No Tea for Me but Specials for You

I am not allowed to drink tea for the next couple of days. I turned up with a bladder infection and of course the doctors want me to avoid caffeine. Worse yet he suggested I drink some cranberry juice. I hate cranberry juice – Ewww. I think I am going to take home some Rooibos so I can drink something hot and soothing without the irritating caffeine.  I wish I would have thought about Rooibos when the bladder was in high gear because it might have been able to help calm it down. Rooibos has anti-inflammatory properties that sure would have been welcome at about 3 am.

If you noticed that you didn’t receive your weekly specials letter this week it is because I was to tired and sick to get it done. Today I am feeling much better so I am changing the specials but I won’t put out a newsletter until next week. This week we have Peach Apricot White Tea and all our Ceramic Teapots on sale for 20% off.

Seasonal Tea Drinking

It amazes me every year that as soon as the temperatures cool even the littlest bit people suddenly start buying more tea. I know that tea drinkers don’t just stop drinking tea but usually switch to iced during the warmer months and we do see an increase in sales for the teas that makes great iced teas but not enough to make up for the lack of sales on the normal winter teas. Do we just not drink as much tea in the summer? Or do we fall back on our grocery store teas? I for one, drink as much if not more tea as iced tea in the summer than I do hot tea in the winter. I haven’t found a tea available on the store shelf that makes even a half decent cup so it makes me wonder if people really migrate from our teas to these in the summer. Can any of you tell me how your tea drinking habits change with the seasons?

Candie

New products

Wow...it's been quite a while since I posted. I'm always so involved in what I call "grunt work" to keep things going here. I know excuses, excuses!

Anyways I just put the new Tea Cozies online that came in today! I love the way they do the bottom of these, they are flat! I used to make the tea cozies we sold, mine did not have the flat bottom...so I know how much extra work goes into making these. Also I used to make a one size fits all, these fit our 3 and 6 cup teapots perfectly! The material is gorgeous, go take a peak.

We again have new tea and goodies for this week, but I'll let Candie tell you about them. I'm still working on price increases, so you still have time to order before I'm done.

What's in your cup.......Denise

UPS Faux Paux & Pricing Changes

Every year at this time we have what I like to call “pre-holiday shipping service” from UPS. About this time each year we have all kinds of lost and damaged packages. It always makes me worry about how smoothly the holiday season will go. So far the holidays always go much smoother than we expect. Well any way UPS just managed to loose a rather large shipment to us that was supposed to have arrived last week. So if you have been contacted about a backorder within the last week your order will not be able to be filled until the end of this week at the earliest. They just lost an out going order for us not more than 2 weeks ago so we will be crossing our fingers that UPS gets thing under control soon.  

I had planned to turn on all our fall specials and add our new fall teas this week but now we don’t have those teas ready to ship so look for those next week. The site theme will be changing to Autumn this week so look for the leaves to start falling.

Another big news item is that we just found out that we our biggest supplier has just implemented a price increase so we will be implementing a price increase of around 3% over next few days. I suggest you order right away to beat the rising prices.

Candie

A Delicious Mistake

Have you ever made a mistake and ended up glad that it happened? That is how we feel about the accidental creation of our Fruit Jumble Green Tea. Some of our supplier’s bags are not labeled the best and we thought we had a bag of Pear Sencha and instead had a bag of our new Watermelon Kiwi Green tea and about 2 lbs worth got mixed together. We immediately recognized the mistake by the wonderful new smell and decided to split the batch and take it home. I iced a pitcher of this new blend for some of my family and everyone was complimenting the flavor and asking what it was. Everyone who took the tea home had the same wonderful response so I decided we should name it and offer it to our customers. Fruit Jumble was born.

Candie

White Chocolate Rooibos & Red Vs. Green

Either I am finally learning to like rooibos or our new White Chocolate Rooibos is just that good. I have been struggling to like rooibos for a very long time but I think I may have finally turned the corner. Now there are two different types of rooibos red and green. Red was the first type of rooibos that become available here in the US so most of us just know it as regular rooibos. A couple of years back Green Rooibos became available and it can still be hard to find. The difference between the two is just like regular tea. The Red rooibos is left to sit and oxidize after it is chopped. The green is immediately heated and dried. I must admit that even the green has a good bit of red color to it and is not completely green colored. The red is a dark rust color. The flavor of the green rooibos is a bit like green tea but the red has a unique flavor.

