Big Chill 2010 News

13th August 2010

We had a great time at the 2010 Big Chill..once again we had the 'Make Us A Brew' tea shop on site all weekend, serving up MUAB tea, union coffee roasters coffee, and freshly baked cakes courtesy of the crew from Manchester's 'Teacup on Thomas St'. Check out the Mr. Scruff SoundCloud page for recordings of the tea tent DJ sets! We raised £476.70 for Action Aid.

 

Hello to our new friends in Hungary!

9th November 2009

We are very pleased to welcome our new customers in Hungary. Make Us A Brew! teas are being imported by Culinaris of Budapest and we are available at these locations:

1036, Budapest Perc utca 8.
+36 1 345 0780

1055, Budapest Balassi Balint utca 7.
+36 1 373 0028

1067, Budapest Hunyadi ter 3.
+36 1 341 7001
 

Oxfam

1st November 2009

We are chuffed to announce that you can now buy our tin caddy in Oxfam stores nationwide. Oxfam selected our tea as an ethical gift and say 'it's a great present for all of your tea drinking friends and family with a handy storage tin for Fairtrade tea refills'!

Rave tea reviews!

5th October 2009

We’ve been getting lots of nice things written about us lately so huge thanks to all those lovely journalists who seem to like our teas. Here’s a selection of our tea reviews:- 

Look Lively!:
‘Office Essential. Forget sweet treats. When you need a pick-me-up, try a cup of Look Lively.’ The Mirror (September 09)
‘For a hedonistic hit without the hangover’ Cosmopolitan.co.uk (September 09)
 
Big Chill:
‘Big Chill offers a refreshing cuppa when you’re avoiding caffeine….smells like pear crumble with warming cinnamon’ DeliaOnline (September 09)
‘ after the party try the relaxing Big Chill’ Cosmopolitan.co.uk  (September 09)
 
Mint & Chilli:
'Want a kick without the caffeine? We love the spicy Mint & Chilli organic herbal tea from make us a brew!' Health & Fitness Magazine (November 09)
English Breakfast:
‘A caffeinated beverage of the highest order’ FHM Online (March 09)
‘Golden, strong and full-bodied, these bags make proper cuppas’ Fresh Escapes (June 09)
‘Controversial I know, but I really have discovered the perfect cuppa and it comes courtesy of a DJ!’ Allaboutyou.com (April 09)

News from the Big Chill 2009

10th August 2009

We had a fantastic time at the 2009 Big Chill, with a bigger & better scruff tea shop (complete with FAT sound system & freshly baked cakes by our wonderchef Reno), in a lovely location by one of the lakes. This year we celebrated the launch of two new teas. The first is the 'Big Chill' tea, with Rooibos, Cinnamon & Pear, and the second is 'Look Lively!' with Lemongrass, Yerba Mate & Mint. Massive thanks to all the tea shop staff, supervisors, sound crew, big chill regulars & the weather for all being so lovely!

Your tea drinking raised £1000 for the Karmi Farm Clinic.

Karmi Farm supports the local community in a remote region of the Himalayan foothills near Darjeeling.  The money will provide continued support for the Karmi clinic and it's local community. Based on Karmi Farm located in N E India in the foothills of the Himalaya on the Sikkim border, the clinic caters for all the local subsistent farmers. The nearest hospital is a 3-4 hour walk away and in most cases has little in the way of medical supplies or, sometimes, even medical staff.

Karmi Farm Clinic is run as a first stop clinic for these people. It frequently has to deal with accidents such as deep machete cuts, dead fall injuries, and other accidents relating to living off the land. In addition to accidents the clinic deals with everyday problems such as scabies, diarrhoea, conjunctivitis and other infections associated with basic living conditions and water shortages.
 

New teas news

15th July 2009

 

Attention fellow tea-lovers! We are about to add two new brews to our splendid range of organic teas. Inspired by summers spent at our favourite festivals our new varieties are called Big Chill and Look Lively! – teas designed to help turn your tea break into an idyllic moment of calm, or re-energise you to face that mid afternoon “will this day never end?” feeling.

 
Big Chill:  Organic rooibos, pear and cinnamon, with valerian, for a lovely relaxing brew.
Not quite as good as being at the festival in person, but a cup of this brew will at the very least give your tongue a well-earned holiday... Rooibos is a well-known caffeine-free alternative to black tea and our special Big Chill blend with valerian, plus the sweet and spicy classic combination of cinnamon and pear, is perfect to help you unwind. Big up your tent!
 
 
Look Lively!:  Organic lemongrass, yerba mate and mint for a proper uplifing brew.
 
