What better way to welcome the month of March than to tip our hats to our Irish friends in the emerald green isle?  After all, according to STI statistics, the country of Ireland consumes the largest amount of tea in the world!  Their favorite “cupan tae” (cup of tea) is the strong, robust, bold flavor of Indian Assam tea served with lots of milk and sugar. They use small loose leaf tea which steeps into a strong, rich liquor.  Throughout all of Ireland, whether you are a farmer, factory, office or construction worker, tea offers the stimulation they need in the morning and during their daily breaks.  So follow their lead and start your morning with a strong cuppan tae!

This month, my family and I revisited the Peabody Essex Museum, not only for the full enjoyment of the teapot exhibit, but to participate in the “Chinese Tea Ceremony” for families.  Sharon Chu, Director of BeautiLife, along with her assistant displayed through visuals and demonstrations the art of the Chinese Tea Ceremony.  After they completed their presentation, they welcomed our two young boys to practice the Chinese tea ceremony on us!  This experience not only served as a looking glass for them into an authentic tea ceremony,  it allowed them to appreciate and respect the Chinese culture and their practice of living a quality of life through tea. 

The Cozy Tea Cart will be closed for the World Tea Expo from March 24 – 30. In addition to participating in a number of educational seminars, I will be taking part in the first ever U.S. World Tea Auction!  Stay tuned for more info in next month’s newsletter.

Stop by the tea shoppe and see our “green” specials this month in honor of St. Patrick’s Day (click here for directions).

In this newsletter, you will find the following news items:

• This Months Specials
• Up-coming Events –  “Local Auctions” and “World Tea Expo”
• Tea Terms

• Health News 

Begin your day with a daily cup of tea…

All GREEN teapots, cups and Irish giftware is 15% off until the end of March.

Irish Breakfast Tea

This is 100% Assam tea, like most traditional Irish blends. This tea will give your morning a powerful start! 

Loose tea in 4 oz. tin        $7.25

Black Currant (Be sure to read the recent studies on Black Currants in our “Health News” section!)

Loose tea in 4 oz. tin        $7.50

MKelvie Middle School, Bedford, NH - Saturday, March 18^th

Covenant High In Christ National Youth Conference

Gourmet Festival & Spring Auction – Sunday, March 19^th

Nashua Pastoral Care Center, Inc., Nashua, NH

This month we will be attending the World Tea Expo from Friday, March 24, through Thursday, March 30^th.  We hope to bring back new specialty teas, delicious tea party treats and exciting new tea wares.  Be sure to check our April newsletter for all the details!

TEA TERMS

If there is a term that you would like defined, please click here to email us.

Gai Wan:  This is a traditional small bowl with a lid that is used in the Chinese Tea Ceremony to both infuse and serve the tea.  It adds to the visual experience of the leaves and the liquor.

Chinese Tea Service Tools:  The tools the Chinese use during their tea ceremony when using the Gai Wan.  These were used at the Chinese tea ceremony at the museum:  a fine mesh strainer to drain the tea into the pitcher, a holder for the strainer, and a pair of small tongs for gripping the hot cups when rinsing them. 

HEALTH NEWS

NEW JUICES ON MARKET – Web MD Feature

By Carol Sorgen – Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

One of the newer fruit juices that is capturing our attention is black currant juice. For 100 years it was illegal to commercially grow black currants in the U.S, but that law has now been overturned, thanks to the efforts of Greg H. Quinn, president of The Currant Company, which is the first, and at the moment, the only domestic producer of a currant product in the U.S., a nectar known as CurrantC… Research conducted in countries such as New Zealand, Japan, Sweden, and Finland has shown that black currants have many benefits. They have been shown to have twice the antioxidants of blueberries, four times the vitamin C of oranges, and twice the potassium of bananas. These overseas studies have also reported that black currants can lower … - click here to review the remainder of this article.

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