Town Sweetens Tourism with Sweet Tea Claim

It's only tea, sugar and ice, but now it's also a new marketing campaign by the town of Summerville: Birthplace of Sweet Tea. 

You may have seen it advertised that way in Southern Living magazine.

The trademark is pending, a mini sweet tea celebration is scheduled in September and there are talks of a Sweet Tea Festival in 2013, according to Tourism Coordinator Tina Zimmerman.

Being first in sweet tea is nothing new for the town. Like the best recipes, everyone in the family has always known it for a fact. But the marketing campaign is new and now Summerville wants everyone to know who was first. 

It was long assumed that St. Louis was the birthplace of the South's best known drink (sorry, Cheerwine), but the Charleston Tea Plantation and the town of Summerville has bucked that claim with evidence that predates St. Louis' claim by more than a decade. 

Want to learn more about its history? Check out Azalea Magazine's 2010 article (page 46). Or watch SC ETV's special in this story on the town's claim.

"It's very charming information and just a part of our history and we have been working and getting a trademark," Zimmerman said. "We're taking an old historical fact in Summerville and rebranding it."

The town's last branding was "Small Town, Big Charm."

"A lot of people can claim small town and big charm, but we're the only one who can say we're the birthplace of sweet tea," Zimmerman said.

Want a taste of the town's sweet tea?

The monthly Third Thursday downtown soiree will host a sweet tea celebration at its Sept. 20 event. 

Eleven Summerville restaurants and Charleston Tea Plantation will be on hand at with their versions of sweet tea. Patrons can purchase a $5 mug to sample.