Everyone has enjoyed a hot cup of tea. Perhaps your first encounter was with your Mum enjoying a nice cup of tea, or an experience with a delicious iced fruit tea. It’s a chance to sit down, relax, and unwind during a break in a busy day, or to share a quiet “cuppa” with friends on the weekend. One of life’s affordable luxuries, drinking tea calms, refreshes, and is immensely satisfying for the body & soul.

Fresh tea though, is a big step up in aroma and flavour over that sourced from a supermarket. And you don’t have to be a connoisseur to notice the difference. The secret is in the freshness!

Tea Drop is a tea merchant with a difference. We insist on excellence and believe that every cup of tea should tell a story. Our commitment is to the craft of tea-making. We search for the finest tea leaves from around the world, chosen for their flavour profile, crispness, and freshness.

Why is fresh tea the better choice: 

"Tea in your cup will carry fresher quality solely dependent on the time frame between “bush to cup". Fresh tea brought to you in that lesser time frame will carry the better aroma and the fuller flavour of the tea at production than a tea which has spent more time on a supermarket shelf, which is usually of lesser quality by the time it reaches you. Fresher tea definitely tastes more refreshing with body, character and bright coloured brew, than tea that has spent its time on a supermarket shelf."

Large tea brands by necessity, store their teas in warehouses for many months with added shelf storage time. In the process of store house trading, the number of transit vehicles moving mass-produced tea to supermarkets also exposes it to humidity and high temperatures. "Inevitably, the tea suffers with less flavour by the time it reaches you."

As artisanal tea producers, we work completely opposite to how larger tea providers and supermarket brands operate. We absolutely minimize the time frame taken between processing and sending the tea to you.

Quality over quantity:

"As tea specialists, we emphasize and focus on the selling of ‘quality’ over ‘quantity’. We pay close attention to the clean and crisp flavour of fresh tea. To achieve this, we only produce, package and distribute a limited amount of tea, with the focus on freshness, quality, and taste.

We make sure the conditions are perfect for growing and picking. We handpick all of our leaves and take time and care at all stages of the packaging and delivery process to ensure crispness and flavour, to bring to you, the most flavoursome and satisfying tea possible. Our master blender, who draws on decades of family tradition, knowledge and skill, tests and approves every batch.

The finest customer service

To buy tea directly from our online tea store means receiving the full customer experience. We send our packages with minimum shipment time to make sure you get the freshest product. Not only are our leaves ethically sourced and checked for quality, but you also will receive a range of extra tea material and samples of our other products to try. You will also be able to contact our tea specialists with questions you may have on your tea experience.

Experience the freshness, different flavour characteristics with some of our fave brews.

 

This Christmas season, elevate your festive celebrations with Tea Drop’s Limited Edition Gingerbread Hot Chocolate—a rich, decadent ingredient infused with notes of cinnamon, ginger, and a subtle sweetness. Blended with the finest West African cocoa powder, Australian cane sugar, and fresh ground spices, this powder combines the classic warmth of chocolate with the spicy essence of ginger, transporting you to that cosy, nostalgic place in your memory.

To help you make the most of this deliciously festive treat, we’ve partnered with Elise Pulbrook, a MasterChef Season 13 semi-finalist and cookbook curator, who  specialises in weddings, private events, and all other culinary services. Elise has shared her new recipe for a Flourless Chocolate Gingerbread Loaf. This gluten-free cake is perfect for Christmas, offering a rich and indulgent flavour with a hint of spice.

Flourless Chocolate Gingerbread Loaf by Elise Pulbrook

Serves: 12 | Prep time: 15 minutes | Baking time: 30-40 minutes

This Flourless Chocolate Gingerbread Loaf, created by Elise, blends rich dark chocolate with the festive, warming spices of gingerbread, making it the ideal dessert for your Christmas gatherings. By using Tea Drop’s Gingerbread Hot Chocolate Powder as a key ingredient, Elise has crafted a loaf that is both delicious and beautifully spiced, perfect for anyone looking for a gluten-free treat to celebrate the season.

Ingredients:

• 200g brown sugar
• 4 eggs
• 100g 70% dark chocolate (chopped or buttons)
• 150ml extra virgin olive oil
• 60g Tea Drop Gingerbread Hot Chocolate Powder, plus extra for dusting
• 200ml boiling water
• 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 1 tsp salt
• 330g natural almond meal (skin on)
• 1 tsp bicarb soda
• 1 tsp baking powder

Method:

1. Preheat the Oven: Set your oven to 180°C (160°C fan forced) and line a loaf tin.

2. Melt the Chocolate: Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water until melted.

3. Whisk the Eggs and Sugar: Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, whisk the eggs and sugar for about 4 minutes on medium speed until light in colour and fluffy in texture. With the mixer running, gradually drizzle in 100g of olive oil, continuing to mix until emulsified.

