Sweet Tea Festival Week and Hold My Tea Bar Crawl—Time to Get a New T-shirt

My “Hold My Tea Bar Crawl” t- shirt has gotten faded and worn since acquiring it last year, so it is time to get a new one. Sweet Tea Festival Week is near at hand. The bar crawl begins Monday the 16th and runs to Sunday the 22nd. The participating establishments have concocted their finest sweet tea cocktails and are ready for you to determine the best of the best, based upon your personal preferences and likes.

Summerville’s competing bars and restaurants are Hilton Garden Inn—Sweet Tea Mojito, Five Loaves Cafe—Flowertown Mojito, The Azalea Bar and Garden—Five Flowers, Frothy Beard Off World—InfiniTEA, Sweetwater One Twenty Three—Amaret-Tea, The IceHouse—Bubbly Bee Tea|, and Godwin’s Beer Hall—Shepard’s Shandy. Want to know each bartenders chosen mixtures, recipes are posted on social media and Visit Summerville web sight. You can download bingo cards off of Visit Summerville or at participating establishments.

As you savor the cocktails, ask your bartender or server to mark off your card with their initial. Mark 7 spaces in a row or diagonally during the week of the crawl. When you have decided on your favorite, cast your vote using the QR code on your Bingo card. Your vote will help decide the winner of the People's Choice Award, and you will get the middle square.

Trade in your completed card for a free bar crawl shirt at the Summerville Visitor Center or Cotton-Tea booth at the Sweet Tea Festival while supplies last.

Aside from winning you over, bartenders are also competing to win a Critic's Choice Award for their cocktails. Three judges, comprising mixologists and/or industry professionals, local people of interest, and culinary content creators have been appointed to evaluate the entries, considering factors such as taste, presentation, and originality. The real challenge of the competing mixologists in my estimation is not just to win your admiration and vote but to maintain the picture perfect cocktail as seen in the photo through the whole week.

A preview—Bubbly Bee Tea

Last year’s winner of the Critics Choice Award in the Sweet Tea Cocktail Contest was Azalea Bar and Garden’s “Porch Rocker” by Elizabeth Cureton. In the People’s Choice category, Lavender TEAse” by Laura Walling at Sweetwater One Twenty Three was the community’s favorite.

Join me for the fun. Send me a message where you plan on being and I will join you. I look forward to meeting you during the week. We will clang glasses and share Summerville stories, like the Summerville Light or The Phantom Flight Over Summerville. See you then.

As a reminder, be sure to attend the Southern Songwriter Festival Thursday, Sept 19 – Saturday, Sept 21. Over 40 different songwriters will perform at various venues throughout Historic Downtown Summerville. Featured stages, Songwriters Alley on Short Central and Headliner performance at Public Works Art Center with full set bands on Sweet Tea Festival day on Hutchinson Square Stage. Forty Mile Detour takes the stage at 2 pm.

If that is not enough, Summerville’s Historic Garden Stroll will take place September 21st at 9:30 am to 12:00 pm. It will begin with a sneak peek of the Azalea Park Children’s Discovery Garden to be completed in late Fall 2024. It will feature a variety of nature, music, and art-inspired pieces geared towards children. After, four nearby historic homes will open their beautiful private gardens to be toured by ticket holders. Live music, refreshments, and small bites will be available. Proceeds will benefit Leadership Dorchester Class of 2024 and garden project—$75. 

Summerville’s Sweet Tea Festival Week will be jam-packed with things to do. Hop on the Summerville festival wave and hang ten—slow and easy to savor the ride through the events. Cheers.