When you start with a plant that’s been quietly thriving on its own for centuries, you learn early on to give credit where it’s due.
So first and foremost, we want to thank yaupon—for growing wild, for surviving Texas heat and drought, and for doing what it’s always done long before we showed up. We truly wouldn’t be here without you, little holly.
In 2016, Southern Living Magazine named CatSpring Yaupon Best Tea, and it’s hard to overstate what that moment meant to us.
At the time, yaupon was still unfamiliar to most people. Many had never heard of America’s native tea plant, let alone tasted it. To have a leading Southern lifestyle publication recognize not just our product, but the plant itself, felt like a meaningful turning point.
A Southern Story, Recognized at Home
Southern Living has long celebrated the culture, foodways, and landscapes of the South. Their recognition felt especially meaningful because our story is deeply rooted in place—on a family ranch in Cat Spring, Texas, where yaupon had been growing quietly all along.
To be named Best Tea wasn’t just about flavor. It was a nod to:
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Local sourcing and regional identity
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A plant native to the American South
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A slower, more thoughtful approach to what we drink
It felt like yaupon was finally being welcomed back into the Southern pantry.
Gratitude, Texas-Style
We’d be lying if we said we didn’t celebrate.
When the news came through, the best words we could find were simple ones—we were happier than a pig in mud. And honestly, that still feels about right.
On behalf of the entire CatSpring Yaupon family, we’re endlessly grateful to the editors and readers of Southern Living for their curiosity and support. Recognition like this doesn’t just affirm our work—it helps introduce yaupon to people who might never have encountered it otherwise.
Why This Moment Still Matters
Years later, this recognition still holds a special place in our story.
It marked one of the first times yaupon was celebrated on a national stage as something worth savoring—not as a novelty, but as a tea with deep roots, regional character, and a rightful place at the table.
We’re proud of how far yaupon has come since then, and we’re grateful for the voices that helped tell its story early on.
So yes—we’re still raising glasses of iced yaupon tea to Southern Living. And we always will be.
