The whisk moves back and forth with ease in her hand as the froth settles to the top of the vivid, green matcha tea.
This tea is different than the chain-store matcha that fills the cups of many consumers. This is the highest quality matcha available through Tealet, a Las Vegas-based wholesale tea supplier attempting to create transparency in the tea industry by connecting tea drinkers and restaurants directly to those who grow and produce the tea they love.
Elyse Petersen, the company’s founder, began her career as a food scientist and eventually found herself working at a green tea plant in Japan.
After realizing the origins of many tea powders can’t be traced and that farmers struggle to compete with large corporations that sell tea for less than it costs to grow, Petersen decided to create a transparent wholesale market that bridges the gap between small farmers and tea lovers worldwide.
“Real happiness and real joy in food systems are when people are connected to their food,” Petersen said. “I had to start Tealet as my way of revolutionizing our Western food system to bring that connection to the origin of production to the consumer.”
The Tealet grower network spans eight countries, 15 regions and includes family farms and independent cooperatives. The Tealet website allows buyers to trace their teas from seed to steep.
Local businesses serving Tealet tea
• Tea and Whisk
• Flock and Fowl
• Cha Garden (Lucky Dragon Hotel)
• Makers and Finders
• Aware Coffee and Tea
• Purple Mug
• Esther’s Kitchen
• Panacea
• Downtown 3rd Farmer’s Market
• Chloe’s Fairy Cottage
“The tea industry is one of the oldest industries in the world. Teas were actually our first form of currency. When international trade routes were being developed outside of China into Tibet and to other regions, tea was used as a marker of value and trade,” Petersen said. “Internationally, it is one of the most cherished agriculture products. It has a very important foundation among cultures all around the world.”
The company supplies 800 businesses globally. Locally, Tealet supplies restaurants such as Tea and Whisk in Henderson, Makers & Finders and Panacea.
Peterson provides them with video, print and media content from the farmers to help educate restaurant staff and patrons.
“Tea culture can uplift the city, and that’s my goal here—to build a very conscious and mindful foundation for this huge growth that the city’s about to go through,” Petersen said. “Because in Vegas, we drink tea.”
Petersen encourages people who are interested in the culture to jump in head first with a desire to learn.
“The No. 1 place [locally] is Tea and Whisk in Henderson,” she said. “They have regular tea classes, and Saturday night is a social night with live music, board games and there’s a really nice community there.”
Petersen also suggests keeping an eye out for events around town, such as the World Tea and Music Festival staged in June, or by joining the Las Vegas Tea Club on Facebook.