CelebriTEA - July 2011

Real Name: Courtney Powers
AKA:   WifeyWoman & Little Mew Brew (Steepster/Twitter)
Blogs:  Little Mew Brew: http://littlemewbrew.teatra.de/
            The Many Tea Adventures of Wifey Woman  http://wifeywoman.teatra.de/
Email:  littlemewbrew@gmail.com


Courtney Powers, of upstate New York, loves to blog, but admitted she has a hard time keeping up with the writing. “Seriously there are probably 50 blogs I’ve started, sitting out there in cyberspace.”
          But now that drinking tea has become an everyday part of her life, Courtney has blended her love of writing with her passion for tea.
          Her tea blogs are in their infancies; both began in the spring of 2011 and her tea company, Little Mew Brew is brand new as well. But Courtney’s love of tea has been a part of her life since she was seven years old.
          “My grandma would always visit us each summer from Florida and she drank tea with every meal,” Courtney explained. One morning young Courtney asked if she could join her grandmother, who served her tea chock full of milk and sweetener. A new tradition was born. “To this day when she visits or I visit her we always make time for tea,” Courtney said, adding that her grandmother prefers to use bagged teas while she opts for loose.
          Her two blogs serve different purposes. The Many Tea Adventures of Wifey Woman explores tea tasting, reviewing and other tea-related adventures, while Little Mew Brew is aimed towards her business venture of the same name. That blog focuses on her journey into blending her own teas as well as buying experiences as she launches her company. “I hope that too will be a how-to guide for others looking to get into the wonderful business of tea,” Courtney added.
          Of course she enjoys writing on both of the blogs. “I like writing the reviews on…Wifey Woman but I also like dropping in bits on my personal life and how tea fits into that life,” Courtney explained. She approaches the Little Mew Brew blog differently, however. “I like posting about my tea blending attempts. I keep it light and funny because that’s what it’s like for me.”
          Courtney does take her tea blending seriously, but keeps the fun level high so she’ll continue to enjoy blending tea.
          Her tea journeys have broadened her horizons, Courtney explained. “I used to like only herbal tisanes, but that got boring for me. So I branched out to good black teas.”
          Her favorite teas don’t stop there though.
          “I think each tea type holds a favorite for me,” Courtney said. “For example, I really enjoy a good Gunpowder Green. I’m also finding out that Earl Greys aren’t as scary as I once thought they were, nor oolongs.”
          She credits the amazing online tea community, such as Steepster.com, for helping her along the way. “I’m really thankful for all the Steepster folks who have shared their knowledge and tea with me in the last five months.”

LittleMewBrew - July 2011 CelebriTEA

Little Mew Brew AKA WifeyWoman

CelebriTEA ©: July 2011

Real Name: Courtney Powers

AKA:   WifeyWoman & Little Mew Brew (Steepster/Twitter)

Blogs:  Little Mew Brew: http://littlemewbrew.teatra.de/

            The Many Tea Adventures of Wifey Woman http://wifeywoman.teatra.de/

Email:  littlemewbrew@gmail.com

Courtney Powers, of upstate New York, loves to blog, but admitted she has a hard time keeping up with the writing. “Seriously there are probably 50 blogs I’ve started, sitting out there in cyberspace.”

          But now that drinking tea has become an everyday part of her life, Courtney has blended her love of writing with her passion for tea.

          Her tea blogs are in their infancies; both began in the spring of 2011 and her tea company, Little Mew Brew is brand new as well. But Courtney’s love of tea has been a part of her life since she was seven years old.

          “My grandma would always visit us each summer from Florida and she drank tea with every meal,” Courtney explained. One morning young Courtney asked if she could join her grandmother, who served her tea chock full of milk and sweetener. A new tradition was born. “To this day when she visits or I visit her we always make time for tea,” Courtney said, adding that her grandmother prefers to use bagged teas while she opts for loose.

          Her two blogs serve different purposes. The Many Tea Adventures of Wifey Woman explores tea tasting, reviewing and other tea-related adventures, while Little Mew Brew is aimed towards her business venture of the same name. That blog focuses on her journey into blending her own teas as well as buying experiences as she launches her company. “I hope that too will be a how-to guide for others looking to get into the wonderful business of tea,” Courtney added.

          Of course she enjoys writing on both of the blogs. “I like writing the reviews on…Wifey Woman but I also like dropping in bits on my personal life and how tea fits into that life,” Courtney explained. She approaches the Little Mew Brew blog differently, however. “I like posting about my tea blending attempts. I keep it light and funny because that’s what it’s like for me.”

          Courtney does take her tea blending seriously, but keeps the fun level high so she’ll continue to enjoy blending tea.

