Felicitea

News from Felicitea.com

Friday, August 15, 2008

Vendor Profile: Green Monster Garden

market 008

Green Monster Garden
Owned and operated by Tara & Stuart McAlister

Tara and Stuart supply Felicitea with a number of herbs - lots of fresh mint! They are fantastic to work with, full of wonderful ideas and very passionate about their products and local food. They also grow lettuce and tomatoes (which are delicious!).

Below is what Tara had to say:

What do you do? grow? make?
We infused extra virgin olive oil with herbs from our garden. We use fresh herbs to create a fabulous seasoning that can be used to compliment veggies , chicken or fish. Presented in decorative bolltes, the oil makes a great gift for a housewarming or hostess gift.

What's special about your company?
What makes our company Special? Our company is special because the people involved truly have a passion and want to provide an outstanding product. We want all of our customers to know and believe that we want them 100% satisfied, if not we aren't!

Where are you located?
Charlotte, NC in the Steele Creek Neighborhood

How did you start working with Felicitea?
We were lucky to become acquainted with Felicitea at the South End Tailgate Market in the Spring of 2008. We were impressed with Summer's true love of tea and can understand her passion and dedication to her craft. She enjoys working with those in the community to share ideas, products and suggestions. Felicitea is a true partner in the farming community.

Contact Info:
Tara and Stuart McAlister
Green Monster Garden
704-957-7837
greenmonstergarden@bellsouth.net

Green Monster Garden is at Tailgate Market Tuesday's and Saturday's.

(This is a part of a series of profiles on the vendors, sellers and customers of Felicitea.)




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Friday, August 8, 2008

Chocolate + Tea = Happiness

As you may imagine, at Felicitea we encourage all forms of delectableness. Especially when it directly involves tea.

Enter The Secret Chocolatier. Then comes Brandice. After time, talk and forceful encouragement we come to this delicious place we end up seeing a sign that says:

EGB AVAILABLE!!


Which is super exciting! Few things are as wondrous as tea or truffles. Put them together and you have heaven for the mouth.

Earl Grey Brandice Truffle These truffles are hand made by Bill in his top secret Chocolate Lab. Really. He makes each by hand, which is apparently a very delicate operation.

Everything is processed in a cream steeping method to bring out the peak flavors for your enjoyment. These babies are nothing like your everyday chocolates. Though if you have the wallet for it, they could be. These come in at $3 a piece.

But they are worth every penny. Just ask these people:


EGB 003
(click to see videos of people on-the-spot reactions)


Available at Tailgate Market and Gateway Market.

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In The News

So it seems to be the week for media surrounding Felicitea.

Wednesday, Pete was profiled by the observer. Yesterday, Felicitea was honored by Daily Candy. Today, The Secret Chocolatier was given props by the Charlotte Observer's Top 8 Eats for 8/8/08.

Described as an out of body experience by the paper, these chocolates definitely can take you to another level of experience. (If this post seems a little happy, I'm nibbling on an Earl Grey Brandice Truffle right now.) You'll be hearing more about them and their work with Felicitea a little later on today.

Also, looks who's coming to Charlotte...

There's much happiness here at Felicitea!

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Thursday, August 7, 2008

Rosemary Pete makes the paper

We get a lot (almost all) of our herbs from Rosemary Pete. If you get a moment you should check out this awesome article in the Charlotte Observer about him. Felicitea gets a mention too!

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Market Quote from August 5, 2008

Little boy to his mother when told to share his Mint Tea with his sister:
"But it's too yummy to share!"




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Community Commitment

I'm a locavore. For me that means most of the food I eat is grown or produced within a 150 mile radius. It has become my passion, more so over the last year then ever before.

I grew up with parents who gardened. I took a wonderful Ag class my freshman year of high school where we learned how to plant with the seasons and got our hands dirty. I fell in love with, and still miss, the Central Market in Lancaster, PA, where I lived most of my life. Lancaster is a agricultural area, and what part of the economy that isn't tourist related, depends on that agriculture. I can tell you what the season is by the smell of the fields. When I lived in Pennsylvania, eating local was easy and something I didn't think about.

In Charlotte it's not as easy or simple. We may be a small city, but we're definitely urban. When I moved here I learned what eggs taste like when you buy them at the store. I definitely prefer my eggs fresh from the chickens who laid them. If you look hard in this town you can find local foods and products that come from people who have a passion for their produce. Or if you go to the Tailgate Market in South End you just have to look around: everything offered here is locally made or produced with local products.

I bring this passion and community to Felicitea. We use local products, as much as possible, in the teas, soaps and gifts. I believe that local is more sustainable. And, since I know the growers, I know the products are produced safely and organically, even if they don't have the USDA's seal of approval.

Eating local is about relationship, community and commitment. It's about supporting each other and creating a relationship of knowing interdependence. Felicitea is also about relationship, community and commitment. The custom blend process is about communicating our relationship with tea, with each other, and our selves. Sharing these teas with each other we create a community where we share each others tastes and stories. We commit to make tea a wonderful experience that we can share or enjoy alone, creating a space where we can tell stories or sit in peaceful silence with friends. Choosing local means choosing peace, passion and sustainability. Isn't that what tea means to so many of us?

I am blessed with the ability to share a cup of tea with most of the people who's products we use here at Felicitea. I can go take a look at the place where the products are grown or raised. Our teas come from companies who can go look at the estate, talk to the pickers and tea masters and estate owners. Each cup of tea you drink comes thanks to the hands that grow it, pick it, dry it and then pass it on to me where I blend it together just for you with my two hands. Every sip of tea was created by a community of people with names, stories and a passion for their work.

