Discover Downtown Littleton’s IN-TEA | Pinpoint Colorado

SPEAKER 02 : 0:01

Hi, I’m Rachel Maines, and welcome to Pinpoint Colorado. This is the show that highlights the people, the places, and the stories that make Colorado truly one of a kind. Today, I’m back in historic downtown Littleton at one of my favorite places, In Tea. In Tea is a family-owned, operated tea house that’s been sharing a love of tea since 2008. I sit down with Carol Bright-Alvarez to talk about how she started this truly one-of-a-kind tea shop. Well, thank you, Carol, for joining me on Pinpoint Colorado. This is one of my favorite spots. You used to see me almost every day. I know. We miss you. I miss you. I moved. But, you know, I try to make it down here. I have family in town. And my cousin, of course. I just did an interview at Giggle Blossom. Oh, right. Downtown Littleton is just a real gem in Colorado. It is. NT’s a gem in Colorado. Thank you. How did you get started in the tea business?

SPEAKER 01 : 1:12

So my interest in tea goes way back to when I was a child and my mom, who’s from the Isle of Man, always was drinking tea. My dad was an exploration geologist, traveled all over the world and brought back amazing tea from all his travels. So I grew up drinking tea and really not thinking it was unusual. But the more I traveled and the more places I lived, I realized finding good tea is not as easy as it sounds. We needed a place for great tea.

SPEAKER 02 : 1:45

Right. And this is so unique. Well, first of all, what really drew me in, I love the atmosphere. Thank you. warm and friendly that your employees and you of course it starts from the top down how you created the ambience of your shop but then the product itself the tea a lot of people don’t know you know the the loose leaf tea versus in the bag right it has such a more greater flavor. Yes, it does.

SPEAKER 01 : 2:16

And more nutrients, more nutrients, more complexity in the cup. So it’s, I say it’s like going from your boxed wine to a really lovely aged Bordeaux. Right. It’s, it just is a whole different experience. And once you get into the world of whole leaf tea, it’s a commitment because you’re never going to go back to a teabag. Right. Exactly.

SPEAKER 02 : 2:39

I know those times when I don’t have enough time to shop or come here to get my tea and I get the tea bag at the store. I always kind of regret it. I’m like, oh, man. So you got it. And you can order online, too.

SPEAKER 01 : 2:50

That’s right. That’s right. We ship all over the world.

SPEAKER 02 : 2:53

Yeah, yeah. One thing I like too about the tea making process is you time out how long the tea seeps and the temperature of the water.

SPEAKER 01 : 3:02

We do, because we want to present all our teas at their best complexity and their best presentation. So we time every tea individually. We measure each tea individually so that every pot of tea is not only brewed with love and care, but also to its best performance. And it’s served with consistency. So every time you come in, you’re getting the same presentation. It’s important. It is important, for sure. And you offer great food as well. How do you pick your food menu? Oh, so our food has to complement the tea, right? So we have beautiful baked goods from La Belle French Baker, and they’re delivered three times a week. We have breakfast burritos. We have gluten-free options in both the baked goods and the burritos. We do a small offering of appetizers, edamame, which kind of brings in that Asian feel, as well as hummus dish and a sausage plate. So it’s more snacks that go with the tea because we really want the tea to be the centerpiece of your experience.

SPEAKER 02 : 4:15

Right. One thing that I haven’t tried yet, which I’m surprised, is the cocktails. Is it tea cocktails?

SPEAKER 01 : 4:22

Yes. You need to try our cocktails. So all the cocktails introduce tea in some way, shape, or form. So it’s either a tea concentrate that we use as a mix, a tea simple syrup, a tea ice cube, all different ways to integrate tea into the cocktails. So we say you get all your antioxidants while you relax.

SPEAKER 02 : 4:46

Yes. Wow. I love that. And I’m surprised I haven’t tried that yet. So I need to make a point to do that for sure. Well, maybe this afternoon. Well, yeah. Hey, I’m here. You also offer classes. Where people can learn more about the tea, kind of like a wine tasting.

SPEAKER 01 : 5:05

Exactly. So we offer a lineup of 16 different classes and they are all about an hour and a half. They all include the tasting of five different teas. And it’s one of the things I love best about running the shop is doing the classes. I was a teacher in my previous pre-tea life. And so it gives me that tie to still have that interaction and to convey the passion of tea to the public.

SPEAKER 02 : 5:36

Yeah, that’s cute. Pre-T life. I like that. And just to tie into Giggle Blossom, my cousin was a teacher as well. I don’t know if you knew that about her. So both of you need to talk about that.

SPEAKER 01 : 5:47

Yeah. Well, it’s public facing industry, right? And that’s that’s you have to love people.

SPEAKER 02 : 5:53

Yeah, for sure. Yeah. Owning a business can be challenging. It’s fun. It has its rewards. Absolutely. For sure. How have you made a success in this having a brick and mortar shop? I asked the same thing to Stephanie at Giggle Blossom.

SPEAKER 01 : 6:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER 02 : 6:08

Obviously, your occasion is amazing.

SPEAKER 01 : 6:11

That’s the most important thing. I really feel like our community is educated. They’re travelers, they’re foodies, they’re interested. So finding that right location has been super critical for us. Finding the right staff that is passionate about the product and very knowledgeable. We go through a series of different trainings for my staff. They have to pass a written test. They have to do… oral explaining to me so that I’m sure that our customers are getting the most in-depth knowledge and really getting the expertise from everybody behind the counter, not just me.

