"The Cup of Tea" has been a popular reel in Irish sessions for decades. As "Unfortunate Cup of Tea," a rather truncated version of the melody appears in P.M. Haverty's Three Hundred Irish Airs (New York, 1858–1859), although in modern times the title is usually simply "Cup of Tea" and the tune is greatly developed over the Haverty version. The tune was often played by Seamus Ennis, who called it "The Sweet Cup of Tea" which he said was a code phrase for tea spiked with whiskey or poitin.