Afternoon Tea at Ardmore Park Place

In August 2010, a friend suggested I contact the owners of Ardmore Park Place - a beautiful 1870's Victorian House located in St. Clair Shores, MI - about coordinating  Afternoon Teas at their establishment.  I had taken my mother to tea there shortly after they opened in the late 1980's [under the name of Victoria Place House], so I was  familiar with the establishment.  I  acted  promptly on the suggestion, and the owners graciously granted an appointment.  Plans sprang into action quickly and my first tea was scheduled for September 22, 2010.  

Photo courtesy of Examiner.com

My responsibilities were multi-faceted:  Selecting a theme; determining a menu and giving recipes to management; providing all tablescape items [dishware, centerpieces, etc.] and partial set-up since I transported all the totes containing  tablescape items to every tea as the establishment had no storage space available; purchasing guest favors; ordering, preparing  and serving the tea; coordinating a program/entertainment; and publicity [fliers, press releases for local newspapers/magazines, etc.].   The teas would entail a lot of work, but I was elated to have the opportunity to do something I loved.

I decided on the theme "Celebrating Autumn," - Apples and Foods of Oktoberfest.   It seemed appropriate to recognize the German tradition since the Schneider family, owners of the Victorian house from the 1870's to the early 1900's, were of German descent. 

The first tea was almost a sell-out with  31 ladies signing up.    Diligent shopping was necessary to acquire everything in a short time span.   Below are photos of the tablescapes.

The menu was as follows:  "Kinderpunsch" - German Apple Punch;  Harney & Sons Cranberry Autumn Flavored Black Tea; German Potato Soup; Cranberry Scones with Apple Butter; Pork Kabob with Apple Chutney served on Farm Egg Noodles tossed with Butter & Caraway Seeds; Chocolate Applesauce Cake with Caramel Icing garnished with a Chocolate Covered Caramel Turtle.   [The turtle garnishes were too "putsy" for the kitchen staff, so I made those.]

 The punch was good to the last  few drops!

German Potato Soup and Cranberry Scones with Apple Butter

 

Pork Kabob & Noodles with Apple Chutney

 

Chocolate Applesauce Cake with Caramel Icing and Chocolate Covered Turtle

While the ladies enjoyed their meal, I made sure their teapots were continuously filled with hot tea.  The kitchen was a bit of a distance from the private dining room, so before the afternoon was over I began to feel that roller skates would have been more useful than my dressy pumps!  ;-)   But I was delighted to see all the ladies having a good time.

 

For the program I invited an officer from Carpathia Club - Detroit area's largest German cultural organization.    She came in costume, and brought greetings in German [translated afterwards, of course!].   After sharing a little about the club, I talked briefly about tea in Germany - particularly East Frisia where one-fourth of all Germany's tea is consumed.

 

Carpathia Club Officer and me.

Tea journey continued... [this series will end after my Ardmore tea postings].

Tea with Jane Pettigrew

June 11-12 2011, The Amherst Rose Tea Room in Massillon, Ohio hosted another superb event with British tea historian and specialist, Jane Pettigrew.   Not wanting to miss an opportunity to be educated by Jane,  my girlfriends and I made a return visit to North East Ohio.

The Saturday event opened with a five course Afternoon Tea, followed by Jane's presentation, "A Social History of Tea."  [The title of one of her books.]  Jane began with tea's discovery in China centuries ago;  how it was introduced and evolved in Britain; tea's history in the United States; concluding with  tea's growing appeal and trends today.   Jane stated that tea is a "magical drink" because it has the properties to stimulate and relax simultaneously, it's full of health benefits, and most important is its ability to bring people together.  Jane's passion for tea is so engaging that even someone who thought they disliked it would be pursuaded to like it!  I could listen to her teach/lecture for hours.  She is my all-time favorite tea educator/speaker. 

L-R:  Mary Jane Corwin [Tea Room Owner]; Jane Pettigrew; and Carl Corwin [Mary Jane's Husband & Tea Room Owner].  The photo was taken in one of the gardens that surrounds the beautiful 1846 Victorian house where the tea room is located.

Me arriving at the event.

Jane Speaking

The second day we returned to Amherst Rose for a tea buffet followed by a tea tasting.  We began with a Camellia Joy white "flowering"  peach flavored tea.   The second tea was a Huang Shan Mao Feng green tea.  The third was Dong Ding oolong - Jane used this tea to show the attendees how to properly brew a pot of tea.  The fourth tea was a First Flush Charleston Plantation black tea [U.S. grown].   We concluded with a Tregothnan English classic estate tea.  The estate, located in England, began growing tea in 2005.  This tea was a tribute to Jane, since England is her homeland.

