About Bergamot (Citrus Bergamia)
Bergamot oil used in scenting Earl Grey tea comes from the citrus fruit (Bergamot orange) mostly grown in the Calabria province in southern Italy. It became popular in the 18th and 19th centuries as a flavoring for gin and snuff. There are different theories about the origins of earl grey tea, the most recent one claims that the botanist Sir George Staunton (1737-1801) first observed tea flavouring with orange in China where he was Secretary to the British mission to the Chinese Imperial court. He allegedly sent a sample of tea with Neroli oil to the British naturalist and explorer Sir Joseph Banks (1743-1820), who is known to have experimented with flavourings. That is why some credit him with adding bergamot to tea. It was most likely given the name Earl Grey, after Charles Grey 2nd Earl Grey (1764-1845), the UK's Prime Minister of the time, who supposedly received the tea with bergamot as a gift.