A cozy cup of tea might be just what the doctor orders this winter season. Natalie Antoinette, founder of Baltimore-based wellness brand New Secrets Tea, spills the tea on how to get the most out of your mug.

What kind of wellness support does tea offer?
When harnessed appropriately, the herbs within teas serve as a potent source of essential vitamins, creating an enjoyable and proactive measure for holistic well-being. It can address underlying issues rather than merely masking symptoms. High-quality tea offers distinct properties contributing to common objectives such as relaxation, stress relief, immune support, and overall health.

Are there any tips for deciding what tea to reach for?
It is crucial to select teas that align with your specific wellness objectives. Opt for herbal teas featuring ingredients tailored to your needs, such as lavender for stress relief or turmeric for joint health. Take the time to read labels and research different tea blends. Another approach is to begin with a tea flavor you already know you enjoy. There are numerous ways to tap into the herbal benefits of tea without feeling like you’re consuming medicine.

What are your winter essentials?
Wheatgrass is prominent in my pantry due to its rich content of vitamins, minerals, and anti-oxidants. I combine it with elderberry syrup as a little “flu shot” that [my family] takes once a week to shield against winter ailments. Echinacea and mullein are also invaluable additions for immune support and respiratory health. With its potential to regulate blood -sugar levels, cinnamon adds a comforting warmth to winter beverages.

What advice might you give to develop a nourishing tea ritual?
Consider these guidelines: Select a time of day within your routine to allow relaxation, choose a tea blend that resonates with you, brew with freshly boiled water per the recommended steeping time and temperature for the specific tea type, and create a serene atmosphere by dimming the lights, playing soft music, or engaging in mindfulness practices. Remember, even just 10 minutes of mindful tea enjoyment can significantly impact your mood for the rest of the day.

What teas are you most excited about for the winter season?
[New Secret’s Tea] Stress Free Me black tea is my morning essential. It provides the caffeine I need to combat the winter blues, while the sooth- ing lavender helps ease anxiety and stress. Build Me Up is a turmeric-based tea with anti-inflammatory properties to alleviate joint discomfort, making it a vital part of my winter wellness routine.

WHAT YOU NEED:

GOALS: Choose your tea based on the health benefit you wish to achieve.

RESEARCH: Each tea contains herbs with different properties with various effects.

TIME: Set the mood and take a few minutes a day to create a daily nourishing ritual.

Even though we cut ties with our British overlords in 1776, a strong strain of Anglophilia has remained alive and well in America, occasionally even infiltrating the mainstream (see also: Abbey, Downton). Another flare-up is inevitable this month as American actress Meghan Markle marries Prince Harry, fulfilling the dream of many by going from Yankee commoner to a member of the House of Windsor. If all the royal hoopla makes you pine for Blighty—or if you’re just looking for a good cup of tea and a hearty sandwich in charming surroundings—head to Emma’s Tea Spot.

Open since last fall, Emma’s bills itself as a “proper British experience,” and it’s hard to argue with that. Co-owned and run by Emma Canoles, a native of Surrey, England, with an assist from her husband, Benjamin, the restaurant’s décor—including a replica of a red British Telephone booth—proclaims its heritage. Emma’s also sells British essentials such as Cadbury chocolate and Marmite. 

Perhaps more importantly, it offers the kind of tea experience familiar to Brits but foreign to Americans. Yes, Emma’s serves a formal High Tea ($27.50/person) with towers of pastries and dainty sandwich triangles, but it can also serve what Brits refer to as “a good cuppa”—an unfussy cup of a comforting brew, often augmented with milk or cream. Along with that come everyday edibles, such as sarnies (sandwiches), butties (sandwiches with cold bread and hot filling), biscuits (cookies), soups, salads, quiches, meat pies, and other pub favorites (though, sadly, no fish and chips). 

One recent blustery day, I met a friend for an early dinner and split a pot of tea for two ($10.95). Eschewing the standard Earl Grey and British breakfast, we ogled exotic flavors such as tangerine ginger and coconut-lemon oolong. We opted for the latter and found its gentle sweetness irresistible. That the pot arrived covered in a knitted tea cozy and was accompanied by a plate of six house-made biscuits was a bonus.

For sandwiches, we went traditional, selecting tuna and cucumber and egg and cress, each served with a choice of house-made coleslaw, fruit salad, or crisps (chips). Served on flour-dusted, hearty white rolls baked just up the street at Batch Bake Shop, the sandwiches were thoroughly British, by which we mean thoroughly doused in mayonnaise. And though that may not sound enticing, something about the sturdy crustiness of the bread, the creaminess of the mayonnaise against the egg and tuna, and the bright clarity of the coconut tea combined to satisfy. 

