Jody Rudman is the founder and owner of Tempest Tea, a retail-cafe tea concept in Dallas. Tempest now has two locations in the Dallas area, and several franchise requests worldwide.
Jody and her husband started Tempest Tea with an eye toward promoting tea as a health beverage, and an alternative to coffee and soda. Part of their mission is to educate the public on the health benefits of tea, as well as proper ways to brew and enjoy it. Tempest offers over 75 varieties of tea as well as a canned green tea soda and 2-ounce herbal boosts.
Jody created each of Tempest's blends of tea and supervises their importation, quality control, blending and packaging. Tempest offers black, green, white, rooibos and herbal teas, as well as chais in four varieties, yerba mates, bubble tea, and tea smoothies. All teas are organic and fair-trade certified, all are offered in loose leaf form, and several are available in biodegradable teabags.
Jody and her husband have lectured extensively at conventions and to private groups on subjects ranging from growing, picking and processing tea leaves, to the differences among tea varieties, to the proper methods of brewing and enjoying tea, to loose-leaf and bagged teas.
Tempest Tea has been featured on TV and in magazines and newspapers. Tempest, which Jody designed, has been photographed and featured in Southern Living magazine, American Way magazine, a book of tea houses of the south, and numerous other publications.
Tempest also has a wholesale business, selling products to markets worldwide in grocery, coffee shop, health club, spa, and cafe distribution channels.
Jody is also an actress. She has played principal roles in national commercials for AT&T, La-Z-Boy, Don Pablo's, Zatarains, Stanley Steemer, Mass Mutual, Denny's and the Veria network, among others. She has also appeared in regional print and television advertisements, as well as theater productions and films.