SPEAKER 02 : 6:54

Right.

SPEAKER 01 : 6:55

And I think that adds a whole level of… of interest and just gravitas to what we’re doing.

SPEAKER 02 : 7:03

I agree. Every time I’ve asked questions to the staff, they’ve been very knowledgeable and helpful. And it’s just interesting because you open the menu, you’re like, oh my gosh, so many amazing options. It’s overwhelming. And you need sometimes direction like, hey, which one of the green teas would you recommend?

SPEAKER 01 : 7:19

Yes, exactly. Or what you’re in the mood for. We say that we like to fit our customers to a tea. So so we ask, you know, a series of questions. Sometimes it feels like a lot of questions. But what we’re trying to do is narrow down our menu so that we can help you explore more what you’re looking for for any given day, because it may change. Due to the weather or what you’re eating or how much caffeine you want. Right. Maybe what physical functionalities you want from a tea blend. So it changes all the time. And that’s our job is to help you figure it out.

SPEAKER 02 : 7:58

Right. So tell me, you know, we kind of highlighted on this. How did you have a passion for tea? I know you said with your dad and travel and all that. But what was that moment when you’re teaching and you’re like, you know, I think I’m going to just go into this.

SPEAKER 01 : 8:14

I think I’m going to go for it.

SPEAKER 02 : 8:16

Yeah. What was that aha moment for you?

SPEAKER 01 : 8:17

Yeah. We had moved to several different states, and I lived in England for a while, I lived in the Caribbean for a while, did a lot of traveling, and I was in between teaching jobs, and I was like, do I really want to go back to teaching high school? What do I want to do? And my husband was the one that said, no. I think you should do your tea idea. I wrote a business plan when I was doing an entrepreneurial science class for my MBA. And this was my business plan. And we called it Moon Dollars, like the opposite of Starbucks. And because it’s all tea, not coffee. And really, this was very consistent with the vision that I had for that class project. Wow.

SPEAKER 02 : 9:06

Wow. Isn’t that amazing just how life, the journey of life and how… It imitates art.

SPEAKER 01 : 9:12

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER 02 : 9:13

That was art. Yeah. I do like your name, Inti. Thank you. So when did that happen with the rebrand or, you know…

SPEAKER 01 : 9:22

So that was a long process. So when we decided to actually open a shop, I wanted something a little bit more specific. We knew that the word tea needed to be in the name. And it was actually one of my friend’s husband’s that said, well, why don’t you call it in tea? Because there’s good health in tea. There’s camaraderie in tea. There’s socialization in tea. And tea is special because it draws generations together. We often get grandparents and parents and grandchildren that all come here together. And it’s a place where people can really share and enjoy whatever age they are. So there’s a lot of good things that happen in tea. Right.

SPEAKER 02 : 10:10

Yeah, you know, I had never thought about that before, the multi-generational aspect of this. But I have had clients here and friends and family.

SPEAKER 01 : 10:19

Love that. Thank you.

SPEAKER 02 : 10:20

Well, it is that place, though, because, you know, some people aren’t coffee drinkers, especially like the young kid, right?

SPEAKER 01 : 10:25

Or you don’t want to go to a bar when you’ve got, you know, but you can have a glass of wine here or a tea cocktail and really address everybody’s needs. Yeah. that’s lovely what a great concept um what are you hoping for you know as you grow or for the future um here you know you know we’re always told like oh you need to open another location like i have this perfect place for you and i don’t know it loses a little bit of its specialness like just the fact that we’re here we have 21 employees we’re open seven days a week So it’s a lot, and I just feel like we serve our community so well being here. So, of course, we’re always doing collaborations with different businesses down here. We have a fun time doing new drink boards where we incorporate. We’ve incorporated Playforge and the bookstore and Kate’s Wine Bar, and we’re always looking for new ways to to introduce tea as well as the other shops down here this month our drink board is all stranger things so we also address like you know pop culture and and things that are current and match the teas to whatever character or vision we have yeah it’s just it’s a lot of fun yeah very creative

SPEAKER 02 : 11:47

Yes. And I, you hit upon something there and we’re going to have to wrap up, but sometimes more isn’t better or when you’re doing something right, we kind of, as a human nature, it’s like, oh, well, what can I change? But sometimes exactly what you’re doing, you don’t need to change at all. Just keep doing what you’re doing.

SPEAKER 01 : 12:02

Thank you, Rachel. But yeah, but we’ve got to keep it. fresh we’re always bringing in different blends and new teas and sourcing from different areas of the world um right now i have like 19 different um growers that we buy from from all corners of the world and they’re always sending us something new and it keeps it fresh and interesting yeah but yeah we love it in downtown littleton and i think we’re gonna stay yes

SPEAKER 02 : 12:28

Lovely. Well, of course, I’m going to be back. Of course. In the future, I’d like to touch base with you again. So thank you so much for everything you’re doing, Carol.

SPEAKER 01 : 12:37

It’s a treasure. Thank you. Thank you for allowing us this little showpiece. I appreciate it. Well, it’s one of my favorites, that’s for sure.

SPEAKER 02 : 12:45

Thank you. How fun. Thanks so much for joining me at NT in historic downtown Littleton. This is one of the places that you truly have to experience for yourself. To learn more or plan a visit, go to in-t.net. For Pinpoint Colorado, I’m Rachel Maines. See you next time.