Want to liven up a bit? Have a wrestle with one of these beauties... yerba mate contains caffeine, but without the jittery effect of coffee. While that keeps you alert and on your toes, lemongrass invigorates and the peppermint gives it a fresh edge. Plus it tastes fantastic!
 
 
Big Chill and Look Lively! teas will be in stores from September and available to buy here from August. Look out for them alongside our very popular and newly packaged ‘Mint and Chilli’.   We’ll be officially unveiling them at Mr Scruff’s Tea Party at the Big Chill Festival 6 – 9 August; the kettle will be on all weekend!

Mr Scruff's tea party at Big Chill.

6th July 2009

 

Mr Scruff will be hosting a tea party at the Big Chill Festival 6 - 9 August.. the tea tent, already a familiar sight to Big Chill & Keep It Unreal regulars, will be present & correct, unveiling the new range of Make Us A Brew teas, including the Big Chill Tea!
 
The lakeside location of the Tea Tent will be complemented by Mr Scruff & a hand picked team of his favourite DJs providing a wonderful soundtrack for the whole weekend.
 
Do drop by for a cuppa!

 

Make Us A Brew travels to Denmark!

6th July 2009

We are very pleased to announce that our  tea is now sold all over Denmark in specialty and health shops in the following cities
Copenhagen (City, Østerbro, Nørrebro, Vesterbro, Frederiksberg)
Hellerup
Gentofte
Charlottenlund
Lyngby
Holte
Hillerød
Tisvilde
Tisvildeleje
Aarhus
Skanderborg
Risskov
Aalborg
Thisted
 

Make Us A Brew teas now in Waitrose!

1st March 2009

Those tea-loving people at Waitrose spotted our tea and asked if they could sell it in their shops. Of course we said yes, and now our English Breakfast is available at Waitrose stores all over the country. Here's where it's stocked now but if it's not in your local one yet, have a word with the manager!  

Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire

Beckenham, Kent

Billericay, Essex

Bloomsbury, London

Brent Cross Shopping Centre, London

Brighton, Sussex

Bromley South, Kent

Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk

Cambridge, Cambridgeshire

Cheadle Hulme, Cheadle

Cheltenham, Gloucester

Chichester, West Sussex

Christchurch, Dorset

Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Crowborough, East Sussex

Droitwich, Worcestershire

East Grinstead

Fleet, Hampshire

Great Malvern, Worcestershire

Hitchin, Hertfordshire

Holloway Road, London

Horley, Surrey

Kenilworth

Kensington, London

Lincoln, Lincolnshire

Lymington, Hampshire

Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire

Monmouth, Monmouthshire

Newark, Nottinghamshire

Newbury, Berkshire

Newmarket, Suffolk

Newport, Shropshire

Norwich

Okehampton, Devon

Paddock Wood, Kent

Parkstone, Poole

Pontprenau, Cardiff

Portishead, Bristol

Reading, Berkshire

Rickmansworth, Herts

Ringwood, Hampshire

Romsey, Hampshire

Ruislip, Middlesex

Rushden, Northamptonshire

Salisbury, Wiltshire

Saltash, Cornwall

Sheffield, South Yorkshire

Southend-on-Sea, Essex

Stroud, Gloucestershire

Sudbury, Suffolk

Twickenham, Middlesex

Wallingford, Oxfordshire

Waterside, West Drayton

West Ealing, London

Westfield Shopping Centre, London

Windsor, Berkshire

Witney, Oxfordshire

Wolverhampton, West Midlands

Worecester Park, Surrey

Manchester..Summer In The Park, 12 & 13 July 2008

10th July 2008

Both myself (Mr Scruff) & 'Make Us A Brew' will be at the 'Summer in the Park' festival, Platt Fields, Manchester on Saturday 12th & Sunday 13th July. Make Us A brew will have a tea & cake stall, in conjunuction with the local CUP cafe bar, where you can pick up cups & boxes of tea, juices & cakes, as well as Scruff music & paraphernalia. We will also be testing out some new tea blends, so come along and give us your feedback! I will be playing a mellow afternoon tea set on the main stage between 4-6pm on sunday.

 

A valentines recipe!

4th February 2008

Now that the January hibernation is out of the way, the first signs of spring are appearing..rabbits racing round on those tiny motorbike things, squirrels doing a weekly shop..

At this special time of year, our thoughts turn to love.

Increase your chances of some action this valentines day with ‘Make Us a Brew’ Mint & Chilli teabags. A lethal combination of Chilli, a well known aphrosisiac, and mint, which is renowned for being minty. This can prove very handy if you have run out of chewing gum.

