western lives.

Look out for Comins’ special Bath Breakfast Tea in our hampers, or order it direct from our online shop – it’s a loose leaf tea, so every purchase also comes with a beautiful little infuser to help you make the perfect cuppa at home. Cheers!