We are grateful to the following Pioneer Members who have given extra support to the European Speciality Tea Association (formerly European Tea Society) at the beginning of our journey, contributing to our work in innovation, research, education and communication in speciality tea.
Nigel Melican, Ireland
Teacraft Technical Services
Nigel Melican has 40 years’ experience in the tea industry both as a product developer and trouble-shooter with Unilever and since 1990 as owner and managing director of his tea consultancy company Teacraft, and speciality tea e-commerce company Nothing But Tea Ltd.
His tea technology expertise has assisted clients in 31 countries, on six of the world’s seven continents, from green tea in Australia to tea extracts in Zimbabwe. He is equally at home assisting production in a 3,000 tonne a year CTC factory or guiding a 3 kilogram a day artisan tea maker.
Currently his particular interest is planting tea in non-traditional tea growing origins – in the USA and Europe – and innovating with small scale farmers to solve the novel challenges of growing fine speciality teas under very marginal climatic conditions.
In 2018 at the annual World Tea Expo, Nigel was honoured to receive the John Harney Lifetime Achievement Award given in recognition of significant support to the tea industry’s growth, innovation and education.
Bernadine Tay, UK
Quinteassential
Bernadine is a visionary who specialises in business strategy. She is the founder of award winning fine loose leaf tea brand, Quinteassential and a tea consultant to many brands, hotels and restaurants, helping them to use tea in more innovative and financially lucrative ways.
She is also a biomedical scientist with a degree from King's College, London, and is passionate about the scientific and nutritional aspects of tea. Bernadine currently also works with NowFoods, the a centre for food innovation at the University of Chester, helping food businesses create innovative food products.
She was appointed global tea curator for Wedgwood, and guides the global tea strategy and curates the tea range for the British heritage brand.
BRITA,
Benelux
The BRITA Group is one of the leading companies in drinking water optimization. The long-established brand BRITA has a leading position in the global water filter market.
The family-owned company, based in Taunusstein near Wiesbaden, is represented by 28 national and international subsidiaries and branches as well as shareholdings, distribution and industrial partners in 66 countries on all five continents.
Founded in 1966, today the inventor of the household water filter jug develops, produces and distributes a wide range of innovative drinking water optimization solutions for private (water filter jugs and bottles, on-tap systems and ‘BRITA Integrated Solutions’) and commercial use (horeca and vending) plus on-tap water dispensers for offices, schools, restaurants and the hygiene-sensitive care sector.
No perfect Tea without BRITA filtered water.
Further information: www.brita.net.
Marco Beverage Systems, Ireland
Marco Beverage Systems design, manufacture, sell and support water and coffee delivery systems. For over 30 years Marco have been supporting specialty beverage, foodservice, catering and hospitality customers around the world. Marco's systems are known for sleek design, precision control and energy-efficiency.
Recognising the beverage industry needs for design, quality and ease Marco have developed a range of countertop and undercounter systems that give users precise control and consistent, high-quality beverages.
As global industry leaders with a passion for knowledge and innovation, Marco is driven by a purpose to deliver excellence in beverage experience in all beverage environments.
Alexis Kaae, Denmark
Simply Tea
Alexis Kaae – founder and owner of Simply Tea, Co-founder and chairman of the Danish Tea Association, Professional tea educator, international tea judge and lecturer.
In 2008 she started her own tea business Simply Tea in the city of Aarhus in Denmark. She became passionate about tea after travelling to China to study the cultivation processes of the six tea categories. Since then she has sourced and imported rare and exclusive teas directly from small biodiverse gardens in China, Japan, India and Nepal. Simply Tea supplies gourmet teas to some of Denmark’s finest restaurants.
Alexis believes that transparency, skill and flavour are what makes her teas so special. To understand this, you must fully understand the processes involved from the soil to the cup. This is why she has developed many educational courses for enthusiasts, hospitality and tea businesses. Only by tasting many different teas can you start to appreciate its many complexities.
Her passion for gourmet tea gave rise to the Danish Tea Association in 2016, which is now a chapter under the European Speciality Tea Association.
Alexis is now embarking on a new tea venture by growing certified organic tea in Denmark at her “Molbo” tea retreat on the hills of Mols national reserve.
Harriet Endean, Finland
Harriet & Camellia
Harriet Endean is an independent tea consultant, designer, trainer, executive coach and digital content creator based in Helsinki, Finland.
Since 2011 she has been living and working internationally using her background as a cultural anthropologist to help companies tailor their offerings to local market needs.
Harriet is passionate about quality, authenticity, connecting to a product’s origins and balancing sustainability with high-class consumer experiences.
She runs tea workshops and training for tea hobbyist and hospitality specialists in Finland, Sweden and the UK.
David Veal,
UK
David Veal Coffee
David Veal has been involved with coffee and tea for thirty seven years, as marketeer, entrepreneur, business owner and consultant.
From 2011 to 2018 he was Executive Director of Speciality Coffee Association of Europe, where he led a period of fast and dynamic growth before its merger with Specialty Coffee Association of America to form SCA.
David now acts as Executive Director of European Speciality Tea Association, is a director and partner of Coffee Origin Trips, taking coffee professionals to learn and experience coffee production, and acts as a consultant to speciality coffee producers, helping them to find new routes into European markets through strategic planning and implementation.
