About

Shelly and Kelly are sisters and co-owners of Elz Tastes & Teas Market (formerly Spice and Vine Mercantile).

The sisters are lifetime residents of the area having grown up in Spokane Valley and Otis Orchards, graduating from East Valley High School, and making their homes in Spokane Valley.

Kelly is the Big Sis –mom to 2 fabulous young adults you may encounter at the store (Cait and Delaney), sarcastic, swears a lot, loves to experiment with using our products and researching their histories, uses, then leaving notes around the store with what she learns, tends to take over the newsletter and Facebook pages (sometimes surprising Shelly with what she posts ???? – it’s okay, so far she’s been tolerant of Kelly’s spontaneous discounts).

Shelly is the Little Sis – mom to her 2 kitties (some have called me the “crazy” cat lady and may have a bit of truth to that). Sarcasm and some colorful language (but really trying to contain) are traits I share with the Big Sis. It’s so fun learning from Kelly’s experiments, as well as hearing from our wonderful customers on use of our products!!  We love supporting Spokane and the community and so appreciate the support we get from everyone in our personal circles and the growing “Elz Community”!!

The sisters took ownership of Spice & Vine Mercantile in August, 2020 after being customers of Jan & Bill’s for years and working with Bill for several months after Jan’s unexpected passing. Taking over a thriving, existing business is exciting but also complicated and it soon became clear that there was a need for a fresh start for many aspects of the business and in November, 2020, the sisters launched their new name “Elz Tastes & Tea Market” and the new website tastesandtea.com that allowed them to enable online shopping – so necessary, especially in these days of Covid-19.

While the name and logo are changing, the essence of Jan’s dream is not. We still specialize in DELICIOUS by stocking…

• Olive Oils sourced from a California distributor who works exclusively with local farmers
• Balsamic Vinegars from our U.S. distributor who works directly with a producer in Modena, Italy to import fine aged balsamics
• Herbs and spices cultivated in the U.S. and around the world, ethically imported and distributed.
• Loose leaf teas and tisanes – Oolong, Black, Green, White, Rooibos, and Herbals
• Delicious pastas from our supplier in Colorado – pastas are made fresh when we order them
• Amazing soup mixes from our friends at Rill’s Specialty Foods in Thorpe, Washington.

Why “Elz”?

When you grow up together and your names are Kelly and Shelly, you get used to responding anytime you hear “…Elly!!!” and being referred to by family and friends as the Ellies. As we got older, it became Kel and Shel. So now, instead of being the “Ellies”, we’re the Elz.