Best Whittard of Chelsea Tea Buys 2026: The 6 We'd Buy

This is the tea Whittard numbers ‘No. 1’ on its own page, and it is an unusual breakfast blend. Most draw on Assam, Ceylon and Kenya; this one is sourced entirely from West Java in Indonesia, which Whittard says makes it close to a single-origin tea. It comes as a 100g pouch at £10.95 or a 140g caddy at £14.95, and like much of the range is packed in Germany.

With more than 600 on-site reviews it rates well, but the low ones agree with each other: too weak and too delicate for a first cup, needing two spoonfuls where one would do, and greyish with milk. A few found the leaf dusty. One reviewer noted the website once described the caddy and pouch teas as coming from different origins. If you like a strong brew, try a mini caddy first.

This is the kind of tea that justifies a specialist shop. Whittard describes it as one of its very first creations: malty Assam, smoky Lapsang Souchong from Fujian and a high-grown Nepalese tea for brightness, in a 100g pouch. It takes milk well and makes a good weekend pot.

It rates highly from nearly 180 reviews, and the criticism is about the smoke. Several buyers found it far smokier than expected, one comparing it to burnt tyre; others found it weaker or flatter than they remembered. A run of reviews complains that batches vary, and one long-time drinker said three replacement packs were no better than the first. If you have never had Lapsang, that is the test: if you liked it, you will probably like this.

Most of Whittard’s hot chocolates list sugar first. This one does not: cocoa powder makes up 73%, with cocoa solids of at least 70%, and the label gives 26g of sugars per 100g against 59g for the Luxury Hot Chocolate. A 300g tub makes about 15 mugs with milk, and it is suitable for vegans.

It rates very well, from nearly 300 reviews, but it divides people who expected something else. Several found it bitter, a couple found it bland, and one was annoyed to discover it is essentially a sweetened cocoa powder rather than something that dissolves in hot water. It needs milk and a whisk, and it will not froth in every machine.

If you are buying for someone else, this is the safe choice. It has well over a thousand on-site reviews with an average close to five stars, it is suitable for vegans, and a 350g tub makes about 17 mugs. Whittard points to its 39% cocoa powder as more than many everyday hot chocolates use.

Read the label, though. Sugar is the first ingredient, the nutrition panel gives 59g of sugars per 100g, and it is a product of Germany. The low reviews say it is too sweet or not very chocolatey, a couple of long-standing buyers think the recipe has become sweeter, and several online orders arrived with the powder burst open inside the parcel. If you can, buy this one in a shop.

Loose leaf is easier with the right pot, and the Pimlico is the obvious place to start. It is heat-resistant borosilicate glass, holds 600ml, weighs 244g, and has a removable stainless steel infuser plus a spring filter in the spout. It is dishwasher safe, although Whittard recommends washing by hand.

It has nearly 240 reviews and a high average, but the one-stars are consistent and worth knowing. The commonest is breakage: handles cracking or snapping off at the joint, sometimes after weeks and sometimes after a couple of years, and one spout chipping. Several say ‘three cups’ is generous, nearer two mugs. One noted that the lid is plastic, and another that the glass pot is not sold on its own if it breaks.

If you already like Darjeeling, this is the step up. Margaret’s Hope was established in 1865 in the Himalayan foothills, and the first flush is the earliest, lightest picking of the year: muscatel, floral and bright. Whittard suggests drinking it without milk. It costs £24.95 for a 100g pouch, or £29.95 in a stackable caddy, against £10.95 for the standard Darjeeling.

There are only a handful of on-site reviews, and both one-stars are about supply rather than taste: one order was cancelled for lack of stock on the day a promotional email went out, and another never arrived. That fits a tea sold for a short season. Buy early in the year, and do not expect it to taste like breakfast tea.