Launched in Colorado in 2018, beverage startup Hoplark HopTea has gained early traction in the natural channel with its line of craft beer-inspired, hop-infused teas. The brand, winner of New Beverage Showdown 16, achieved nationwide distribution last year as a Whole Foods exclusive item and the brand is now ready to expand deeper into the natural, conventional, and liquor channels.
In this video recorded at Winter Fancy Food Show 2020, Hoplark HopTea founder Dean Eberhardt discusses why farmer’s markets were an important testing ground as he developed the brand’s flavors, what the brand learned from launching in Whole Foods and what channels it’s targeting in 2020, and how the company is appealing to both tea and beer drinkers (as well as non-alc and beer distributors).