Candie

Matcha & Pear Rooibos Musings

Can you believe that Matcha is our best selling tea? “What is matcha”, you say? Matcha is green tea powder. Our matcha is Gyokuro ground to a cornstarch consistency. When brewed it makes a bright green colored beverage, with a slightly sweet and tart flavor. The key is that it can be used in so many different ways. You can brew it hot or cold, add it to smoothies, desserts, baking and used in spice blends for cooking. And with all of this it is almost impossible to get accessories for it but we will introduce a matcha whisk and spoon, sometime next month.

I am drinking our new Pear Rooibos today. I am not a big red rooibos fan but this tea has grown on me. I wouldn’t call it a favorite but it is very good for a red rooibos based herbal tea. Rooibos is a great caffeine free alternative to regular tea and it has a whole set of its own beneficial properties. It has been known to help migraine, acid reflux and arthritis sufferers.

Candie

Autumn in the Air

Can you smell it? I can already smell that sweet smell of autumn in the air. The smell is like ripe fruit and ripe leaves. It has been unusually cool for the last week and it feels like the leaves are going to start changing color any day now. I sure hope it doesn’t because I don’t want the summer to end just yet. The weather is just perfect for having the windows open and enjoying the cool breezes and that wonderful aroma in the air.

I must say that some of the teas we have gotten in to sample have just been delightful. I was shocked to try Pecan Pie Green and find that I enjoyed it tremendously. I just didn’t think green tea and pecan pie would pair well. Eventually this fall we will be adding this wonderful flavor in green and black tea and also rooibos. All I can say it that I am 100% sure these will be our best selling teas this fall.

I must admit that I am also enjoying our new Raspberry Green Tea. I thought I had a new favorite last week when we added Blackberry Green Tea but I must say that the raspberry has won the battle for my affection. Even my husband who is not all that fond of flavored greens has been won over by this one.

Candie

Finally Good Tasting Decaf Tea

There is a real dilemma for those of you who need to avoid caffeine because unlike coffee, the decaffeination process drastically changes the flavor of tea. The gentle earthy and spicy tones are missing from blacks and greens become mottled and almost muddy flavored. Now we have gone out of our way to find the best flavored decaffeinated teas but they still just don’t compare to pure unadulterated tea. But I have found the light at end of the tasteless decaf tunnel. There is a company called Decaf Co. who is developing a stirring stick which will remove the caffeine from your already brewed tea without harming the flavor. What is funny is that they are already marketing toward coffee and I think they will have a much large following in the tea market. I am going to get in contact with these folks so I can get in on some tests and hopefully we can be one of the first companies to carry these wonderful devices.

Candie

Blackberry Green tea and Sampling Fall Teas

I had a pleasant surprise the other day while tasting the pecan pie green tea that I had doubts about last week. I really didn’t think it would pair well but it was yummy. All I can say is that this tea may be our next best seller. And it should be even better paired with black tea and it is also available as a flavored rooibos, which is fabulous.

We had to make a tough decision to drop the Morish Treat scones from our product line. The prices went up dramatically and we have had some issues with them so we have discontinued them. We are going to expand the Rabbit Creek line and I am also eyeing another company that has some wonderful scones to offer.

Autumn is already my favorite time of the year but I am so looking forward to the new fall products.

Today I am enjoying a glass of our new Blackberry Green Tea which has such a light fruity flavor that still manages to be a thirst quencher.

Candie

Finally Cooling Down

What a relief the heat has finally dissipated. Of course I had a lousy nights sleep with all the lightning and thunder as that cool air pushed in but it was well worth it. At least the heat helped me to drink more iced green tea and I found that I like Genmaicha Extra Green iced. I would have never thought that Genamicha would taste good iced because it has a nutty, toasted rice flavor to it but when it is iced that flavor fades and you taste much more of the fresh green flavor. I need to take more Pear Sencha and Blackberry Green Tea home because these two have been my iced teas of choice. My guests have made numerous comments on how much they enjoy these teas and now expect some samples to take home. ;)

Also on the new teas front, we recently tried a Raspberry Green Tea that was very good. I think we will be adding this tea to our selection in the next two week. I have some great prospects for the new fall selections which include a Pecan Pie rooibos and black tea, this flavor is also available in green tea but I personally don’t feel that the flavors would meld well. There are rooibos flavors I have my eyes on, Pear, Cinnamon, Licorice and Raspberry.