Jessica Tien, Taiwan
E.K. INT’L CO., LTD
E. K. INT'L CO., LTD. is the proud inventor of the Clever and Handybrew Methods for coffee and tea makers.
Its Clever Dripper & HandyBrew lines follow the Direct Immersion Method of Brewing that helps capture the flavor, taste, and aroma of coffee and tea easily and effortlessly.
The secret is in our Patented Amazing Shut-Off System, which helps make the entire brewing process such simple, yet still produces high-quality and uniform extractions bringing consistency of taste for every cup of coffee or tea either you enjoy from a professional store, or at home or office.
Carol Bailleul, Belgium
The Art of Tea Brewing
Carol Bailleul has her tea business since early 2013. In everyday life she runs a tea retreat “Guest House Wabi Sabi”, where she combines three types of activities: coaching and consultancy, tea tastings and workshops, and managing two guest rooms.
Besides her passion for Japan and Japanese teas, Carol has been studying the British afternoon tea in recent years. That's why she was apprenticed to an English tea historian, studied Afternoon Tea Etiquette and read many books on this theme.
In May 2019 her first book on tea was published: “Afternoon tea or high tea? Discover the secrets of this quintessential British tradition”.
Sharyn Johnston, Australia
Australian Tea Masters
ATM covers a diverse range of offerings including tea education and tea consultancy. Sharyn is the head international judge for Tea Masters Cup.
Australian Tea Masters also offers private label manufacturing to different sectors of the market including brewers, spas and wellness companies. ATM currently produce and export over 12 tons of specialist tea blends.
Sharyn teaches Tea Mastery, Tea Blending, Tea Sommelier training providing training for Australian and International students as well as developing innovative tea education tools which are used globally.
Lucta SA, Spain
Lucta is a global company founded in Barcelona (Spain) in 1949, dedicated to the manufacture of fragrances, flavors and feed additives.
With an excellent image, financial soundness and extraordinarily talented human team, we have a large capacity to create value through high-quality products and differentiated service.
Our teams of specialists combine science and passion for designing flavors best adapted to the market. In close collaboration with our customers, we provide the best flavoring solutions for each project.
Our dedicated tea team collaborates with RTD beverage manufacturers and HoReCa customers to provide successful and original flavor solutions for flavored tea leaves, single-serve tea (bags and pods), Ready To Drink Tea, infusions and botanicals (bulk and single serve), amongst others.
THE LULIN TEA COMPANY
Tea merchant, blender, packer & manufacturer
HAND-CRAFTED NATURAL TEAS FROM OUR URBAN TEA FACTORY
We take pride in sourcing, creating and blending unique teas that are bursting with flavour and 100% natural. We don’t use any sugars, artificial ingredients or artificial flavours in our teas. And we take as much care with our packaging, using plastic-free and compostable wherever possible. We source single-estate teas and ingredients where we can, and we’ve been working with some of our gardens since 2006, ensuring quality teas that are ethically sourced. Our teas and teabags are all made in-house, and we use plant-based PLA teabags.
As well as having our own brand, LuLin Teas, we also offer bespoke blending, packing, co-packing and private label services, for loose tea and teabags, for 1 tea or all the way to a unique and bespoke fully packed retail range.
Viva Sara is a family business founded in 1987 by Fernand and Catherine Deprez under the then name: Coffee Roasting Company Deprez.
With the coffee roasting plant in Vichte, where coffee is roasted to this day, and the Kortrijk coffee house, the Sara coffee brand was launched. Both Bart and Peter entered the company in the 1990s. They learned the tricks of the trade through their studies combined with the expertise of their father, master coffee roaster Fernando!
In 2000 the coffee roasting house moved to the new industrial area in Vichte. Since then, the coffee roasting and tea factory has been located there. With the move, there was also a change in the name: Sara became Viva Sara.
In recent decades, Viva Sara has grown into a true coffee and tea empire. Our story that slowly but surely begins to settle in places we never dreamed of.
www.vivasara.be
Nigel Melican, Teacraft Ireland
Bernadine Tay, Quinteassential UK
Marzi Pecen USA
Mai Segawa USA
Christopher Bright, Brighteas UK
Harriet Endean Finland
Alexis Kaae, Simply Tea Denmark
Alexis Kaae of Simply Tea receiving her Pioneer Member plaque at Caffe Culture.
Dan Versey of Marco receiving his Pioneer Member plaque at Catex, Dublin.
David Veal, David Veal Coffee UK
BRITA Professional Filters Benelux
Marco Beverage Systems Ireland
Carol Bailleul The Art of Tea Brewing. Belgium
Brewever Lab Consulting Company Kuwait
Sharyn Johnston, Australian Tea Masters Australia
Handybrew Taiwan
Nigel Melican, President of ESTA, with his Pioneer Member plaque.
Our Pioneer members Carol Bailleul, Brita Benelux and Viva Sara all received their Pioneer plaques at Horeca Expo in Ghent 2021.
Lucta SA Spain
Aruna Johnson, Chawan Singapore
Viva Sara Belgium
Compass Group UK & Ireland
The LuLin Tea Company. UK
Benchmark Designs UK
David Veal officially welcoming Hans Verhoosel and Amy Gallagher of LuLin tea as Pioneer Members.
