1. I
n Portland, Smith Teamaker is a name eponymous
with the tea industry. Steven Smith, the company’s
founder and tea visionary (who also launched Tazo and
Stash teas) passed of complications from liver cancer this
March. In his honor, Smith Teamaker is pushing forward to
build a flavor lab and expand its impressive tea program. The goal
is to pull back the curtain and let the community in on the complex
process, from sourcing ingredients to the finished product in the
cup. In preparation, creative director and head teamaker Tony
Tellin explains how to make tea taste like ice cream and why
they're not interested in what the competition’s making.
HOW DID YOU GET STARTED
IN THE INDUSTRY? || It's a
funny story of being in the right
place. I grew up in Iowa, but after
vacationing in Portland, I sold
everything I owned and moved
there. Right after, I was biking down
to a temp agency and bumped into
Tazo tea. The workers were sitting
out on the dock on a beautiful day
having lunch. I chatted with them
and they said they were expanding
and needed help. I started the next
day in the warehouse.
Within a few months, I moved
into blending. Steve [Smith] would
write a recipe and I'd blend it out
for him to taste. That moved into
putting up blends for myself to
taste and then, eventually, into
making the decisions.
After about four years, my role
swiveled into sourcing and buying,
which required a lot of education.
I spent two weeks in Colombo,
two in Jakarta, two in Calcutta.
Then, I visited China, Japan,
Northern Africa... We spend a lot
of time trying to become experts
on every region.
WHEN YOU CREATE A NEW
FLAVOR, DO YOU SET AN END
GOAL AND FIND THE TEAS YOU
NEED TO MAKE IT, OR ARE YOU
INSPIRED TO MAKE A FLAVOR
BASED ON WHAT YOU TASTE?
|| Sometimes we'll find teas in
our inventory to support new
flavors or we will go out and find
something we know exists but
don't have. For the first Maker's
Series with Tyler Malek from Salt
& Straw [a Portland ice cream
shop], the inspiration was to make
a cup of tea taste like ice cream.
We built the flavor around a milk
oolong, with Marcona almonds for
B Y J U L I A W AY N E
that fatty liquor; white jasmine for
floral, vanilla-like notes; a bit of sea
salt. It sold out immediately.
HOW HAVE THINGS CHANGED
SINCE STEVE SMITH PASSED
AWAY? || It sounds weird, but
not much has changed. He was,
of course, part of the process.
I've been working with him for
18 years, and his cohorts here
have been with him at Stash
or Tazo forever, some in the
industry since the 1970s. We have
a very engaged, self-managing
leadership team.
We do what we like and not
necessarily what others are doing.
We look at distillers and brewers
and candy makers and chefs to
see what they're doing. It generally
feels less reactionary that way.
WHAT FLAVORS ARE YOU DOING
IN KEGS? || The Strawberry
Honeybrush Sparkling Iced Tea
is something we're really proud
of. Stumptown and Rogue have
been having fun with those.
We're working on a few new
collaborations so expect to see
more of us around Portland in the
near future. ●
Q&A with
Tony Tellin
FLAVOR CREATOR AT
SMITH TEAMAKER
TWOCENTS
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