Next time, we agreed to try other distinctly British flavor combos such as the cheese and pickle sarnie or the banger (sausage) butty. We also made a mental note to return for the house-made scones.   

There are plenty of reasons to return besides the food. In just the few months it has been open, Emma’s has become a community anchor, hosting book clubs, cooking classes, First Friday BYOB nights, and story time for kids. In this way, Emma’s is both a proper British experience and a proper Baltimore one, too.

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›› EMMA’S TEA SPOT 5500 Harford Rd., 410-444-1718. Hours: Mon. 10:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Tues. closed. Wed-Fri. 10:30 a.m.- 6:30 p.m. Sat. 9 a.m.-4p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

The latest miracle worker in the health scene is something you probably already have in your kitchen cabinet. Turmeric, a yellow spice belonging to the ginger family, has made its way to the top of the wellness list because of its powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Spice up your beauty and health regime with one of these products, guaranteed to make you feel a little bit brighter.

Latte
Made from a mixture of cold-pressed turmeric juice and your choice of milk, this warm beverage can aid in gastrointestinal health and has been linked to the prevention of cancer cell growth. Turmeric latte ($3.50) at Order & Chaos.

Face Mask
Turmeric works as an acne treatment while simultaneously protecting the skin from bacteria, stimulating blood circulation, and revitalizing the skin. Andalou Naturals turmeric and gold clay mask ($3.69) at Whole Foods.

Tea
Turmeric tea can boost your immune system and lower inflammation throughout the body. Rishi turmeric ginger tea ($3.99) at Common Ground.

Ground Turmeric
Digesting turmeric can help with pain relief and aid in metabolism and weight management. Sprinkle it onto your veggies or mix it into your morning smoothie to reap all of the glorious benefits. Organic fair-trade ground turmeric ($4.99) at Whole Foods.

Supplements
With 400 mg of the golden spice in each bite, these support joint function and help with sore muscles. Good Day chocolate turmeric supplement ($3.49) at Whole Foods.

Essential Oils
These two essential oils, both made with turmeric, will be sure to improve mood, lower anxiety, and help with memory. Add a few drops to a warm bath or dab on a hot or cold compress to let the effects really soak in. Clarity oil ($12) at SoBotanical. Memory Lane oil ($13) at SoBotanical.

Brittany and Joey Wight launched Wight Tea Co. three years ago this May, turning their shared passion into a product line chock full of delicious and surprising flavors. The sipping siblings want to challenge the stereotype that tea is just for drinking curled up under a blanket while the snow falls. We got a chance to sit down with the Wights to chat about spring and summer teas, how they craft their blends, and the future of the business.

Do you have any special memories or stories connected to tea?
Joey: Every Sunday at our grandmother’s house, we would pack 15, 20 people in her tiny apartment, and after dinner the men would all go watch TV. I don’t really care for football, so I’d stay with all our aunts, mother, grandmother, female cousins, and we’d sit around the dinner table drinking tea and talking. I’d go through all the different teas in Grandma’s cabinet, seeing what I liked and didn’t like.

Brittany: I just really enjoy waking up and making the tea and being quiet, when the light is still coming up. It’s this peaceful moment I have to myself. And my favorite thing to do is to go over to our parents’ house, and we sit around the dining room table and drink tea together.

What was the inspiration behind Wight Tea Company?
J: As young as 7, I started reading every book I could find, researching tea on the internet, trying to find new things to try.

B: We’re seven years apart, so at that age we didn’t really talk much. After I graduated from UMBC, Joey encouraged me to get a job at a tea shop. All of a sudden, I realized I loved it.

J: And when I reached working age, I started working at the same shop. We started sharing blends we would make with each other.

What is it like working together as siblings?
B: We have a good checks and balances system. When I feel like I’m uncertain about something, Joey is very certain, and vice versa.

J: We know each other so well. We can read each other a little differently than you just could with the average coworker or business partner. Every time someone asks if I’m in business with partners, I say, “Yeah, it’s my sister,” and they’re always like “Oh, I’m so sorry,” and it’s like no, you should really give it a shot!

What’s the best thing about being a small business owner in Baltimore?
B: I really love business in Baltimore specifically because of how supportive it is. I love making friends and connections through supporting other small businesses. It’s my tribe, and I love seeing everybody succeed.

 J: If you have trouble finding resources or information, someone in business that’s a similar size is always willing to help you track it down. It’s a really helpful community.

Coffee has been trendy for so long, do you see a similar focus and attention growing for tea?
B: Absolutely. Tea is already popular, especially among millennials. That age set is drinking as much tea as they are coffee. I think that people are opening up to it, realizing they can have a very high-end experience with tea.