4. Prepare the Wet Ingredients: Remove the melted chocolate from the heat and stir in the remaining 50g of olive oil, Tea Drop Gingerbread Hot Chocolate Powder, vanilla, salt, and boiling water. Add the water gradually to avoid shocking the chocolate mixture. Once cool enough to touch, pour the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture while the stand mixer is running on low.

5. Fold in Dry Ingredients: Turn off the mixer and fold in the almond meal, bicarb soda, and baking powder.

6. Bake the Loaf: Pour the batter into the loaf tin and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

7. Dust and Serve: Once baked, dust the loaf with additional Tea Drop Gingerbread Hot Chocolate Powder for an extra festive touch. Serve sliced with ice cream, cream, or seasonal berries for a perfect Christmas dessert.

     

This Flourless Chocolate Gingerbread Loaf is an indulgent Christmas treat, combining the richness of dark chocolate with the spicy, festive warmth of gingerbread. Perfect for those who are looking for a gluten-free dessert, it will be a standout addition to any Christmas occasion.

Looking for a refreshing and vibrant drink to beat the summer heat? This Iced Mango Matcha recipe is the perfect combination of tropical mango and single origin, organic matcha. Quick to prepare and utterly satisfying, it’s a summer delight you’ll find yourself craving again and again.

We’ve partnered with MasterChef Semifinalist Elise Pulbrook to share this sensational summer recipe. Combining Elise’s culinary expertise with the premium quality of our Tea Drop Pure Organic Matcha, a culinary-grade matcha, this tropical creation is sure to keep you cool while impressing your taste buds.

Iced Mango Matcha Recipe

Ingredients:

• 250g mango
• 1 cup ice, plus extra for serving
• 1 tbsp rice malt syrup (or to taste)
• 1/2 cup milk (Elise is using non homogenized organic full cream cow’s milk)
• 2 tsp Tea Drop Pure Organic Matcha diluted in 4 tbsp 70°C water

Method:
 
Blitz the mango, ice, and rice malt syrup until smooth and chilled.
Pour the mango puree evenly into two glasses, followed by the additional ice and then the milk.
Pour the matcha over the mango mixture.
Stir, sip, and enjoy this creamy tropical treat!

Tips for Choosing and Storing Matcha

If you’re new to matcha or want to ensure you’re using the best, keep these tips in mind:

• Go for Organic: Because you’re drinking the whole leaf, organic matcha is a must for purity and quality.
• Check the Packaging: Matcha packed fresh in Japan retains its premium flavour, colour, and aroma.
• Store Properly: Use an airtight container, keep it out of sunlight, and refrigerate for maximum freshness.

Tea is one of the world's oldest rituals. It outlasts empires, punctuates grief, anchors mornings, and closes the space between strangers. It is the most drunk beverage on earth after water — and yet, in most kitchens, it is still being made too quickly, with too little thought. That gap is the reason Tea Drop exists.

Why May matters — for tea, and for us

May is the month the world pauses to celebrate tea. International Tea Day, designated by the United Nations and observed on 21 May, recognises tea's role in culture, trade, and the livelihoods of millions of farmers worldwide. It is a moment to think beyond the cup: to the hands that picked the leaf, to the communities built around the gardens, to the ancestral knowledge preserved in every harvest.

It is also, not by coincidence, the month Tea Drop was born.

Twenty-two years ago this May, Ashok Dias founded Tea Drop in Melbourne, and the fact that our anniversary falls in the same month the world gathers to honour the leaf has always felt like more than chance. May is, for us, a season of reflection: on where tea comes from, on what it means to do it well, and on why any of this matters.

For Tea Drop, International Tea Day is not ceremonial. Ethical sourcing through the Ethical Tea Partnership has been part of the business model since the beginning, ensuring fair conditions for every picker at the estates we work with. Sustainability runs through the entire supply chain, from FSC-certified packaging to fully biodegradable pyramid bags and soft-plastic-recyclable pouches.

• Plant-based pyramid bags
• Ethical Tea Partnership
• FSC-certified packaging
• Small-batch, seasonal sourcing

On ritual, tradition, and the patience of good tea

There is a particular kind of patience required to make great tea, and an equal patience required to appreciate it. The ritual of boiling water, choosing a blend, watching the pyramid bag bloom in the cup: these are small acts that do something measurable to the pace of a day.

Tea culture has always understood this. High tea traditions across Britain, gong fu ceremony in China, the elaborate preparation of Japanese matcha, the daily chai ritual across the Indian subcontinent — all of them are expressions of the same truth: that the act of making tea is inseparable from the act of drinking it.