Following the tasting, author and tea educator, Eve Hill [of Cleveland, Ohio], brought a selection of her teapots to view.    I was intrigued by the size of the early teapots.  Since tea was so expensive in its early days, it was served in very small teapots closely resembling a child's teapot.   Those being served only received a few drops, so they really had to savor it!

L-R:  Sandy & Jane, seated.  Lori & Me, standing.

When the event was over, Mary Jane graciously invited us back that evening for an informal gathering that turned out to be one of the highlights of the weekend!

Upon our return, the long dining table that had seated 14 guests earlier in the day was folded up and moved into the library, and the long area rug was rolled up exposing the oak hardwood floor that soon transitioned into a ballroom dance floor!

  Rolling up the carpet.

Who would have known that Jane, Mary Jane and Carl were excellent ballroom  dancers.   It was a side of them we had never seen before and they were absolutely amazing!  Tea pairs well with everything - including dancing!   Tea dances were [and still are at the London Waldorf] very popular.

Carl Corwin and Jane Pettigrew

Carl and Mary Jane Corwin

 

Learning is definitely fun!

Tea journey continued...

Joining ATAA and Celebrating its Tenth Anniversary

Afternoon Tea Across America [ATAA], is an international Yahoo E-group that was founded in 2000.  Its membership is 362, and since it's always open to new members, it  experiences continual growth.   I joined in June 2003, and the E-group has been a very important part of my tea journey.

The Tea in London Tour was posted on ATAA, as well as the first annual meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Tea Business Association [both events in my tea journey].   Through ATAA I've met many wonderful tea friends online, and have had the privilege of meeting some of them in person.   ATAA's sharing of tea information, tea party ideas, recipes and photos broadens my tea horizons and provides a lot of pleasure.

In 2010, as ATAA's Tenth Anniversary approached, plans were made to host tea parties  celebrating  the milestone in multiple  locations.   Mary Jane Corwin, owner of  The Amherst Rose Tea Room in Massillon, Ohio, volunteered to host one of the tea parties at her beautiful  Victorian facility.

Two of my girlfriends [also ATAA members] and I traveled to Massillon to be a part of the celebration.   It was fun meeting up with other tea friends at the event too.

Everyone brought food to contribute to the tea party, and pitched in to help wherever needed.

  It was a delicious feast, and joyous gathering!

 In the photo below an ATAA member from Oregon, joined our celebration via Skype. 

One of the ATAA members in attendance is a certified tea sommelier from Toronto, and she conducted a Chinese Gong Fu Tea Ceremony for us to participate in and enjoy.

And I demonstrated Flaming Oolong.

Pictured below are the ATAA Members who attended.   [Three from Ohio, three from Michigan, one from Kentucky, and one from Toronto, Canada.]

I wrote about the event in Miss. Kitty's Journal and Eve Hill [front left] wrote about it in TEA A Magazine.

Tea journey continued...

Independence Day 2012

Happy Birthday America!

and

Happy Birthday

Elizabeth Marie  [Ellie]

born today at 6:40 a.m.
9 lbs. 3 oz.  20 1/2 inches

L-R:  Isabella [Big Sister], Samantha [Mommy], Baby Ellie, Landon [Big Brother], and Jeremy [Daddy]

A real, live baby doll for big sister!



Proud Nana - 8th grandchild!  Another granddaughter for tea parties!  ;-)

Nana, Papa and Ellie

Tea Professional Weekend in Houston

When I was in London on the Tea Tour, Lee Garcia, Editor of TEA in TEXAS magazine, was there too.  She attended the Tea Master's class with our group.  Lee is a Magnolia & Ivy alumni, and while we had never met in person previously, we had communicated via E-mail, prior to the 2005 launch of her magazine.

 Lee Garcia

I  subscribe to TEA in TEXAS, and when the 2007 Summer Issue arrived in my mail box there was a large advertisement announcing a Tea Professional Weekend to be held in Houston on September 16 & 17th.   Kay and Terri [owners of Magnolia & Ivy] were the keynote speakers.

There was no registration fee for all Magnolia & Ivy alumni, and the topics sounded interesting: Let's Get Steeping - Serve Loose Tea at your Business; Sell Quality Global Teas; Jumpstart your Business; Small Business Finance & Bookkeeping Basics [taught by Comerica Bank]; Advertising; Increase Holiday Sales; Etiquette & Professional Service; Keep Inspired through Challenges; and Tea Tasting - Exciting new blends.   I decided to attend.  

Out-of-town attendees stayed at Staybridge Suites and were shuttled to Westside Tennis and Fitness Club where the sessions were held.

Sandy's Market provided a welcoming "meet and greet" for attendees before being shuttled to the opening session at 12:30 p.m.   The big, unique, indoor market carries large selections of herbs, loose-leaf teas and tea accessories, coffee, grains and nuts, vitamins and health foods, and, of course, fresh vegetables and fruits. 

