On a sun-parched plateau, high in South Africa's rugged Cederberg mountains, Boltwin Tamboer harvests rooibos tea in much the same way his forefathers would have done. Watched over by a cave adorned with 6,000-year-old depictions of elephants and winged medicine men, he slices through a fistful of the hardy shrub with a deft flick of his sickle before stashing the metre-long (3.3 foot) stems between his legs.
Working in 40-degree heat, he'll harvest between 300-600 kg (661-1,323 lbs) of wet tea every day for the next two months. Some of this crop will be used as traditional tea. And, thanks to the growth of a newly imagined beverage, some will end up, curiously, in espresso machines.
Tamboer's San (also known as Bushmen) ancestors were the first to discover the healing properties of the yellow-flowered shrub, which grows only in the Cederberg in the Western Cape, 250 km (155 miles) from Cape Town. The Europeans who arrived in the hostile, drought-prone region in the 18th century cultivated rooibos, or Aspalathus linearis, and brought its red tea to a broader market. Rooibos tea is a South African staple. Every kitchen in the country boasts a box of the soothing brew that's often given to colicky babies and drunk – with loads of milk and sugar – at church gatherings and PTA meetings.
But rooibos has never been considered an exciting or trendy beverage. Husband and wife team Pete and Monique Ethelston decided to change that while on a life-altering trip. After learning that the humble tea was capable of more depth and flavour and could even be used as a coffee substitute, or a kind of red "espresso", they began a business that would change the way people saw and experienced rooibos.
A farmhand named Gert harvests rooibos plants in the Cederberg mountains in South Africa [Courtesy of Red Espresso]In the beginning
Pete and Monique got married "fairly late in life", they say. Both had established successful careers – Pete as a consultant working for companies like Coca-Cola, and Monique as a brand manager at Unilever and local distilling behemoth Distell. Things veered from the script when Pete convinced his bride to join him on an extended honeymoon to Nepal and Tibet. Awed by their surroundings, they found themselves grappling with some big life questions. "In our corporate lives, we had this nagging feeling that we weren't doing people or the planet much good," says Pete.
This existential crisis was answered in a Kathmandu internet cafe when Pete received an email from a long-time friend and business partner (they still own a tree nursery together), Carl Pretorius. The email told how Pretorius, jittery after his sixth coffee of the morning but still keen for more, tore apart a rooibos tea bag and put the leaves through his home espresso machine – and ended up with a tasty coffee alternative.
Over the next few weeks, by experimenting with the exact grind of high-quality rooibos, Pretorius was able to produce something that mimicked real espresso – right down to the frothy "crema" on top – but without the caffeine. Brewing the rooibos like espresso also supersizes the antioxidant kick that rooibos tea is known for. While it may not taste like coffee, when topped with frothed milk and a swirl of honey it has the look and feel of a cappuccino. "Let's take this to market," he wrote.
Rooibos tea, which can be ground to the consistency of espresso, is at the heart of Red Espresso [Courtesy of Red Espresso]
Pretorius has since exited the venture amicably, but from the first day, Red Espresso (the name they settled on), has been driven by the Ethelstons.
"Their combined skill sets made them perfect for the role," says Jeremy Sampson, a branding expert with Brand Finance Africa who has studied the Ethelsons' business approach. "He has the finance and logistics experience, and her marketing pedigree is exceptional," says Sampson, adding that they've effectively applied their business fundamentals in developing the company. "Spreading out into different products and markets, and into white labelling … It's a classic way of doing things. It's the Unilever model applied to a family business, and it's totally sustainable."
This is not to say that the journey has been easy. Selling any product is hard – but it's even trickier if people don't understand what you're selling. "These days, there's an appetite for espresso alternatives," says Sampson. "But I remember doing market research into the international tea industry 20 years ago, and rooibos wasn't on anyone's radar. And no one had even heard of a superfood espresso."
The Ethelstons understood that the only way to convince people that they needed something like Red Cappuccinos in their lives was to get them to actually try them. Instead of trying to break into the retail market, they started knocking on cafe and restaurant doors. Their first big break came in 2006 when leading South African supermarket Woolworths added Red Cappuccinos to their cafe menu. Two decades later, the relationship with Woolworths has grown to include retail and white labelling, with the retailer remaining an important strategic partner.
Based on the success of their signature brew, the business has grown to include other beverages (they now have 100 product lines) and markets – Red Espresso has a footprint in 12 countries. The business, which employs 60 people at its head office in Paarl, a 45-minute drive from Cape Town, provides an income to a further 20 on the tealands.
The business is doubling in size every three years. But the best part, says CEO Pete Ethelston, is that "the growth is coming across the board. In both local and export markets, in both food service and retail industries. And in both our own brand and our private label work for other brands."
Red Espresso founders Pete and Monique Ethelston in the tea lands where rooibos is grown [Courtesy of Red Espresso]Putting taste first
"Our marketing strategy has always been about putting taste first," says Monique. "We've now managed to break into the mass retail market … But every product still starts with quality ingredients and superior taste."