If you are feeling extra frisky, try this 'scruffy mo-tea-toe'..sent in by Lee Walsh. Cheers Lee!

1 1/2 shots gin
1/2 shot freshly squeezed lime juice
3/4 shot sugar syrup
3 shots mint & chilli tea (brew double strength, 2 bags per 1 small sup & leave bag in until cold)
shake with ice & strain into ice filled glass

Do you have any tea cocktail recipes? let us know!

new organic brews!

26th November 2007


Hot on the heels of the Make Us A Brew Tin Caddies, we have 4 new brews for you! Huge thanks to everyone who participated in the tastings at the festivals to help us decide what makes it to the shop floor.  Get in quick for Christmas by ordering them here or pick them up at one of my gigs. We expect to be in several shops before Christmas, starting with CUP, 53-55 Thomas St. Manchester, M4 1NA, and will let you know others as and when.


Our fantastic Fairtrade organic English Breakfast is tasty and strong and makes a great refill for the caddy. The Forest Fruit is especially for berry freaks - stand back in awe as the flavours wrestle for attention on your tongue! The Mint and Chilli is a blend of my favourite spearmint and peppermint with a twist of chilli for an extra mini-tickle factor, without going over the top. Yerba Mate is a traditional South American brew, but beware - it's wickedly high in caffeine so could keep you up for a few hours, but without the jittery effects of coffee!

Right, I’m off for a brew!

Mr. Scruff

Sunday Times

16th October 2007


Sunday Times featured the Make Us A Brew tea caddies in their Sunday 'Style' supplement this weekend!

Click on the image to the left to read the article!

Happy brew making...











Field Report from the Big Chill

6th August 2007

i am sat in a field in the malvern hills, and for some reason have a wireless signal! Anyway, just recovering from a great big chill. the weather held up as always, and i had a fantastic time playing on the open air stage on saturday night. cheers for everyone who came up to offer kind words, it is much appreciated! thanks also to everyone who came to the tea shop. we were testing out some new 'make us a brew' teas, and your comments will help us decide which ones to put on sale properly. as usual, all the proceeds from the sale of tea & coffee went to the world development movement



Music wise, i really enjoyed cymande, konono no.1, shlomo, john shuttleworth, skream, and was blown away by jerry dammers's sun ra tribute on the sunday night. one of the best things i have ever seen & heard!

After a lovely WOMUD, looking forward to the big chill!

30th July 2007

I am sat in a portakabin on the new womad site in wiltshire, after a fantastic festival. The site was quite muddy, and a couple of tents had to be closed, but the atmosphere & music completely eclipsed any bad weather. My personal highlight was Bassekou Kouyate from Mali, who gave two incredible spellbinding performances. I really enjoyed my set on sunday night too, so much energy & good atmosphere, plus it was great to have so many kids dancing & getting into the music!

The tea tent went really well, and the new teas are going down a treat. We are now on our way to the Big Chill to do it all again!

Drinks wise, we have the superb 'Union Coffee Roasters' coffee, as well as 6 new Make Us A Brew! teas for you to try (English Breakfast, Mint & Chilli, Forest Fruits, Yerba Mate, Camomile & Citrus, Rooibos & Tropical Fruit). We would love you to drop by and let us know what you think of our new brews! All proceeds from the sale of tea & coffee will go to the World Development Movement

Music Wise, I am playing on the main open air stage on saturday night, from 9.05-10.40. Hope to see you there!

Womad this weekend...

26th July 2007

We're busy setting up the 'make us a brew!' tent for the WOMAD festival at Charlton Park, Wiltshire, this weekend.
www.womad.org

The new site is lovely, but quite soggy, though the forecast is not looking too bad.

As for the tea tent, we have the superb 'Union Coffee Roasters' coffee, as well as 6 new Make Us A Brew! teas for you to try (English Breakfast, Mint & Chilli, Forest Fruits, Yerba Mate, Camomile & Citrus, Rooibos & Tropical Fruit).

We would love you to drop by and let us know what you think of our new brews! All proceeds from the sale of tea & coffee will go to the World Development Movement

Make Us A Brew at Glastonbury

1st July 2007

You may have noticed people in the Orange tent wearing Make Us A Brew t-shirt at this years Glastonbury

They were serving MUAB tea all weekend, and collecting feedback about the six teas we had on offer. I also djed in the Orange tent on Saturday & Sunday. Hello to everyone who came down for their kind words, dancing feet & tea comments!