Coffee and bikes - a well known combination loved by many cyclists, including myself... but what if I said the same could apply to tea? Always partial to a good Rosie Lee (well, I am from East London!), I’ve been enjoying some quality blends recently - so I was thrilled and intrigued when Tokyobike invited me round for a cuppa or two at the Good & Proper Tea Brew Bar which was in residence at their shop for four weeks...They say that tea in hot weather cools you down, so the surprise spring heat a few weekends ago was the perfect chance to hop on my Pashley, head to Shoreditch and put the theory into action surrounded by bicycles... not a bad way to spend the afternoon.
Set up at the back, the Good & Proper Tea Brew Bar looked completely at home in the simplistic and stylish surroundings of the shop, like it had been there all the time. Neil of Tokyobike told me that it was very well received by customers coming in to browse at bicycles. There is something quite nice about shopping for your potential new bike / accessories while making the decision over a delicious cuppa...
I was greeted by the lovely and knowledgeable Harriet who was running the Brew Bar for Emilie that afternoon. With a shared love of tea and cycling, we immediately got talking about this much loved drink, and the best methods to achieve the perfect pot. As Harriet explained, the world of tea is an exciting and complex one - with factors from the flavour of the leaf, to the temperature of the water and steeping time, there is more to the humble leaf than meets the eye.
My cups of Oolong Yellow Gold and Darjeeling were amazing and certainly very refreshing after my cycle in the sunshine... and it was fantastic to finally check out Good and Proper Tea after all this time! The relationship between coffee and bikes will always be a staple of the cycling lifestyle, but tea certainly has a place in there too... Tokyobike did a pretty clever thing getting the Brew Bar in, and would be ace to see it back there again soon (Keeps fingers crossed for a permanent fixture).
If you're in London and would like to try Good and Proper Tea, you can find them in their H Van at Kings Cross (weekdays) and Brockley Market (weekends). They will also be hosting the tea stop at this years London Tweed Run, so if you're on it, you'll have a lovely brew!
Huge thanks to Tokyobike for the invitation and letting me park my Pashley in the shop for the day.
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