April 9, 2013
It seems that most towns across the country celebrate the advent of Spring with a Spring Tea party, a time for everyone to shake off the hibernation of winter and come together as a community. We all have our Spring-time rituals. Usually when I hear the Spring birds singing, I start seeds indoors and plan this year’s garden. One of the plants that is essential in any garden I create is lavender. I love the aroma of lavender and the variety of ways lavender is used: from cosmetics and culinary recipes to medicinal purposes. And while it doesn’t bloom here in CT until later in the Spring season, I still associate the taste and smell of lavender as a harbinger of the season of new growth, color, light, […]
April 25, 2012
Many of our Simpson and Vail customers are huge fans of both the taste and flavor as well as the benefits of our loose Rooibos tea. The question is, are the health claims true? Researchers in South Africa (Professor Maryna van de Venter of the Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology and her colleague, Dr Trevor Koekemoer, at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University), funded by the South African Rooibos Council, are currently studying Rooibos’ effects on the aging process. The thought for many years has been that the antioxidants in Rooibos bind with free radicals preventing them from damaging cells. Certainly European and South African cosmetic companies think this may be true as well, since Rooibos is found as an ingredient in many skin care products overseas. Ten years […]
April 4, 2012
In a recent study of green tea that was published in NeuroToxicicology, scientists found that green tea, when consumed with foods that are high in lead, saw alleviated symptoms of lead poisoning. The study on rats broke them into 5 groups: Group 1) this was the control group Group 2) administered lead acetate Group 3) administered lead acetate and green tea at the same time Group 4) administered only green tea Group 5) this group had lead acitate for 1 month followed by green tea for 15 days The study found that when the green tea was consumed with the lead (Group #3), the detrimental effects of lead were diminished. Why is this important to people in the United States? Foods in the US are monitored for heavy metal content, however, our diet has become […]
March 24, 2012
Rooibos “tea” is an herb that is also known as Red Bush tea. The botanical name is Aspalathus linearis and this herbal tea contains no caffeine and is reputed to have many health benefits. You can see some information on the Simpson and Vail Rooibos tea page on our website. At Simpson and Vail, we make blends with Rooibos, which you can also view on our website. Rooibos is a perfect herb to blend with – it has a slight woody, earthy taste that combines well with many other herbs and with tea, and it provides an excellent base for flavored blends. To some people Rooibos is a new tea, but Rooibos has been enjoyed by many people for over a hundred years. My parents were actually selling Rooibos […]