"My understanding of tea came from living with it, not studying it. I saw how it moved through daily life, how people gathered around it, and how much attention went into getting it right."

— Ashok Dias, Founder · Tea Drop

That understanding is not learned from books. It comes from proximity, from seasons spent watching how different elevations, different soils, and different harvest timings produce entirely different expressions in the cup. It is craft knowledge, passed between people rather than preserved in manuals, and it takes generations to accumulate.

It is also, increasingly, at risk. As tea production scales and convenience dominates, the quiet artistry of the tea garden gets compressed into commodity. International Tea Day exists in part as a recognition of that tension: a reminder that the alternative still exists, for those who seek it out.

Twenty-two years in Melbourne

Ashok grew up in Sri Lanka, in a family with three generations of tea merchants and farmers behind them. He came to Australia not simply to sell tea, but to reconnect a new audience with the soulful, careful work that precedes every cup. That mission has not changed.

This May, as Tea Drop turns 22 and International Tea Day approaches, the occasion feels less like coincidence and more like purpose.

The 22nd Anniversary Signature Collection

To mark the occasion, we've launched a limited anniversary collection: six signature blends, each in a complementary tin, chosen to accompany every moment of the day: from the first cup of the morning to the last pause before sleep.

Six tins. One hundred and fifty pyramid bags. Free delivery. Valued at $200, available for $100.

The collection is available now, online and in-store at Brew Bar. It will not return once it sells out.

Explore the collection

Tea is the most popular beverage in the world after water. And no matter the season we can always enjoy a cup of warm or iced tea any time of the day.  Tea leaves are made from the plant Camellia sinensis. Black tea, Green tea, White tea, Oolong tea and Pu Erh tea comes from this same plant. The distinctive flavour profiles and colours that come from these tea types are due to the way the plant is processed.

Different types of tea leaves

Green tea leaves and white tea leaves are the least processed and not oxidized and therefore regarded the healthiest. Black tea leaves are fully oxidized, and oolong tea leaves are only partially oxidized. Pu Erh tea leaves are aged and considered a post oxidized tea. These tea types offer a host of health benefits. The caffeine content will vary between these teas depending on the process.

Herbal tea is not officially a tea, as it does not come from the Camellia sinensis plant, but is instead an infusion of leaves, fruits, bark, roots, or flowers of almost any edible, non-tea plant. The most common herbal teas are chamomile tea, hibiscus tea, peppermint tea, ginger, and rooibos tea. Herbal teas have been around for a long time, with our ancestors’ making infusions of the plants, roots, and herbs they saw around them for medicinal use. This practice continues today with the use of herbal teas to support a healthy mind and body.

Why is tea healthy?

Potential health benefits of tea are due to the polyphenol or flavonoids content in the tea leaves. These chemical compounds act as antioxidants, which control the damaging effects of free radicals in the body. The more tea leaves are processed, usually the less polyphenol content. But their antioxidizing power will still be high.

Health benefits of tea

No matter the season, we recommend getting into the natural, immune-boosting habit of drinking tea every day as tea has a myriad of health benefits.

• Keeps You Hydrated - Did you know that drinking 4-6 cups of tea a day is as good for keeping you hydrated as a litre of water. Whether enjoyed as a delicious hot cuppa or served on ice stay hydrated with tea.
• Great Coffee Alternative – Herbal teas are caffeine free, while traditional teas have less amounts of caffeine than typically found in coffee. Therefore, it will help boost energy and you can consume it without the jittery side effects when the caffeine wears off.
• High in Antioxidants – Tea is loaded with antioxidants that help protect your body from free radicals, keeping you healthy mentally and physically.
• May aid in weight loss – The jury is still out on this, but studies have shown that the caffeine and catechins in tea may aid with weight loss. Green tea is a popular choice for weight loss, as it contains amino acids that signal the body to burn stored fat. The caffeine in tea also helps boost energy and is ideal as a pre-workout drink. Teas are calorie free and the ideal drink to have guilt free.
• Aids in digestion – Tea aids with digestion and can treat issues from nausea to an upset stomach. It also contains tannins which has shown to reduce intestinal inflammation, which can help soothe stomach cramps and irritable bowel syndrome. Teas with ginger are a popular choice.
• Boost your mood – Drinking tea is always connected with calming and soothing effects and linked to decreased stress levels and help you unwind after a tough day.
• Boost your immune system - Tea is great for your immune system. Many types of teas have antiviral and antibacterial properties that can aid to prevent you from getting sick. Whether you’re worried about flu season, or just want to improve your overall health, a daily tea schedule will benefit you.

By incorporating tea into your lifestyle, not only is it a refreshing & aromatic treat, but there is also a myriad of benefits designed to elevate your life. So, get ready to enjoy a flavoursome and sensorial tea experience from the very first sip.