The famous 1846 lithograph by Nathaniel Currier, "The Destruction of Tea at Boston Harbor."

I hate to start a blog post with “No taxation without representation,” but no matter how long ago your last American history class was, you know what event that phrase evokes, right?

Yeah. The Boston Tea Party — which happened 237 years ago on Dec. 16. And because we like to celebrate all things tea-related at two leaves and a bud, we’re having a today-only sale. It’s a good thing, because once you read these facts I’ve compiled about the Boston Tea Party, all that talk of throwing tea in water will make you thirsty for your own freshly-steeped mug of two leaves and a bud. Here goes:

• The Boston Tea Party occurred on Thursday, December 16, 1773, and took three hours, between 7 and 10 p.m.
• The tea, delivered by the East India Tea company, may have been a blend of Ceylon and Darjeeling tea from India. But it also could have been Chinese tea, specifically Bohea tea that came from Wiyi mountains in Jujian Province, China.
• 90,000 lbs (45 tons) of tea in 342 containers was thrown overboard. Each full container weighed 400 pounds.
• 116 people participated in the destruction of tea.
• Any chests of tea left floating were bashed with oars and paddles.
• The destroyed tea was worth an estimated £10,000 — about a million dollars today.
• The Tea Party occurred at the Griffin’s Wharf in Boston, which no longer exists due to landfills that occurred in 19th century.

Thirsty yet? Use coupon code BOSTONTEA to get 17 percent off your order  at twoleavesandabud.com today only, Dec. 16, 2010. Just don’t go pitching the box into a harbor — any harbor — okay?

P.S.: Thanks to The Boston Tea Party Historical Society and EyeWitness to History.com for all of these facts and figures.