Chá De Saudade is made with a rare single origin tea exclusive to the Gurué District in the northern part of Mozambique. Inspired by the region’s tea packaging, mostly comprised of small, folded paper boxes, and printed with a single color, we set out to design our own in a similar manner. Our aim was to create an elevated yet approachable design, and take on a contemporary aesthetic while honoring the traditional tea packaging of the area.
This edition of 60 is comprised of two types of black tea—a morning blend named Monkeys Laughing, and an afternoon blend named Maria’s Tears. Its creator is artist and painter Cassi Namoda, who painted the figures for the front panel of the box packaging visible on both blends. On the left panel of every box, under the listed ingredients, is an area for the batch number, her signature, and edition number.
Placed inside the box, is a card with instructions.
Four colors of paper, from the Mohawk Keaykolour collection, were chosen for this limited edition tea, all based on color palettes found in Namoda’s work. Monkeys Laughing (breakfast blend) uses Indian Yellow and Matcha Tea, while Maria’s Tears (afternoon blend) uses Rosebud and Chili Pepper.
The back panels provide the written names, in lieu of the painted figures, and the right panel provides a description of the tea’s blend. The tea’s name, Chá De Saudade, and its mark, are finished with copper foil.
