Tea, the new Coffee

Starbucks won America’s heart over the last 15 years.

These days, however, I see a new breed of venues that catch my attention. This week, Anneke invited me to Samovar Tea Lounge @ Sanchez and 18th, in San Francisco. Great ambience, a nice selection of specialty teas from Darjeelings to Assams to Oolongs to Green Teas to Herbals … Last weekend, we stopped by at Teavana, a new Tea & Tea Accessories store at Stanford Shopping Center. Then there is www.specialteas.com on the web.

Entrepreneur Magazine recently did a story on some of the hottest business ideas for small businesses, and Tea was at the top of that list.

Incidentally, we’re spending new years in a tea estate near Darjeeling, in the Himalayan foothills this year!

Well, what are you waiting for?

Howard Schultz built his coffee empire. Tea is all yours!