Make a London Fog + A Brief History Of Earl Grey

This morning I made myself a London Fog.

Does anyone else find themselves one minute looking at a recipe, buying something online, or completing a simple task and the next wondering all about that thing, how it started and where it came from?

I don’t know if it’s since I started on this whole Charlotte Mason journey or if I was like that before and didn’t act on it as much.

I can say though that since diving into that world I find myself making mental notes about anything and everything, thinking I could incorporate this or that into a history or science lesson, or jot that date down into a Book of Centuries.

This morning the thing was Earl Grey tea.

London Fog and Earl Grey- How My Weird Brain Works

If you’ve seen my post about my recent obsession with lavender lattes you’ll know I changed my mind about this floral flavor and have started making my own lavender syrup. I absolutely love it and it helps me cut down even more on coffee shop spending. The only problem being that I also need to cut down on caffeine!

My next logical thought was that I should try out a London Fog: a hot, milky tea drink made with Earl Grey (which does contain some caffeine but considerably less than espresso). So I started looking at recipes online, and here’s where my Charlotte Mason brain took over.

Well what exactly is a London Fog? Does it even have lavender traditionally? Is vanilla necessary? Do you use as much milk as a typical latte or is it just a splash? What even is Earl Grey?

What is a bergamot??

I found the answers to these questions and more and I’ll probably be sharing all of it with my unsuspecting children during our next poetry tea time. Read on to learn what exactly you need to make a London Fog followed by the recipe and variations!

What You Need to Make a London Fog

• Earl Grey tea
• Water
• Milk
• Sweetener, to taste

From my brief research I surmised those are the only essential ingredients for a London Fog. Many people add vanilla, and Lavender London Fogs are common but technically different from a London Fog.

That got me thinking, what is Earl Grey and what makes it different from other black teas?

A Brief History

In short, Earl Grey tea is black tea (Darjeeling, for example) flavored with oil from bergamot oranges. The history of Earl Grey tea is a bit fuzzy but everyone seems to agree it’s connected with Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, who served as Prime Minister in the UK from 1830-1834.

‘Earl’ is a British title above a viscount and below a marquess (you might remember this from Downton Abbey :)) Charles Grey was the 2nd Earl of his family after his father of the same name.

Some people claim the tea was named after Charles Grey when he saved a Chinese Imperial official’s son from drowning, although it’s unlikely seeing as there is no record of Grey ever visiting China.

A more likely story that is also widely believed is that a British envoy to China brought back a box of tea flavored with bergamot oil. This is thought to have been a way of making cheaper teas smell and taste more appealing.

A tea house called Jacksons of Piccadilly claims to be the first to sell Earl Grey after receiving the recipe from Charles Grey himself in 1830.

Whatever the case, Earl Grey has become one of the most recognizable teas in the world.

And London Fog Originated..?

The history of the London Fog is much easier to trace, most probably because it is a much more recent invention.

Everyone seems to agree that recipe can be traced to a woman named Mary Loria who lived in Vancouver in the 1990’s.

Picture Mary, a coffee lover and frequenter of her local café, now unable to tolerate coffee due to pregnancy. She starts ordering a steamed milk latte made with Earl Grey instead.

The tricky part is that Mary Loria doesn’t remember coming up with the name ‘London Fog’, and though she has consistently been cited as the recipe source, no one knows where the name originated to this day.

And as for the question of vanilla, Mary’s order includes vanilla sugar.

Variations

As you can see, there is a lot of wiggle room here. Earl Grey tea itself varies widely in the amount of bergamot, and the type and region of black tea. Many add bergamot or lemon peel, or blue cornflowers to their mix.

So if you’re worried about making this drink exactly according to tradition, don’t be. In fact, they don’t even drink London Fogs in London, so go nuts.

Lady Grey is a spin on Earl Grey that’s said to be a bit more citrusy and includes those blue cornflowers.

You can make your own Earl Grey at home with dried bergamot peel instead of the oil if you find the flavor to be too strong.

A bergamot, by the way, is not just a Bath and Body Works buzz word. It’s a citrus fruit. Considered an orange, with a much more sour taste closer to that of a lemon, plus a bit of grapefruit bitterness. Hence why they’re popular for their aromatic oil, not as a lunchbox staple.

And yes, add lavender syrup to your heart’s content.

Grab the recipe card below and please let me know if you make it!