The market has a buffet that serves breakfast, lunch, and even afternoon tea!  During breakfast and lunch, a tea lady comes tableside with a cart to take tea  orders and prepares it right there.   Impressive! 

This is where I sat.

Shirley, the tea lady taking orders.

Wall of Loose-leaf teas for sale.  2 oz. pkgs. up to 1 lb. pkgs. were available. 
They said they don't keep it in light-proof containers because it sells quickly.   Hummm.... ???

Attendees - Lee Garcia is in the front row second from left.

It was a great weekend and I was glad I attended.   I wrote an article about the weekend that was published in TEA in TEXAS.   May I share just one paragraph of the article...

     "On my last morning in Houston, a young woman at the hotel where I was staying
      asked if she could join me as I sat at a table sipping a cup of Chai tea.   She asked
      what brought me to Houston?  'A tea seminar,'  I replied.  She smiled, realizing we

      had a common interest.  'I'm from India and I've seen many tea plantations,' she

      said.  Glancing at my Bigelow Chai wrapper on the table she continued, 'It takes

      four of those tea bags to equal the strength of a cup of Chai at home.'  As we conversed

      I thought how awesome that the universal beverage of tea brought two strangers

      from different countries together in the big city of Houston!"      

 

Tea is definitely a natural connector, drawing people of all ages, cultural backgrounds, geographic locations and career paths together.


Tea journey continued...

World Tea Expo

In June 2007, I boarded another airplane at Detroit Metro Airport bound for Atlanta, but this time it was to attend the June 9-11, 2007 World Tea Expo that was held at Atlanta's Georgia World Congress Center.  I stayed at the Omni Hotel [CNN Center] and Mary Jane [my London roommate] and I roomed together again.

The Southern Association of Tea Businesses, Inc. kicked-off the World Tea Expo with a June 8th evening event at The Carter Presidential Center with Jane Pettigrew as the keynote speaker.  Her topic was: "US vs. UK - The Battle Over Tea."  Mary Jane and I attended.

L-R:  Phyllis [me], Jane Pettigrew and Mary Jane

Desiring to pursue tea in the Hospitality Industry, I enrolled in seven sessions:  [1] Fill the Void: Tea Events to Boost your Food and Beverage Business  [2] Tea Solutions for Food Service  [3] Presentation is Everything: Hospitality Ideas When Entertaining  [4]  Tricks of the Trade: Using Designer Secrets to Increase Sales  [5] Build Skills and Confidence: Public Speaking for Entrepreneurs  [6]  How to Conduct a Successful Tea Tasting and [7] Tea and Chocolate Pairing. 

I was particularly interested in Jeffrey Hattrick's session, Tea Events to Boost your Food and Beverage Business, since he is the resident tea specialist at The Ritz-Carlton in Phoenix, AZ.   Prior to arriving in Atlanta, Mr. Hattrick  and I set up a one-on-one appointment following the class session.  He was a wealth of information and full of enthusiasm about tea themed events.

At 1:00 p.m. on June 9th, I had a reservation to attend Tea with Friends at Swan Coach House in Atlanta's beautiful uptown Buckhead district.   The tea was coordinated by international tea expert, author and speaker, Elizabeth Knight.   She spoke on tea brewing and dining traditions from around the world, focusing on "Tea the Drink" and "Tea the Meal."  It was my fourth time to hear her speak, and she's always enlightening.

L-R:  Phyllis and Elizabeth Knight

I was privileged to meet Anne Evans from California who co-moderated the Yahoo E-group,  Tea Educators with Denise LeCroy [better known as Tea Lover Denise! ;-)]

L-R:  Anne Evans, Elizabeth Knight and Me

I  also eagerly anticipated meeting Cheryl Dunbar, creator of Teago - a Tea Time Bingo game. 

L-R:  Me and Cheryl Dunbar

Julita, a Magnolia & Ivy alumni, coordinated a Sunday afternoon tea event at Vintage Teas in Alpharetta, Georgia [30 minutes from Atlanta] owned by Brenda Lain, another M & I alumni.   It's always fun when M & I alumni get together for tea!

Me with Brenda Lain, Tea Room Owner

Yummy goodies on the three-tier Tea Tray

Dawnya Sasse,  creator of the online course Start a Tea Business that I took in 2003, was at the Expo and I was happy to meet her in person.

When all the Expo classes ended on June 11th and the vendors and most of the attendees packed up to return home, I stayed an additional day to take the Level 1 Certification Course offered by the Specialty Tea Institute.   It was a happy day when I received the test results in the mail stating that I passed with a 100% score and received my certificate.  I have yet to pursue the remaining levels.

Tea journey continued...