our roots

Longeviteas started as a holiday present. Wanting to give something handmade to my friends, I decided that I was going to combine my loves of tea and science to create a unique gift that no-one else could. I’d just finished reading an article in the New York Times called The Island Where People Forget to Die which follows a man diagnosed with terminal lung cancer who moves back to his ancestral island in the Mediterranean so he can die in peace. As he settles into the lifestyle of the island, he begins to feel better. He eats the food. He drinks the island tea. Years pass, and he doesn’t die. As a scientist with a PhD in pharmacology, I became fascinated.

What the hell was in that tea?!

I hit the research journals, diving not only into the herbs that made up this island tea, but all the substances consumed in all of the Blue Zones of the world (areas where more people live to over 100 years old). I decided that I was going to assemble these longevity substances to create the perfect tea. To be honest, I may have gotten a bit obsessive in my thoroughness. I ordered green tea from Japan, spices from the Mediterranean, and a special herb that only grows on the surface of rocks above 4000’ on the islands of Greece. After much taste-testing (for science!), I came up with the perfect blend, named it “Longevitea”, and gave it to my friends with a wish for long life.

Things went great until people started running out.

That spring was a constant stream of friends crying,“Noooo, I’m out of your tea! When are you going to make more?” After a dozen similar requests, followed by one friend following me around waving a wad of cash begging me to just make ONE batch, I decided that if I could make something this healthy taste good enough that everyone wanted more, maybe I was onto something.

Thus, Longeviteas was born.