Labels: beverage, caffeine free, celebration, cinnamon, coffee, drink, fall, fun, ghosts, Halloween, holiday, love, october, product, pumpkin, sbsteas.com, spooky

Hello friends,

I'm sure most of you have heard about the devastating flooding in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. As of June 16, damage estimates have exceeded ONE BILLION ($1,000,000,000) dollars. In a town of only 120,000 people, this is beyond catastrophic.

Thousands of animals have been left homeless by the flood. The Cedar Rapids animal shelter has been completely destroyed. Many people had to abandon their pets when they evacuated their homes, and it is unclear when--if ever--they will be reunited.

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

The independent artisan community is coming together with an exciting auction to benefit the "Friends of the Animal Shelter" fund via the Kirkwood Foundation (tax ID 23-7076632), which is the fundraising division of the college currently serving as the evacuation center for abandoned animals. There are several hundred dogs, even more cats, and other companion animals being housed there, and many, many more animals are still stranded in the thousands of abandoned homes in Cedar Rapids. This auction will take place from June 25-July 2, and further details are available at http://www.iowafloodreliefauction.com/.

In the meantime, you can support the Friends of the Animal Foundation for the Iowa City animal shelter (also affected by the flood) by donating at:

http://www.networkforgood.org/pca/Badge.aspx?BadgeId=111927

Please forward this message to your friends and join me in supporting the needs of the displaced animals in Iowa. Together, we can raise awareness and much-needed resources for a community currently in a state of despair.

Thank you,

SBS Teas

Labels: beverage, black tea, dog, Family, friendship, gift, green tea, memories, pets, Rooibos, tea, white tea

In April 2007 I followed my dreams and decided to jump feet first into becoming a tea business owner. I purchased SBS Teas from the former owner and it has been non stop since then!! I have always had a fascination with "all things tea." My grandmother and I used to have great elaborate tea parties with my dolls. I fell in love with the ceremony of having a proper tea. As I grew older I never outgrew my love of "all things tea." I especially love having the opportunity to travel around the world and participate in all different kinds of tea experiences--from very proper in London, England to very quaint in Williamsburg, Va. Every tea room has its own charm and character.
I am getting ready to retire from a career in teaching after 30 years and wanted something to do to keep me busy and out of trouble when I have more time on my hands--enter the option of an on line tea business!! This seemed like the perfect thing for me. All the tea but no dirty dishes!!!
As I celebrate the 1 year anniversary of SBS Teas, I want to thank all of our loyal customers who have stayed with us and to all of our many new customers who have found out how wonderful our teas and customer service are. MANY, MANY THANKS also to my lovely daughter Sharon for minding the store for me until I retire!!! We have both had some amazing experiences and met some wonderful people along the way. I can't wait to see what the next year has in store!
Sincerely,
Lady Babs

Labels: beverage, celebrate, drink, Family, friendship, memories, tea

Did you know: Tea is the second most popular beverage in the world next to water?
Tea was discovered by accident nearly 5000 years ago?
Tea contains naturally occurring plant compounds that may be good for your health?
Like fruits, vegtables and other plant-based foods, tea has been shown in numerous studies to have significant health benefits. These benefits may be the result of the naturally occurring compounds in tea called flavonoids, which have antioxidant properties. In the body, antioxidants are believed to work to neutralize harmful molecules called free radicals which, over time, can damage cells and tissues and contribute to chronic diseases. Tea appears to have silmilar or higher antioxidant power than many fruits and vegtables.
Also, a serving of tea contains less than half the caffeine of an equal size serving of coffee. Of course, this depends upon the blends and strength of the tea brew. But, this is encouraging news for those of us trying to limit our caffeine consumption.
According to legend, the custom of drinking tea began around 2737 BC when some tea leaves accidentally blew into a pot of boiling water belonging to the Chinese Emperor Sheen Nung.
So, lets brew a cup of SBS tea and join folks around the world who love their tea.

Labels: beverage, black tea, caffeine free, drink, green tea, herbal infusion, honeybush, red bush, tea, teas, white tea

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