Local tea shop offers plenty of variety

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This article was published 08/01/2022 (1715 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As I write this, my tea steeps in a favourite mug. On this day I want the sweetness that the sprinkles in DavidsTea birthday cake tea will provide — an acceptable substitute for the holiday baking I’ve had too much of over the last few weeks. 

Yesterday it was Nirvana from Cornelia Bean, a cardamom, fennel, and licorice infusion that is perfect after a winter walk. In the lead-up to the holidays, I had a new and different tea every day in December, courtesy of a very intuitive gift giver and the genius behind a tea advent calendar.

Tea is not a warm-weather drink for me, however when the leaves start to turn in the fall and cooler weather arrives it becomes somewhat of a ritual to brew a cup to enjoy after a walk, during a meeting, while immersed in a book or tackling some required reading. Yes to caramel, vanilla, and cinnamon flavours, especially in a rooibos tea, and a hard pass on ginger, lemon, peppermint, or anything floral (if you were wondering).  

This makes me the opposite of a tea purist, apparently, which I will just have to live with although admittedly I am becoming more and more interested in the health benefits of the various varieties. I know I’m drinking more tea than I did a year ago, and I’m not alone; tea consumption in Canada and elsewhere is increasing and shows no signs of slowing down. Did you know tea is the second-most consumed beverage in the world after water?

With my supply dwindling I recently paid a visit to BREWTeas, which is in the heart of River Park South. I’d heard so many good things about its service and selection, and the fact it also showcases and support Manitoba makers was added incentive. 

If I thought choosing from the 200 varieties of loose-leaf teas was going to be relatively easy, I was wrong. After narrowing it down I left with caramel, which promised the sweetness I like in the rooibos I favour (fun fact, rooibos is an herbal ‘tea’ made from the fermented leaves of the aspalathus linearis shrub found in South Africa and not from the tea plants native to China and other East Asian countries). It didn’t disappoint and the bonus was discovering a local artisan shop in the process. 

Don’t take my word for it, experience it for yourself; BREWTeas is online, on Instagram, and at 1500 Dakota St., next to Sobeys.

Sandy Nemeth is a community correspondent for River Park South and a Louis Riel School Board trustee. Email her at snemeth8@mts.net

Sandy Nemeth
River Park South community correspondent

Sandy Nemeth is a community correspondent for River Park South, chairperson of the Louis Riel School Division, a director at Dakota Community Centre and past-president of the Manitoba School Boards Association. 

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