Product Description
The story behind this delicious gourmet black tea is just as good as the brew! The Prentis' Apology Congou Loose Tea Canister contains 3 ounces of Congou tea leaves. Congou is grown in Southern China and is considered one of the last historical teas of China from its trading days. The word Congou refers to a tea made with highest mastery or careful skill to produce thin, light strips without breaking the leaves. The resulting toasty black tea is smooth and sweet with the flavor of unsweetened baked apples. Pair this tea canister with one of our exclusive mugs or a reproduction tea pot for a unique gift from Colonial Williamsburg.
Now about that name... read the Inspiration notes below for the fascinating events that took place on November 7, 1774 that led to Prentis' Apology in the Virginia Gazette.
Features
- Canister of loose Congou tea leaves
- 3 ounces (85 grams) net weight
- Packaged in South Carolina exclusively for Colonial Williamsburg stores
- Historical notes included on the back
Inspiration
John Prentis, former mayor and merchant of Williamsburg, Virginia, found himself at the center of controversy during the Yorktown Tea Party of November 7, 1774. Nearly a year after the Boston Tea Party took place, the citizens of Yorktown learned that tea ordered by Mr. Prentis had arrived, in clear violation of the boycott of English goods established in August 1774 by the first Virginia Revolutionary Convention. The citizens promptly assembled at the Yorktown Harbor and boarded the British ship Virginia to liberate the two half-chests of tea into the York River. The scale of the event was not equal to the 342 chests of tea tossed into the Boston Harbor, but it was no less severe of a breach for Mr. Prentis. To correct his error, John Prentis published an apology in the Virginia Gazette on November 24, 1774. The apology read:
It gives me much Concern to find that I have incurred the Displeasure of the York and Gloucester Committees, and...do with Truth declare, that I had not the least Intention to give Offence, nor did I mean as Opposition to any Measure for the publick Good. My Countrymen, therefore, it is earnestly hoped, will readily forgive me for an Act which may be interpreted so much to my Discredit; and I again make this publick Declaration, that I had not the least Design to act contrary to those Principles which ought to govern every Individual who has a just Regard for the Rights and Liberties of America.
Further Reading: Familiar Bedfellows - American commerce and politics have long been entangled by by Parissa DJangi, Trend & Tradition magazine, Spring 2022.
