We at SBS Teas and Bath would like to invite you to join us in the Celebration of Life Month. We want to be a healthy lifestyle leader for you, our customers, as you work to keep up your New Year's Resolutions. January 1-7 is Lose Weight/Feel Great Week. January 10 is Cut Your Energy Costs Day. January 20-26 is Take Back Your Time Week. January 22 is actually Celebration of Life Day. You will also be happy to know that January 24 is National Peanut Butter Day!!!
To help you in your quest to improve your lifestyle we are pleased to offer our Spa and Herbal Teas. How about a cup of Serene Garden to relieve the stresses of the day? Do you need extra vitality--try our On the Go tea. Pleasant Slumber will help you have a good night's sleep with the harmonious soothing blend of fresh herbs and flowers. Trouble with colds or allergies and want to clear your chest for breathing?? Try a steeping a cup of Breathe. Suffering from sore throats? You might want to try our Throat Soother Herbal tea.
In the mood for a wonderful, relaxing soak in your tub-- be sure to try one of our Bath Teas. These are fragrant blends of dried herbs, botanicals, salts, and essential oils that transform your bath into a "spa getaway experience." Oh so relaxing and it smells just heavenly!!!
We will be featuring other products during January to help in your Celebration of Life!!

Labels: aroma, bath, beauty, celebration, energy, garden, life, scent, soothing, tea, time, weight

Africa's Miracle Rooibos Tea

After attending the Tea Expo in Atlanta last month I came away with a greater appreciation for Rooibos tea. Actually, Rooibos tea is not a "tea" but rather a certified organic herbal infusion. It is grown in the Cedarberg Mountains in the North Western part of the Cape Province of South Africa. The word Rooibos literally means red bush. Rooibos is harvested by hand and then chopped by a machine. During the entire harvesting process, oxidation occurs, which results in the tea becoming a deep rich red rust color. Once the tea is dry it is collected, heat sterilized and sifted into different grades.


We, at SBS Teas, are marketing the certified organic Rooibos and Honeybush teas from the company Africa's Miracle. Their entire tea harvesting operation is pure and natural. It uses no colorants or preservatives. All of the Africa's Miracle Red Tea Blends are grown and packaged in the Republic of South Africa providing critical jobs. All plant workers are unionized and receive free medical care. The company is creating greater value across the board for all of their workers than any comparable Fair Trade product.


In the US they are continuing their work with the Artists For A New South Africa (http://www.ansafrica.org/) to bring awareness to the AIDS crisis and other critical issues in South Africa. Africa's Miracle is also helping to support rural pre-school projects in Africa.


Below is a partial listing of how Rooibos and Honeybush may have a positive impact on your health:


*Strong antioxidant action

*Naturally rich in minerals

*May help prevent some cancers

*Soothing--great for insomniacs and nursing mothers

*Great for tummy troubles

*Naturally caffeine free

*Low in tannins

As I mentioned before, I have become a Rooibos fan.

I encourage you to try these new products.

Labels: beauty, black tea, caffeine free, fair trade, herbal infusion, honeybush, organic, red bush, Rooibos, South Africa, tannins

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Dark Ages pervaded and the economic and agricultural systems that stemmed from the Romans crumbled. Most of the aesthetic gardens in the Roman colonies went to seed leaving only those that provided food, such as vegetables and orchards. Ironically it was during the Dark Ages that the science of herbal medicine made great strides and the unique trustee of ancient Roman and Greek scholars’ knowledge was the Catholic Church.

This was the time when monks pioneered agriculture. Each monastery had its own orchard, vegetable garden and a hortus conclusus, or closed garden. The closed garden was used to grow herbs that were both spiritual and curative. Lilies and roses formerly woven into the wreaths of the Roman gods Isis and Aphrodite were now used to worship the Madonna. The importance of these gardens was such that around the year 800, the emperor Charlemagne sent each of his intendants a list of those plants that were to be cultivated in his empire. The document was known as De Capitularis and of the ninety plants listed the iris and rose were first and second respectively; followed by several other commonly know herbs such as sage, rosemary, cumin, mint, mallow and coriander. These plants played important roles, both culinary and medicinal. They often conferred taste and color to foods and perhaps most important, they preserved foods and masked the taste and odor of over aged meats. During the 1100’s the Crusades came upon the Italian town of Salerno which was the site of a renowned medical school founded by four doctors, an Arab, a Roman, a Greek, and a Jew each of whom was appointed the guardian of the secular knowledge of their people. These men were recognized as true masters and their teachings would influence European medicine for centuries to come.

Rose petals and buds were used by women to enhance the beauty of their hair and skin. Not surprising, knowing that following the rose blooming a rose hip develops, and a rose hip contains a multitude of vitamins which have properties that enhance one’s skin amongst its other properties. There are more different kinds of roses than of any other plant in the herb category, and they all provide rose hips of one description or another. One variety of rose is even called ‘Tea Rose’ named for the resemblance of its fragrance to black tea.

Tea uses - Rose petals are commonly used to make a tea blend or infusion colorful and visually appealing. If you want to create their own signature blends, rose petals and buds can make your blend distinctive and a blend that only ‘you’ can create. A lovely recipe using rose petals is called Rose Orange Cinnamon Tea - a delightful mix of rosebuds with an orange cinnamon zest that can be consumed hot or iced. This tea is best consumed without milk. For each serving you will need: 1 1/2 teaspoon of SBS Teas Cinnilla Moon tea, a large pinch of rose petals and buds, a teaspoon of orange peel and a pinch of cinnamon. Mix everything together and prepare as you would for a normal cup of tea.

Labels: beauty, beverage, black tea, Catholic, Church, cinnamon, food, garden, Greek, green tea, Jewish, Madonna, rose hips, roses, tea, teas