I would love to hear your comments on these new flavors.

Candie

Planning for fall and Christmas Season

It is almost absurd how far ahead a retailer is encouraged to plan for a season or holiday. For instance we received a spring catalog from one of our suppliers late last October of last year. Most store switch to the next season or holiday the day after the last. Then again it takes most retailers much longer to plan ahead for marketing and store placement of the products. With us we can get in a new product, have it up on the site and announced in a newsletter on the same day. That is the nice thing about handling the web site control and marketing your self.



So today I sit here considering what we will want to add for the fall and Christmas season. Our two best selling chintz teapot sets from last season have both been discontinued so I am on the hunt for sets to replace them. I have my eye on this Vintage Christmas Set which I think has a very romantic old Christmas feel to it. The set has matching teapot, tea cups, tea bag holders and Christmas ornaments.


What do you all think? We are waiting for a list of new teas and samples from our favorite supplier. When we get that I will give you all a glimpse at our choices.

Candie

Friday update

I've got a new batch of Yixings online; what a cute bunch this is! Samples below.



Well, here it is Friday again…YAH! Remember the computer problems? Had to end up wiping my hard drive, took a couple of days to get up and running right.

Things back in stock:
Victorian Teapot Warmers
Stevia

The Watermelon-Kiwi , Blackberry Green and small tea infuser baskets will be out of stock for another week, but you can still order them. Called to order some more infusers and they said they didn’t get my order from last week. I guess I should always call them in….instead of e-mailing or faxing.

One of these days I will get pictures of work on here. Have a great weekend!

Denise

Green Tea Musings

Green tea and more green tea…  I can’t seem to get my self to drink anything but green tea these days.  I do tend to stay on one trend for a season and summer is a good time to be hooked on green tea. Green Tea is refreshing and light and doesn’t weight you down in the heat. We now have so many wonderful flavors of green teas that I can just rotate thru them and never get bored.

I am still amazed that most companies are still resistant to tea and tea products. It is hard to find good tea products in the first place and then just when they are selling really well the company then discontinues the products. They don’t seem to believe that tea is an up and coming trend. We are seeing tea converts every day from soda or coffee. People taste good fresh tea and they realize that the grocery store tea they grew up on was stale and flavorless. I am always hearing from our customers that they just can’t go back to the tea, coffee, etc. that they had been drinking.

Candie
~ Sipping Vanilla Green Tea

Boy.... What a week!

Boy….What a week I’ve had here at Culinary Teas!  Last week my computer started acting up, and then went totally down to the blue screen of death. I called Dell and was connected with this guy from India (who I had a hard time understanding). He made me take the computer apart and look at things I’ve never seen before. Then after hours doing this and that, he had me run a diagnostic that ran two and a half hours and said he would call back. Well guess what…..he never called back arrgggg. I got two error codes from the diagnostic and being the resourceful one I went on the internet and looked them up. Segments in my hard drive were corrupted! Everything I read said the hard drive was fried, then I came upon a ladies site where she had fixed hers. I tried what she did and it worked, I’m jumping up and down with glee.

It worked fine when we came back to work this week….for a couple of hours. Then my Quick Books crashed it and guess what….blue screen again. I started to pull my hair out at this point. I called Dell again, this time I got to talk to a sweet lady from Alabama. After running some tests, she had me wipe my hard drive out. So the rest of the day was spent downloading programs and getting my computer useable again. So far it has worked fine today…fingers crossed!

On to better things…..things that are back in stock this week are:

• Stainless Steel Warmers


• Two Cup Dimbula Tea Presses


• Adams Peak Rare White Tea

I hope everyone had a fantastic 4th of July.

Denise

Tea and Food Pairing

I have a background as a chef so I love pairing tea with my food. Tea accompanies food so much better than wine does. Wine has the tendency to over power the flavor of the food and you cannot drink much without feeling tipsy by the end of your meal. Teas flavor can delicately pair with the food without over powering it and allows you to drink as much as you want without needing a designated driver.

