The Mad, Mad Tea Party: May 3rd

BREWING UP BUSINESS
In an effort to brew up some business in these hard economic times, Vintage Variety Shop in Atlantic Highlands has teamed up with Madam Potts and the Mad Pots of Tea! Company to throw the first ever Mad, Mad Tea Party, on Sunday, May 3, 2009 from 2 – 5pm shoppers can enjoy a tea tasting while shopping store-wide sales. Likewise they are invited to relax and listen to some live music and chat with friends.

The Mad, Mad Tea Party (which has no political affiliation whatsoever) will be held in the back of the store on the second floor.
Setting the party atmosphere will be the relaxed reggae music stylings of Ron Santee

The purpose of the party is to not only brew up support for local businesses, but also as a social outlet, creating a brand new COMMUNI-TEA - a blended crowd of artists, musicians, business owners, and tea lovers alike.

The tea being featured at the event has been designed and will only be available for purchase at the Vintage Variety Shop. This Limited Edition blend called "Vintage VarieTEA", was inspired by the store’s eclectic nature.

Vintage Variety Shop sells and buys vintage clothing for guys and girls, and also carries posters & paintings, belts, buckles, jewelry, accessories, shoes, gifts and home décor. Every square inch of the store boasts a smorgasbord of edgy, arty and unusual stuff. You will need more than an afternoon to shop this store!

Come to the Tea Party and receive 15% off any store purchases (some exclusions apply).

Madam Potts loves mixing teas and herbs and gets madly inspired by people. She has been creating custom tea blends since 2006. Her goal is to turn people on to herbs and teas by creating unique blends they’ve never had before. Her latest blends, called “PersonaliTEAs” have been created for radio hosts, graphic designers, and musicians. Madam Potts is available for tea parties, showers, tastings and classes and can be contacted here.

So grab your friends and head down to the Mad Mad Tea Party! Enjoy a refreshingly different take on tea, engage in a new style of social networking, take in some live music and shop the sales at New Jersey’s most rock & roll Vintage store!

The Mad, Mad Tea Party
WHEN: Sunday May 3, 2009
TIME: 2pm – 5 pm.
WHERE: Vintage Variety, 76 First Ave. Atlantic Highlands, NJ
This is a FREE event

New Blend: Sweetly Sings the Blues

This next blend was also created for a singer, Clayton Senne. I met Clayton through Qs House, after he won Resident's Choice Artist Award for 2008. His soulful blues-pop style was a lot of fun to listen to and even more fun to create into a tea blend.

Clayton's PersonaliTEA is entitled: Sweetly Sings the Blues. Based on sage & hyssop (two herbs used to take care of the throat) this blend is reminiscent of Spring -- a time of sweetness, where things pop! pop up! pop open!...and the world is a more colorful place because of it.

This red-tinted blend of sage, hyssop, red clover, hibiscus, osmanthus and berries brings this artist to life in a teacup!

Thank you Clayton for your inspiration and your songs!

Tea Candy!

Finally - tea to go!
No mess, no fuss, and you can keep it in your pocket!

Albeit not a hot cup of tea (as I would not recommend pocketing hot liquids)...the taste of tea has found its way into a fun little candy, appropriately named "Tea Candy".

I was gifted 2 bags last night of Bali's Best Classic Iced Tea and Citrus Green Tea. Since then, I have been sucking down tea like mad. The Classic Iced tastes exactly like a sweet iced tea, and the citrus has a disinct lime-citrus flavor.

Unfortunately the website on the side of the bag has info about buying it by the case. and should I have a tea shop I most certainly would carry them...

I have not seen them in a lot of stores,
but I will be keeping an eye out!

First Flush Festival: Take 3

It wasnt too long ago, I blogged about the only working tea plantation in the US. Yes, I was beaming with American pride to find that there is a spot of tea here in the States. and it while researching that entry that I found out about the First Flush Festival.

This year marks the 3rd First Flush Festival. While I couldn't find any information short of a small press release, nor did I find any reviews of the previous 2 Festivals, I made up my mind that this year I would grace the Festival with my presence.
I hope that my readership, if they have attended in the past might be able to fill me in. Or if you live in or around Wadmalaw Island, in South Carolina that you might consider attending the First Flush Festival.

I however will be making the sojourn with 2 extremely fun loving, tea-sipping friends of mine - making quite the pilgrimage from the Northern Jersey Shore Coastline for a whirlwind weekend to celebrate the first harvest of the ever-sacred Camillia Sinensis plant.

Is it crazy to road-trip 13 hours for a one-day Festival in honor of a small warm beverage?

perhaps....

But I AM mad.

Madam Potts is indeeeeeed MAD.

and I hope those of you who can will join me.

For those interested in the Festival or about the Road-Trip, please contact me: TEA CRAZY

*Photo courtesy of Cairns Unlimited