With Cape Tide, the tea is hard, but the living is easy for four summer friends

Gwenn Friss, Cape Cod Times
·2 min read

Like many students, Ben Carbeau, Peter Nelson, Ollie Cheever and Harrison Hill returned to their respective colleges for the fall semester.

But the four friends who have spent several weeks on Cape Cod left a summer project that continues even after its creators are back at the books.

Over the summer, the friends crafted and launched Cape Tide Hard Tea, a line of teas in lemon, peach and raspberry that contain vodka, tea and fruit juice with no additives, carbonation or added sugars: Each can is 120 calories and five grams of sugar ― about ⅕ of an average candy bar.

"We are projecting to sell approximately 2,000 cases of Cape Tide in 2023. In 2024, we are projecting to sell approximately 8,000 cases," Nelson wrote in a follow-up email, noting that each case contain 24 cans.

“We have 102 accounts, primarily concentrated on the Cape,” said Carbeau, during a late-summer interview at Shipwrecked in Falmouth Heights, where Cape Tide is on the menu for $8 per 12-ounce can.

The retail price for a four-pack is $9.99 to $10.99, Nelson said.

Cape Tide Hard Tea co-owners Ben Carbeau, left, and Peter Nelson, who founded the company with Ollie Cheever and Harrison Hill, are selling the vibe of a lazy summer afternoon, targeting a crowd mostly in their 30s.
Cape Tide Hard Tea co-owners Ben Carbeau, left, and Peter Nelson, who founded the company with Ollie Cheever and Harrison Hill, are selling the vibe of a lazy summer afternoon, targeting a crowd mostly in their 30s.

Cape Tide is canned at a facility in Framingham. Its creators are hoping to add a cranberry flavor next summer.

Creating "that feeling of just hanging out with friends" on Cape Cod

“The four of us have spent every summer on the Cape for years,” Carbeau said, “and we wanted to create something that had that feeling of just hanging out with friends and enjoying the Cape like we do.”

Nelson said the friends discarded the idea of a malt beverage because they wanted a lighter, breezier taste with fewer calories.

The taste test took place while sitting on tall stools at Shipwreck’s outdoor bar directly across from the beach. (Some days this is not a job, it’s an adventure.)

Cape Tide does have a light, breezy taste (don’t be fooled, it is 5% alcohol by volume.) The first taste is vodka, with a mild taste of tea threaded through and all of that surrounded by peach, lemon or raspberry.

Cape Tide Hard Tea comes in lemon, raspberry and peach. Creators hope to add cranberry next year.
Cape Tide Hard Tea comes in lemon, raspberry and peach. Creators hope to add cranberry next year.

Along with a clean taste, the friends heavily marketed the drink as an accompaniment to a carefree summer.

Mascot: Alfie, the gray seal

The friends marketed their product that way, creating a mascot, Alfie the gray seal, and took turns donning the costume for festivals like Coast Fest in Falmouth.

“We’re starting to get a little social buzz. The seal is very helpful,” Nelson said.

While Cape Tide came together in a summer (finding a name was the hardest, the co-founders said,) it was not without trial and error.

During the summer of 2022, the team tried to create a microbrewery for craft beer.

“We found out we were not very good at brewing beer,” Nelson said with a self-deprecating smile. “So we tried hard tea.”

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: No bubbles or sweetness for Cape Tide, which aims to be a breezy drink