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Date: 9/15/2022
HAMPDEN – Tea is versatile. It can be relaxing as a hot drink to sip on a winter’s day or refreshing when poured over ice in the summer. The aromatic flowers and herbs allow teas to be endlessly explored.
That was what Erin Kraus found in 2018 when she became pregnant with her son. Because caffeine is not recommended for pregnant women, she gave up coffee and switched to herbal teas.
“I fell in love with tea. I found that loose leaf tea tastes so much better,” Kraus said. She began experimenting with blending tea varieties with herbs and spices to create different flavor profiles. Kraus said she received positive feedback from family and friends and decided to open a business.
Hampden-based Honey Bear Tea, named after her son’s nickname, “little honey bear,” was begun as a home-kitchen business this spring.
“There’s so many different options,” Kraus said. Honey Bear Tea has blends of black, green and herbal teas available and offers about 15 blends of tea, with a line of six additional flavors that she changes depending on the season. This month, out went “strawberry hibiscus” and “blueberry green” – two of her summer best-sellers – and in came “sweater weather” and “orange spice.”
Kraus said creating flavors is a part of her. She previously owned a restaurant in Monson called The Norcross House Restaurant and Catering. She gave up the business to finish her college degree, but said, “I’m always drawn back to culinary and the creative side of things.”
Honey Bear Tea sells most blends in sizes that range from a sample, which contains five to seven cups, for $4 to 3-ounce bags for $10.95. There are also gift baskets available and she recently added biscotti, in flavors such as pumpkin and apple-cinnamon, to her website. “I found it just pairs so well,” she said.
In addition to the blends on the business’s website, Honey Bear Tea can accommodate special orders. “I love playing around with flavors and customizing them for different people,” she said. “I just have a passion for tea.”
For more information on Honey Bear Tea, visit www.thehoneybearshop.com or reach out to ErinKraus@thehoneybearshop.com or 244-5969. Honey Bear Tea can also be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/thehoneybearshop321.