To widen this community and allow you to know the people who grow and participate in the creation of Felicitea products we'll be honoring and introducing you to them. In this space we'll share the stories of the people who grow and produce the ingredients in your teas, soaps and gifts. We'll also be sharing profiles of the vendors who offer Felicitea products along with those who carry and create complimentary products such as chocolates infused with our teas or local honey to sweeten your cup. There will even be a stories from customers - the people who not only enjoy the final product of this communities co-creation process, but support its continued existence.

My hope is that even if you're too far from Charlotte or India to shake the hand of the people who bring you your tea, you'll get a sense of who these people are and what they bring to your cup. Knowing this community of amazing, passionate people has made each cup of tea a happier experience for me. I hope it does the same for you.


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Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Announcing the winners of the CTC contest!!

First, I must say chosing winners was hard work! All of the entries were awesome and I was deeply moved by many of them, giggling happily over others. Thank you to everyone who participated. I loved learning about your relationship with tea.

If you haven't read all the entries, please do so - they were all wonderful!

Without further ado, the first place winners are:
Second place goes to:
Congrats to the winners!

Everyone who entered will get one free sample of their choice. Just drop me a message on the forums with your address and sample you'd like to try.

Once the winner custom blends are ready, they'll be available online. We'll make an announcement here when they're ready!


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Monday, July 28, 2008

Check out the contest entries!

Over the past couple days wonderful contest entries have been coming in. So far we have prose and a couple poems.

Check all the entries out here!

If you haven't entered yet you still have time. All entries are due by Midnight EST this Thursday.

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Wednesday, July 16, 2008

SteapTV Review of Floral Jasmine

Joe and Brandice will be sharing their review of Floral Jasmine on SteapTV in a couple weeks.

As a special treat, Felicitea is offering samples for a taste-a-long. The first five people to email me with "Free Floral Jasmine" as the subject will win a free sample!

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Monday, July 14, 2008

Bigger Better Coffee to Tea Convert Contest

June was a busy month. Weddings, graduations, baby showers, babies, more weddings, trips to the beach or up to the mountains. No one was home. No one had free time (consumed by the travel between said showers, weddings and graduation parties). So, sadly, no one was able to enter the video section of the contest. (Apparently one can not edit video and attend a baby shower at the same time. At least, not and get invited again.)

This is a boon for you, my tea and coffee drinking compatriots. This means that we here at Felicitea have extra prizes to give away!

So here's the new deal:

Write: We're looking for poetry, prose, whatever you like. Feel free to haiku or make up a limerick, or write out a concise little paragraph. Just write about tea and it's relationship to you, your friend, or your last cup of coffee.

We want to connect new drinkers to tea, convert a coffee drinker (or other non-tea drinking people) or two over (at least get them to try good tea!) and reconnect tea lovers with what it is they love about tea.
  • Tea drinkers it is your responsibility to help the coffee drinkers of the world. You are charged with helping them understand the joy of tea. If you are a convert tell your story. If you love tea, but still enjoy an occasional cup of coffee it's okay, but what about the tea keeps you coming back to the pot all day? Share with the Internets why they should kick that coffee habit. If you have a friend you're nominating, be specific.
  • Coffee/Non-tea drinkers this is your chance to tell us why you drink coffee (or something else) instead of tea. This is your chance to tell all us tea drinkers what it is that makes you go for the espresso instead of the Earl Grey. Did you have a bad tea bag experience? Convinced all green tea is bitter? Are you willing to give it a shot but don't know where to start?
The details:
  1. It's got to be words. (However, if you want to go wild and make a video of yourself reading your prose, we encourage such blatant acts of attention getting.)
  2. It's got to be clear which side of the line your on - do you love tea, or do you need converted.
  3. You may enter someone else, by proxy, by writing about why THEY should be converted to tea. They then will win the coffee drinker's prize. You are welcome to enter as many friends as you like, and enter your own self in the tea loving side. (If you write something especially brilliant for a friend, we might just find a little something to pass along your way too.)
  4. You may only enter once for yourself.
  5. It must be no longer then one screen load. We shouldn't have to scroll to read any of it.
  6. Post it online. Either to your blog (comment with your linkage) or if you don't have a blog, post it here in the Felicitea Forums.
  7. Your words are due by July 31st. That gives you over two weeks to come up with something to say!
In return for your generous elucidation about why tea is awesome, or why you don't get all the hype, you'll get something in return. (Because really, what's a contest without a prize?)

Just for entering you'll receive a sample tin from Felicitea. We'll contact everyone who submits an entry, and you'll be able to pick out a sample that you'd like to try - for free.

And whoever write the most interesting, intriguing, whimsical, heartbreaking or overall just awesome entries on both side will win:

2 Grand Prizes containing:
2nd place in each category will receive:
  • A eight(8) tea sampler set from Felicitea's current tea selection
  • Two(2) 1oz tins of their choice
Write about tea - there's happiness to be had!



The fine print:
  1. To be eligible for prizes, the winners must be US Citizens.
  2. All entries must be post 12pm EST on July 31.
  3. Eligibility to enter may be prohibited by law or loved ones (Disobey at your own risk. Felicitea will not be held liable for any actions you or your crazy friends take.). Immediate family of Felicitea employees are ineligible to win (though they are encouraged to enter!).
  4. Keep the language PG-13. Children read the Internets. R-rated language in postings will result in linkage being removed from Felicitea's site.
  5. Winner's will be contacted directly by August 7th. If for some reason, a winner does not respond by August 10, 2008, the prize will be transferred to the next entry. After all winners have been notified, the winner's will be announced on Felicitea's blog.
  6. Have fun!


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