In Mint Condition After 25 Years
Happy birthday to Summerdown Mint celebrating 25 years of distilling its pure, single-estate Black Mitcham peppermint oil - the star ingredient that makes its award-winning chocolates, teas and treats so fragrantly special.
Back in 1995, founder Sir Michael Colman travelled to America in search of Black Mitcham peppermint – an extraordinary plant prized for its pure bright character. Once native to England, it had been all but lost in this country. Notoriously tricky to grow, Sir Michael decided he’d take a few cuttings back home and have a go at cultivating them in the kitchen garden, with the help of farm manager Ian Margetts. After months of research, advice and a lot of patience, they planted a plot the size of a tennis court. Those peppermint plants slowly established themselves in the soil at Summerdown; 25 years later, that plot of Black Mitcham peppermint spans around 100 acres on the farm in the foothills of the North Hampshire downs.
Every year a small, dedicated team looks after this prized peppermint, tends it and hopes for just the right amount of rain and sunshine, so that come August the mint can be harvested. It then goes into the purpose-built, on-site distillery where it’s transformed into single-estate peppermint oil by farm manager Ian, before being aged for two years to develop the flavour.
The aromatic, barrel-aged peppermint oil is used in an award-winning range of chocolates and teas, plus soaks, soaps, lotions and washes, scented candles and diffusers. It gives a crisp intensity to a unique, revitalising range for body, soul and home that's designed to slow you down and brighten up the everyday.
Farm Manager and Master distiller Ian says “After years of working with this crop, I still get a huge thrill. I’m lucky to be in a job that I love, knowing that it’s incredibly unique. We produce something that frankly, you can’t get anywhere else.”
Summerdown is celebrating by introducing a limited edition bestseller product bundle, including English Peppermint Tea, Mint & Lemongrass Reed Diffuser and Dark Chocolate Peppermint Creams, all for £25 - a saving of 22%. This celebratory bundle is available via the website and offer expires 30th September. Treat yourself or buy as a gift for someone else. (Lucky them!)
