Tea Finds in Maine and NH

Hi all,

I've been on the road a bit lately...in search of tea. OK, I've actually been traveling with my family and have made it a point to see if I could discover some new tea spots. To this end, I'm going to start developing a Google Map to show you where I've been, where I hope to go, and places I've been that are no more. A link should go up this weekend.

Now, here are a few of my finds. (I decided over the weekend that I really need to be the Jane and Michael Stern of tea....Doesn't SOMEONE want to hire me to just travel around and report on all the great tea spots there are? Come on. Lynne Rosetto Kasper - Can you show me a little love?)

Two new discoveries came my way in the grand old state of Maine. One is a cafe in the Munjoy Hill area of Portland and one is a completely fabulous tea house that's a bit more off the beaten track.

Homegrown Herb & Tea - 195 Congress Street, Portland
One of their tag lines is "Herbal tea handblended in the traditions of the old world apothecary." The owner, Sarah, is a former Spanish teacher who found a passion in tea. Her goal is to really connect with her customers and to help them find the blend that is their perfect match. She is a strong believer in ayuverdic medicine and creates herbal combinations to assist people in finding balance. Now, all that being said, I am generally not a big consumer of herbal tisanes and while I do have a great deal of respect for alternative medicine, I did not go into Homegrown Herb seeking a "tonic." I just went looking for a good tea experience. And I found it.

Walking into this place immediately feels like home. The warmth and style of this tea shop is striking. It is so comfortable that I just wanted to curl up in a corner with a book and a cup of tea. In addition to her herbal blends, she also offers a range of blacks, greens and whites including a few Darjeeling, Formosa Oolong, Gen Mai Cha, Sencha, and more. I ordered a Blarney Black. This was a Barry's Irish Tea with cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and orange. Instead of simply pulling a container off the shelf with a pre-blended mix, I watched Sarah get the tea and add a cinnamon stick and spices to my cup. She then proceeded to slice the most beautiful, juicy orange to add to the cup. The freshness simply radiated from this cup of tea.

I cannot say this more strongly. You MUST give Homegrown Herb & Tea a try.

Clipper Merchant Tea House - 58 Main Street, Limerick, ME
Wow. All I can say is wow. I am going to devote an entire post to this place in the near future, but I had to make sure everyone knew about this place. Clipper Merchant opened about 3 years ago in Limerick - a town that is about an hour outside of Portland. This tea house is definitely a destination - you're not likely to just happen to be in Limerick. (I should say, that this is a gorgeous part of Maine and the drive out is simply beautiful.)

Clipper Merchant is in a restored Victorian home that was built sometime between 1830 and 1860. The architecture is striking and the owners have decorated with tremendous care and style. The tea menu is spectacular and the food is all made in-house. Again, I'll give you all the detail later but here are a few photos to get you started.









After my travels around Maine I had the chance to visit three spots in New Hampshire - 2 in Portsmouth and 1 in nearby Somerset.

Breaking New Grounds - 14 Market Square, Portsmouth, NH

This cafe moved into a new location within the last couple of years. The new space is much larger with some real charm. I kind of miss the coziness of the old space, but I am sure this would be a spot I would frequent regularly if I was a local. BNG offers an excellent tea menu and a great selection of food as well. I also like the addition of outdoor seating in the square outside.



Popovers on the Square - 8 Congress Street, Portsmouth, NH
This bright, airy space was a brand new find for me. With its light colored furniture and big windows Popovers had a hip feel to it. This spot serves a large selection of Portsmouth Tea Company tea, as well as sumptuous looking bakery items, an interesting menu of soups, sandwiches, and small plates, and a full bar. A tea shop that is also a bar. Wow. Now that could help me find friends to go out for tea. I'm looking forward to giving this place a more thorough look the next time I'm in town. They are open 7 days a week from early morning until 9 p.m. most nights (11 on Fridays and Saturdays.)

Portsmouth Tea Company - 475 B High Street, Somersworth, NH
There is no small bit of irony that Portsmouth Tea was the only one of the three tea shops I went to that wasn't IN Portsmouth. It's actually nearly 30 minutes away. I was also a bit surprised when I actually arrived at their location. I've always thought of the company's style as elegant - the fonts, the logo, the website. Imagine, then, how I felt when I found their store on a busy road full of strip malls, sitting next to a Mattress Giant. It was absolutely counter to the experience I had anticipated. I'm sure the location affords tremendous exposure but it definitely detracted from the shop in my opinion.

That being said, my experience inside the shop very positive and that's really what's important. The interior design was pretty modern/stark with concrete floors and caned chairs. Where Portsmouth Tea really shines is the presentation of the tea itself. The variety is tremendous and they provide glass sample canisters that allow you to see and smell the teas. I find this a very helpful addition with a tea selection of this size. The staff member who assisted me was extraordinarily friendly and made for a nice experience. I tried a very nice Oriental Beauty and purchased a rooibos chai to try later.

I think I have said more than my fill in this very, very long post. I hope it provides a few helpful tips for you. And, as I said, a longer post will follow about Clipper Merchant so you can get a better sense of that particular spot.

Have a great day all.