Backroad Traveler: Discovering Blackberry Tea

Sweet Blackberry Tea

Traveling the back roads of the Carolinas opens up an entirely new world that is both intriguing and educational. One of our discoveries while driving through a rural area in South Carolina was a small Blackberry Vineyard growing in the front yard of a home owner. We started our own blackberry garden last year, so this was something that caught our interest. We pulled into the drive, knocked on the door, and the gardener was more than pleased to give a tour of his vineyard. My kind of gardener! Even in the cool season of Fall, these plants were loaded with sweet blackberries and producing more. The gardener offered valuable tips that will be useful in our own blackberry garden.

Throughout the region, you will often find Blackberry Tea listed on the beverage menu of unique restaurants, with each restaurant adding their own twist. It became one of my favorite drinks to try. I knew I would be making my own version of this drink!

This year our blackberry garden produced an abundance of beautiful, sweet berries. In addition to making blackberry cobblers, topping for countless bowls of homemade ice cream, and eating the berries as we picked, we had enough to preserve in the freezer until next year’s crop. I used a package of our frozen blackberries to try my hand at making Blackberry Tea. It was a success! Next summer, I will use fresh blackberries from our patch, but for now, the ones from our freezer worked just perfectly! In order to pull all the flavor from the berries, I simmered them on low heat while I prepared lunch. Here is the complete recipe for Blackberry Tea.

Our meal was served on the porch while we watched a couple of hummingbirds feast at the feeders. I am sure they are stragglers late on their journey south for the winter.

The menu included salmon from the grill, avocado and tomato salad served in green pepper cups topped with crumbled feta cheese. The green peppers and tomatoes were gathered earlier in the day from our garden. This most definitely is the year of the green peppers.  The salmon and salad were drizzled with Raspberry Walnut dressing. The toasted sourdough bread was topped with chopped hickory nuts roasted in butter. The hickory nuts were gathered from our trees, cracked and shelled; that’s another story. The menu was a perfect combination with the delicious and refreshing Blackberry Tea. 

After lunch, we sat on the porch, sipping blackberry tea while enjoying the beauty of life. Each day, no matter how small or big, there is something for which I am thankful. Today, I give thanks for the simple things that calm our spirits and soothe our weary souls when we need it the most: blackberry tea, hummingbirds, and the simple life.

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him.” Lamentations 3:22-24