Hip-hop puns, farmer-direct loose leaf teas and flavors like Watermelon and Honey Bourbon.
Oakland native Chantrelle Edwards started Hella Tea in 2017 with $100 in her bank account and many epic hip-hop tea puns in her head.
Tea Short, Steep Curry and M. Tea Hammer were born out of her love for Bay Area hip-hop culture, yes, but her connection to tea runs even deeper. Even as a child, a cup of Lipton was sometimes the only thing that helped her escape the “madness and misery,” she says, of gun violence and homelessness in East Oakland.
Today, Edwards sources her teas directly from farmers in South Africa, China, India and Sri Lanka, and creates the blends and flavors herself. The teas are available online atas well as at Alameda Natural Grocery, Castro Valley Natural Grocery, and soon, the Oakland Museum of California. Look for an increased retail and restaurant presence this year, she says.
In March, for Hella Tea’s five year anniversary, Edwards is releasing three new teas, including her first matcha — inspired by Tupac’s “I Ain’t Mad at Cha.”Before Hella Tea, I had a company called Raised Pinky Tea that I started in 2007. I would cater to children, women’s groups and church functions. I wasn’t happy with the brand. I just felt like it wasn’t going anywhere. One day, my husband’s friend said, “Nobody’s gonna buy that bougie tea. You need to come out with an Oakland tea.
A few weeks later, I was brainstorming with my husband and said, “What about Hella Tea?” We laughed. I wrote it down and started researching. I was broke at the time. I had $100 in my bank account. Watching it grow into what it is today is one of my greatest accomplishments. When you hear the song “Started from the Bottom” think of me.Tea has always been an escape from all the madness and misery that was around me. I grew up in tough neighborhoods in East Oakland.
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