Green teas pair well with foods that are normally paired with white wines like seafood, salads, fruit, and surprisingly deep fried food because cuts thru the fat and lessens your chance of indigestion. Japanese teas like Sencha or Genmaicha go perfectly with seafood and rice dishes. Chinese greens like Dragonwell and Jasmines are a little stronger in flavor and have a stronger aroma which pairs well with Salads and Chicken dishes.  Very lightly oxidized Oolongs (Wu-long or green Oolongs) also go well with these foods.

Oolong teas that are medium to dark oxidized are a perfect pairing for Chinese, Thai and grilled foods. The flavors of these oolongs have a pronounced toastiness and are very full flavored.

Black teas pair well with foods that are normally paired with red wines like meat, curries, and desserts. Black teas are rich and full bodied teas with pronounced tannins which hold up well with richly flavored foods. Black teas pair especially well with chocolates and desserts with chocolate.

Candie

Green Tea and Weight Lose

I have more than a few pounds to lose but I have been working on it slowly. Over the last two years I have gone down 3 clothing sizes and am getting close to another. I credit a lot of this to green tea and a good diet. I can easily maintain my weight without the green tea because of my healthy diet. My family has a history of diabetes so I avoid extra sugar in my family’s diet. I should get plenty of exercise because I am chasing my 3 small children every where all day long but other than that I have a time exercising. I have arthritis in my knees and I can easily over do it and have myself hobbling around for days. When I drink Green tea all day long instead of other teas (like Wu-long), the pounds just melt away. I don’t even have to cut out the small amounts of treats I allow myself. The green tea is definitely what does it because I can cut out the treats and not drink the green tea and the weight doesn’t come off the same. For me it is just a matter of finding green teas that I like enough to drink all day long. Right now I am rotating thru our Flavored Green teas so I don’t get bored and stop drinking it. Right now I am very fond of our new Blackberry Green and a blend of our Pear Green and Watermelon Kiwi Green Teas.

I am currently wearing the smallest size of clothes I own. My goal is to have to buy a whole new wardrobe for the upcoming New Year. I will keep you posted if I make that goal. I am sure I can if I can just stay focused on drinking the green tea.

Candie

Fireworks and Iced Tea

I haven’t taken a break from tea but I sure have taken a break from the blog. Summer is just one of those times when there is so much you can go and do that you forget what you were suppose to be doing. Has anyone else felt like they have been run over by their train of thought? I am trying hard to stay ahead of mine today.

This weekend we celebrate our countries Independence Day and I will never get to old to enjoy fireworks. We get a special treat here in Syracuse we get two fireworks shows but one is my favorite. Lake Wawasee shoots their fireworks from a barge in the middle of the lake. We all come out in our boats and surround the barge and enjoy the reflection from the water and the fireworks in the sky. The lake also acts as a natural air conditioner which makes it hard to go home some nights.  

I am currently tasting samples for possible new products. Today I tried a rooibos based herbal with lemon myrtle which has a delightful lemon flavor and a hint of sweetness. Everyone else agreed that this herbal blend will be a big hit. I think this one is a keeper. Then I got myself a big glass of Strawberry Shortcake Iced tea. This tea is a dessert in a glass with it’s ripe strawberry and creamy shortcake finish.  I will be taking home some of our new Blackberry Green Tea for brewing over the long weekend.

Candie

New Yixings are coming!

Well key words for the web site are all redone, we should be much easier to find. Hubby took me out to eat to celebrate...Yah! The ordering is done for the week and we have a bunch of boxes that came in late today, so all back orders should be sent out tomorrow.

I'm ready to start on another batch of yixing teapots, they should be up after the holiday. This latest batch is the best yet! Some are simply elegant while others are extremely intricate. I have a couple of pictures to give you a peek at what's coming.



It's 6 pm, time to call it a day. My hubby has started working longer hours this week and the puppy is not appreciating us being gone that long, so it's off to play with him.

Denise

Cloudy Iced Tea

Summer is iced tea season and I often get questions about cloudy iced tea. Why does tea cloud when it is cooled? Black teas will sometimes cloud when cooled. The cloudiness is caused by tannins in the tea which are released into the hot brew but can bind together when the brew cools and cause cloudy tea. Higher quality teas like Darjeeling’s and Assams tend to have more tannins and are more likely to cloud. Hard water can also cause tea to become cloudy. The cloudiness does not affect flavor just the appearance of the tea. To remove the cloudiness add a half cup of boiling water per gallon of tea and stir.

Candie