J: If you look at the coffee industry, there are coffee beans from different parts of the world, processed in different ways and roasted and brewed with all different techniques, and the same thing goes with tea. Tea tastes different depending on where it comes from, based on the pH of the soil, the mineral content of the soil, how high up it was grown, how it was processed once it was picked—there are thousands of factors that go into the flavor of tea. That’s really the fun part for me is understanding why it tastes that way, and you can have that elevated experience while seeking out variety.

B: People are starting to wake up to the idea that if you care about your coffee menu, you need to start caring about your tea menu as well.

 What makes the perfect cup of spring tea?
J: If it’s a spring morning and I can make a leisurely cup of tea, I’m doing a jasmine green tea with some local honey. It’s light, it’s floral, and the green tea notes really bring it down a little bit.

B: As spring comes I want something a little lighter, something brighter, which is the Sage Rose, or something along the lines of a little floral, or a little fruity, but nothing too heavy.

J: Spring is also harvest season for the tea we use for our Marquess Grey, my favorite time of year!

B: It’s only picked in March and April, and it’s the first buds, so we’re sitting on the edge of our seats.

J: It’s a luxurious tea we would buy for ourselves. And then we made a tea blend out of it, and people loved it. I can’t wait to have it back in stock in May.

B: That will be a great spring tea, too. It’s an earl grey, which is a kind of basic tea everyone knows about, but ours is a different earl grey experience.

How do you come up with your flavors?
J: We begin looking at ingredients that we like and think are different. We’re not just going to make a basic tea. For example, the Tropical Green Tea. We wanted something to fill that gap in our product line, but neither of us likes fruity teas that are heavy and dense. We knew what we wanted and what we didn’t, but we also wanted to make it a little different. So we put coconut in it. Or with the Blueberry Lemon Basil, we added the basil. Blueberry and lemon is delicious, but we wanted something to differentiate and make it pop.

B: And with the Sage Rose, we added the lemongrass. It always starts with thinking about flavors that I enjoy. We’ll kind of brainstorm back and forth about different combinations, and we’ll get the ingredients to make little test batches. We’ll have a test cup together, we’ll talk about what we like, what we don’t like, what to add, what to subtract.

J: Sage Rose almost didn’t happen. One time it tasted too much like moss, the next time it tasted like potpourri, we kept going back and forth that line in the middle of balanced flavor, and then right as I was about to give up, we made one final blend, and it was amazing.

What are your recommendations for enjoying tea in warm weather?
B: Our most popular blend, Tropical Green Tea, is a summertime favorite. It’s a green tea with tons of fruits, and it’s so delicious and light. We also just released Blueberry Basil Rooibos with Lemon, which is a great caffeine-free tea.

J: It’s easy drinking. The thing I really love about Blueberry Basil on a hot day is when you’re drinking something with some of those more savory tones in a tea, it can be cooling.

B: When our Sage Rose tea is made iced, the sage has this buttery, refreshing smoothness.

Any summer trends in the tea world to keep an eye out for?
B: We just started making tea-flavored cotton candies, which are really fun and great for the summer. Right now, we have a green tea, black tea, and earl grey flavor, and we have those at all of our events.

J: In a couple months, we hope to have cotton candies that taste like our own tea blends.

B: Cold brew is going to be hot for the summer, too. It’s so simple, you just put your tea in cold water and leave it in the fridge overnight.

J: It’s great because you won’t release the tannins out of the tea leaves since you’re not getting it hot enough, just lots of flavor.

B: You can also mix in soda water with your tea, which is great for summer. It’s so light!

What does the future hold for Wight Tea Co.?
J: We’re working on becoming more visible in Baltimore and the DMV area through wholesale to restaurants, bars, other local businesses.

B: In the broader future we’re looking to get into warehouse space, to up our production on a much larger scale.

You guys are also very vocal about educating your customers.
B: Absolutely. We’re always happy to educate people on how to make proper tea at home. Like matcha, which is on trend right now and we can teach you how do it right.

J: A lot of people think they hate matcha because they’ve had it made poorly. It can be lumpy and bitter made wrong, but if you have it hand-whisked the proper way, it can be so velvety and smooth.

B: We always have tastings at events, and love to talk with people how to make it right.

J: We both have this experience a lot where we make tea for someone and they absolutely love it, but they won’t do it at home. And I always say I’m more than happy to show them how. As long as that means they’re going to enjoy tea, whether it’s our tea or tea they found somewhere else, that’s my goal. I just want people to open themselves up to the world of possibility with tea.