Broom Ryder began with curiosity about what plants have meant to people for generations—and what could happen when those traditions met a genuinely good cup of tea.

We were drawn to herbs because each one seemed to carry its own story. Peppermint and fennel have long found a place in traditions surrounding digestion. Chamomile, passionflower, skullcap, and lemon balm have histories intertwined with rest and quiet. Mullein and marshmallow root appear throughout traditional herbal practices surrounding the respiratory tract and throat. Rosemary, sage, gotu kola, and aromatic mints have their own long histories connected with memory, clarity, and mental presence.

Those traditions made us curious. Could we take herbs people have valued for generations and create blends that were thoughtful about their history without forgetting that tea should also taste wonderful?

So we started blending.

Not by throwing every traditionally associated herb into a bag, but by asking what belonged together. How much peppermint was enough to brighten a cup without taking it over? Could the earthiness of a root be softened by a flower? Would citrus lift a green herbal blend? Could something created around an old herbal tradition become a tea you reached for simply because you loved drinking it?

We blended, steeped, tasted, adjusted, and started again. Some combinations worked. Others absolutely did not. Slowly, individual personalities began to emerge: Breathe, Morpheus Awaits, Happy Gut, Focus & Clarity, Soothe, and Sacred Moon Cycle.

That process became the heart of Broom Ryder Tea Shop.

We still look to genuine herbal history when we develop our blends, but flavor, aroma, balance, and the experience of the cup matter just as much. We want you to know what is in your tea, why those plants caught our attention, what traditions surround them, and what they bring to the blend in front of you.

Today, we hand blend in small batches in Frankfort, Illinois, staying close to every ingredient, every recipe, and every bag that leaves our hands.

Because for us, the plants are where the curiosity begins. The cup is where it all comes together.