The Nation’s Tea Tastes: Survey Reveals How the UK Really Drink Their Tea
Daydreaming away, sipping on your third cup of tea of the day, have you ever wondered how many cuppas you'll drink over your lifetime? Well, we have the answer; it's a staggering 99,000 cups! Yes, that's including the half-drunk room-temperature brew you forgot about...
While we're all guilty of this, here at Rainbow Riches Casino, we're more interested in uncovering the different ways we take our caffeine. Letting this curiosity get the better of us, we surveyed 2,000 UK adults to find out how they like theirs. We’ve also settled some of the ongoing tea-drinking debates – that have likely been dividing people since tea made its way onto UK shores in the 1650s – along the way.
And we've made some interesting discoveries; did you know that those in Liverpool drink the most tea? Or that nearly 3% of the UK take their tea with cinnamon? And we bet you can't guess which UK city has the sweetest tooth.
Most importantly – is the nation in agreement with your view on the 'milk or water first?' debate? Read on to see all the tea-spilling results.
Where in the UK drinks the most tea?
Our research found that on average, people across the UK consume 3.4 cups of tea a day, each. But who drinks the most?
1. Liverpool
Liverpool is the UK city that drinks the most tea, according to our research. Those in Liverpool will usually have 3.9 cups of tea every day, and an incredible 13% have up to five cups daily. This means that, on average, 1.9 million brews are drunk every day in Liverpool. Move over Yorkshire, we think the new tea capital has been crowned!
2. Leeds & Nottingham
Our research found on average both Leeds and Nottingham residents drink around 3.8 cups of tea each day. That said, 3.2% of those in Leeds -or around 25,000 people- admit they drink a whopping 11 cups or more each day!
3. Manchester & Norwich
Those in Manchester and Norwich will consume an average of 3.6 cups of tea each day. Whilst these two cities are on opposite ends of the country, our research shows how tea tastes are not exclusive to just one region.
Where in the UK drinks the least tea?
As part of our research, we also discovered the areas in the UK that drink the least amount of tea.
1. Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the UK city that drinks the least amount of tea across the nation. Over a fifth (21.2%) of those in the Scottish capital admitted they only indulge in just the one cup of tea each day.
2. Sheffield
The South Yorkshire city of Sheffield has the second lowest tea consumption according to our survey, with one fifth (20.9%) of residents drinking just one cup per day. Solidifying the argument, that Yorkshire is no longer the nation’s tea capital.
3. Bristol
Our research found that Bristol has the third lowest tea consumption in the UK. Almost a fifth (19.3%) of residents in this southern city drink just one cup of tea each day.
The nation’s recipe for a good cup of tea
Who knew the humble cup of tea could strike such passion surrounding the 'perfect method'? To sweeten, or not to sweeten, that is the question.
Well, the public has spoken, and the majority concluded that the perfect balance is:
- a splash of milk
- just one teaspoon of sugar
It was also those in Cardiff who admitted to liking their tea on the milky side with nearly a third (30.2%) voting to use a generous splash of milk in their brews.
Our research also delved into where in the UK has the sweetest tooth by analysing where residents add the most sugar to their tea. Nearly three in every 100 people (2.7%) in Newcastle admitted to adding SIX or more sugars to their brew. This is the equivalent to around 22,000 very sweet-toothed Geordies.
Having super-sweet tea was also the most popular within the 18-24 age group, with 4.2% saying they preferred this.
In addition, 4.2% of those we polled stated they add lemon, 4.8% add honey, and 2.9% add cinnamon instead of milk or sugar. So, when it comes to a sweeter tea, the UK are branching out and exploring different ingredients.
In terms of milk, semi-skimmed cow's milk is a fan favourite, with nearly half (47%) choosing to put this in their tea.
For those following a vegan diet or who are dairy-free for other reasons, oat milk is the most popular alternative, with over a quarter (26.5%) opting for this, followed by soya milk (21%) or no milk at all (21%).
Are you making tea correctly? The results are in
According to over half of the nation (52%), the perfect order when preparing a brew is as follows:
- Tea bag first
- Hot water second
- Milk third
However, a third of those in the Northern Irish city of Belfast opted for a more controversial approach, preferring the method of milk first, hot water second, and teabag third. Not only did this disputed method prove to be popular in Belfast, but it was also popular amongst the among the 25-34 age group, with almost a third (30.8%) choosing this option!
And nearly a quarter (25%) of those surveyed in Glasgow opt for the (equally as controversial) order of milk first, teabag second, and hot water third.
But regardless of whether you’re a fan of a strong ‘builder’ brew (as it is sometimes known), or something on the weaker side, we were also curious to know how long the nation leaves their tea to brew.
Of those surveyed, one in ten only dunk the tea bag once or twice. This was most popular in Edinburgh, where almost one fifth (17%) admitted to only leaving their tea bag in for a few seconds at a time.
But when it comes to a strong cuppa, Belfast stands out once again, with around five in every 100 residents (4.8%) admitting they never remove the teabag! This choice is also popular with the 45–54 age group and residents of Leeds, where over one in ten (11%) leave the teabag in for 3-5 minutes.
Which biscuit is the most dunk-able according to the nation?
To dunk or not to dunk, we also asked 2,000 UK adults to reveal their favourite and least favourite biscuits to dip. Afterall, it’s an important tea-time question we knew should not be overlooked.
The results show that the most popular biscuit to dunk in a brew is the old classic, a Digestive, with over a third (36%) of UK adults choosing this option. This biscuit was most popular in Liverpool, with almost half (45%) choosing it as the most dunk-able.
Rich Tea biscuits received over a third (31%) of the popular vote, taking in second place. This was followed by the Hobnob – which comedian Peter Kay famously called the ‘marine of the biscuit world’ for its dunk-ability. It earned almost a quarter (24%) of the vote.
The most dunk-able biscuits are:
- Digestive
- Rich Tea
- Hobnob
On the other hand, the least popular biscuit to dunk was a chocolate-coated Wagon Wheels, gaining just 3.3% of the votes. This was also least popular in Cardiff, where just 0.9% of people would choose it.
Jaffa Cakes are another biscuit that did not fare well in our dunk-able biscuit study, coming out as the second least favourite, with just 6.4% choosing this option.
And finally, gaining just 6.8% of the votes, were Party Rings. While these marvellously colourful biscuits are often considered a must-have at a children’s birthday party, it seems that many don’t love to dunk these in their brews!
So, what are the perfect dunking requirements, then? From our research, we can see as a nation we favour a classic biscuit with stability. After all, we all know the dreaded feeling of a biscuit breaking under the pressure, and having to drink the soggy remains.
While we all love a tasty treat with a cuppa, it seems that we all agree that the most dunk-able biscuits are the simple ones.
ABOUT RAINBOW RICHES™ CASINO
There’s no denying that there are plenty of unique ways to prepare a cup of tea. Whether you like to add your milk first, have just one sugar, or pop six in your mug, we loved hearing some of the wonderful ways you like to take your cuppa.
If all this reading has made you thirsty, why not pop the kettle on before jumping into our splendid range of online slots, where you could discover a wonderful treat!
- About our study
- Data from a survey of 2,000 UK based respondents conducted in January 2023
- Population figure sourced from ONS