This is The Guardian.

Hi, I'm Nicola Davis, a science correspondent here at The Guardian,

and this is the second episode of a special Science Weekly miniseries, a Scottish

tea mystery. Episode two, The List. If you haven't heard episode one yet, pause this, go back and

hit play on that first. If you've ever visited Scotland's capital, Edinburgh, you will have seen the Balmoral Hotel.

It is a vast, imposing building that sits right above the train station in the heart of the city.

A great clock tower marks the Edinburgh skyline, overlooking the busy shoppers making their way up and down Princess Street.

Today, tourists will often visit the Balmoral to see the room where J.K. Rowling finished writing the Harry Potter series.

One day, a few years after drinks journalist Richard Ross had started up his own tea plantation,

he found himself in the city and decided to pop into the Balmoral.

He got wind of something fishy.

The Balmoral Hotel, perhaps one of the most obviously prestigious hotels in Edinburgh,

was selling an all-Scottish list of teas in their tea room.

Having your tea in the Balmoral would be a big deal.

It's iconic, like Claridge's in London or the plaza in New York.

Afternoon tea is served in the very grand Palm Court restaurant,

a table set with pristine white tablecloths and fine china under a large central dome.

By this point, Richard had taken over from Tam

as chairman of the Association of Scottish Tea Growers,

which renamed itself Tea Scotland.

As you might imagine, it's a pretty small world,

and so everyone knows, or knows knows of everyone else.

...