November 4, 2021
Simpson & Vail’s Holiday Sampler Gift Box Our Holiday tea sampler is the top pick for the 2021 Holiday Gift Guide! This sampler offers all 10 of our holiday teas in an elegant black gift box. This box features: Candy Cane Organic Rooibos, Figgy Pudding green, Gingerbread black, Holiday Blend, Nutcracker black, Roasted Chestnut Rooibos, St. Nick’s black, Sugar Plum Fairy Rooibos, White Chocolate Peppermint, & Winter Wonderland. Unit Price: $29.95 Christmas Teatime Book: Celebrating the Holiday with Afternoon Tea If you’re thinking of hosting a special tea celebration over the holidays then this colorful 134-page hardcover book will be a wonderful asset. More than 90 delectable recipes, (from scones, to savories, to sweets) along with 10 beautiful table settings, will serve as an inspiration in planning your […]
October 8, 2021
A glimpse into the process of blending our National Park Tea Collection. Transforming Nature to Tea Through conducting extensive research on the different park flora, the environment and general appearance, the National Park Collection formed. This helped make the decision as to what flavors, herbs, teas, and fruits we would put into each blend. The goal was to create a blend that mentally transport’s the consumer to the park . Next, I will dive into details on our two new additions to the National Park collection – view information on the rest of the collection here. Blending The two new parks began the same as the others, with countless hours of research and visiting the locations. Anyone who has been to a national park in person knows the […]
May 3, 2021
I was a New Tea Drinker When I began working at Simpson & Vail I was a new tea drinker and my knowledge of tea began and ended at the instant iced sweet “tea” mix you buy from the grocery store. Do they even still make that? Needless to say my knowledge on the subject was just about none. Now, I am nowhere near an expert, but I’ve had the privilege of tasting a variety of teas from around the world and even been able to create a whole collection of tea blends (National Park Tea Collection). It still fascinates me how much there is to learn about tea and how much dedication goes into the process of loose tea! Here are a few simple tips I wish […]
October 22, 2020
Our new favorite Halloween treat with a few tricks! “When I looked around I saw and heard of none like me. Was I, then, a monster, a blot upon the earth from which all men fled and whom all men disowned?“ -Mary Shelley, Frankenstein Our NEW Mary Shelley Green Tea has arrived just in time for all of your spooky Halloween shenanigans. The Treat Tea was an essential part of Mary and Percy’s daily lives and it is recorded that they favored black tea that was sweetened. After learning of the plight of slaves on sugar cane plantations they boycotted sugar and, not liking unsweetened black tea, they switched to drinking plain green tea. Since there are no references to tea in Mary’s writings, the inspiration for this […]
July 14, 2020
Sangria is a wonderful treat to cool off with on a hot summer day so we wanted to share some of our favorite tea sangria recipes. We hope you enjoy these while relaxing this summer. Fruity White Tea Sangria Serves 6 1 bottle white wine (Sauvignon Blanc works well) 4 cups sweet tea (using S&V White Ambrosia tea, sweetened to taste) 1/4 cup triple sec 2 cups each frozen or fresh raspberries and frozen sliced peaches A bit of fresh mint for garnish Combine all ingredients in a pitcher and refrigerate 1 hour or until properly chilled. Very Berry Tea Sangria 2 quarts Sweetened iced tea chilled (using our S&V Iced Tea Blend) 1 (750 mL) bottle sweet red wine chilled we like a red moscato or […]
June 8, 2020
If you are looking for the prefect summer party starter give this refreshing recipe a try! A delicious “secret” from the south is the Great Southern Sweet Tea Slush which we are sharing with you today. Sweet tea can be traced back to the 1800’s in the US and is firmly rooted in the South. In fact, every good Southerner has their “perfect” sweet tea recipe. Recipes vary from ones where you think you are drinking more sugar than tea, to others that incorporate wonderfully tasty fruits like peaches and strawberries. You can try this super easy process with other drinks as well. GREAT SOUTHERN SWEET TEA SLUSH Yields: 4 servings Ingredients: 6 cups sweet tea (homemade with one of Simpson and Vail’s fantastic Iced Teas, sweetened to […]