Date: Fri 30-Jan-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

tea-Woman's-Club

Full Text:

Cups That Suit Them To A Tea

(with cuts)

BY KAAREN VALENTA

Coke Cramer got her favorite porcelain tea cup 45 years ago when she and her

husband visited the Hotel Frontenac in Quebec.

"We didn't actually stay there, of course," Mrs Cramer said, laughing. "The

hotel was far too expensive for us at that time."

Annette Cantalupo got her favorite tea cup as part of a dinner service for 13

that her mother gave her as a wedding shower gift 41 years ago. Ginny Berry's

husband brought hers home from England 47 years ago.

The three women were among 30 who attended an informal tea tasting held by the

Newtown Woman's Club, GFWC, at the Cyrenius H. Booth Library on Tuesday.

Billed as a "bring your own favorite cup and saucer event," the program

featured Jim Harron and his son, Jim, of Simpson & Vail, Brookfield, a

purveyor of fine teas from around the world.

The Harrons bought Simpson & Vail in 1978 as a business to be operated by

their family.

"It's an old-time tea company which was started in 1904 in New York City by

Augusta Walbridge," Mr Harron said. "It eventually was sold to his nephew,

Lester Vail, and a bookkeeper named Simpson, which is how it got its name."

Until 1960 the only product the company sold was loose tea. In the '60s, tea

bags and coffee were added. By the time the Harrons bought the company, it

offered eight types of coffee and 15 different teas.

"We now have 170 types of loose tea, 60 types of tea bags and 65 coffees," he

said. "My wife is the buyer for the complete line of tea pots and accessories

which we sell."

Worldwide, there are an estimated 8,500 different types of tea, divided into

three basic types: green, black, and oolong, a cross between black and green.

Tea (the word comes from the Chinese Amoy dialect word t'e , pronounced tay ),

is manufactured from the leaves and buds of the camellia sinensis plant, an

evergreen shrub that in its natural state grows to a height of 15 to 30 feet.

Grown for harvesting, or "plucking," the plant is usually pruned to a height

of three to five feet.

"It is picked by women, who pluck eight to nine pounds a day," Mr Harron said.

"Mechanical pickers also get part of the stalk and you can taste it in the

tea."

"The Chinese traded with silver and tea, which was often pressed into tea

bricks," he said. "For many years tea was shipped in bamboo chests, but bamboo

is becoming depleted so some growers are using glassine and jute bags, or

foil-lined burlap."

At Tuesday's event, which was held to acquaint potential members with the

woman's club, the guests sampled four teas: Ambootia, an organic tea; Ceylon

Labookellie, Goddess of Mercy oolong, and a Japanese Sencha.

"January is National Hot Tea Month so it was fate that we held it now," said

Woman's Club President Mary Antey. "We originally had the program scheduled

for September but it was to be held at the library, so it had to be delayed

until the library opened this month."

The program was arranged by club member Jean Fadus.

In addition to its retail store at 3 Quarry Road in Brookfield, Simpson & Vail

does a large mail-order business through a catalogue and on the web at

http://www.svtea.com.