          Her tea journeys have broadened her horizons, Courtney explained. “I used to like only herbal tisanes, but that got boring for me. So I branched out to good black teas.”

          Her favorite teas don’t stop there though.

          “I think each tea type holds a favorite for me,” Courtney said. “For example, I really enjoy a good Gunpowder Green. I’m also finding out that Earl Greys aren’t as scary as I once thought they were, nor oolongs.”

          She credits the amazing online tea community, such as Steepster.com, for helping her along the way. “I’m really thankful for all the Steepster folks who have shared their knowledge and tea with me in the last five months.”

Winner of 5K hits

We're back in business! YAY! My wonderful husband was able to fix the cable issues, thank goodness. :)

So, finally, let's get talking about tea. First up, the winner of the 5K contest is Courtney Powers AKA Wifey_Woman (and AKA Little Mew Brew). Click this link to view her blog: The Adventures of Wifey Woman.

She wins tea, including some of my own blends such as Pink Pearls (to be available for purchase this summer).

For this contest, entries had to list my blog somewhere on their blog for a chance to win and either email me the link or post it on the original post. I used the random winner generator at random.org to make the final selection.

I may do this contest again, so stay tuned! :)

Little Mew Brew - Tea for me and tea for you

logo used with permission/all rights reserved

Little Mew Brew, a new tea company, began as a beer label.

          No joke. Courtney Powers and her husband used the name for a label of their custom blended beer for their wedding, called “Nuptu-Ale.”

          Now she says, she’s keeping the name alive. The name actually honors the couple’s three cats who provide “help” to Courtney in brewing tea.

          By help, she means the cats hang out in the kitchen, looking for treats. :)

          She partnered with Frank @ 52teas.com – the innovative new-blend-every-week tea seller known for outstanding, but limited edition blends – to “Rescue from Retirement” three blends:  Cinnamon Raisin Toast, Pomegranate Green and Raspberry Cream Cheese Danish.

          This is the second partnership 52teas has launched with the “Rescued from Retirement” initiative. iHeartTeas.com “rescued” Blueberry Cream Cheese Danish and other favorites: http://keenteathyme.blogspot.com/2011/06/iheartteascom-rachel-carter-may-2011.html

          In fact, Courtney – also known in the online tea community as Wifey_Woman – first found out about the 52 Teas initiative through Rachel@ iHeartTeas. “I thought to myself, she’s really lucky to have gotten in on that!” But then Frank put out a call to other tea fans who may want to get involved. Courtney wrote him back, saying she’d love to get involved as long as her blends didn’t infringe on Rachel’s shop, which he assured her that her tea venture wouldn’t. So she launched Little Mew Brew’s rescued blends which are for sale now:  http://teatrade.tinypay.me/#q=user:s7rRc3RY

          “I’ve always wanted to go into business for myself,” Courtney explained. “I love tea and they said you should love what you do, right?” This is her first tea business venture, but Courtney is no stranger to business sense. She’s also an Avon Independent Sales Rep and holds down a full-time job to help pay the bills. But her dream is to sell tea full-time – and make a living at it. “I think selling tea is more in my blood unlike makeup,” Courtney joked.

          Not only is Little Mew Brew rescuing teas from retirement from 52Teas, she’ll also offer her own blends – eventually.

          Courtney is a recent convert to drinking tea – she used to drink coffee, at least 2-3 cups per day while she drank tea maybe once or twice a week. Due to health reasons, she was looking for a better option. For Lent she gave up coffee “cold turkey,” she said. Instead she opted for tea – and hasn’t looked back. She’s tried coffee drinks since the end of Lent, and hated the taste.

          The health benefits to tea are pretty awesome, Courtney said. While neither Courtney nor I are medical practitioners, no one can deny the amazing health benefits of tea: rich in antioxidants, helpful with digestive issues, and even increased energy. Courtney’s own experience speaks volumes as well. She used to suffer from many migraines and was on lots of medication to treat them. With the decrease in pain, she’s been able to stop taking migraine meds and just takes daily vitamins – a change her husband loves.

          With Little Mew Brew, Courtney hopes for success – so much that she could quit the full-time job and work from home selling tea and Avon. “I think there is a lot of potential for both businesses to take off,” she explained.

          But Little Mew Brew is also excited about the opportunities to meet fellow teaists. “I hope to gain new customers and friends as well as helpful advice from those in the business.”

Quick Notes:

          Little Mew Brew does ship internationally - to Canada and Europe, as well as within the United States.

Blog: http://littlemewbrew.teatra.de/

Tea Trade Co. Site: http://teatrade.tinypay.me/#q=user:s7rRc3RY