ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Haints and Hollers Apothecary, a local Asheville tea company, will soon open a horror-themed tea bar and bookstore in the South Slope district of downtown Asheville.
Haints and Hollers is owned and operated by herbalist Sage Dalton, who develops medicinal teas and tinctures with a Southern Gothic vibe. Though Haints and Hollers originated as a tea company, Dalton said that the business has slowly grown into a full-fledged horror-loving community.
“It started as a tea company on the spookier, Southern Gothic side of things, and then we decided to throw in a horror book club on top of it, which then led to a creepy craft night, and now we’re like, well, what the hell? Let’s go ahead and just full send it,” Dalton said. “It’s going to be a horror bookstore with the tea bar, with the Southern Gothic darker feel at heart.”
Dalton said that the brick-and-mortar Haints and Hollers will serve as a gathering place for horror fans. The business will partner with local vendors, including local horror authors, and offer weekly events like horror book clubs, horror crafting sessions and horror board game nights.
“It’ll also just be a lounge where you can come, get a book, grab a tea and then relax,” Dalton said.
The business has found its new home on the South Slope. Construction is still in progress, but Dalton aims to have the bookstore open at 255 Short Coxe Ave., #201, Asheville, N.C., by the end of October.
“Fingers crossed, I am hoping to be open Halloween. That is what I want to do the grand opening for. So, yeah, there is a lot of work to do. I did make a crowdfund, for those in the community who want to support us absolutely can. But at the end of the day, this has to happen in one way or another. Like, there’s no other option. 
It’s happening. If I have to live here for the next month before Halloween, I will do it,” Dalton joked.
The store has a spooky autumnal atmosphere. The walls and bar counter are painted black, while the ceiling and floor are made of sleek, polished wood.
At the bar, Dalton will serve three distinct categories of Haints and Hollers tea. The first is medicinal, which includes remedies for maladies like headaches, indigestion and difficulty sleeping.
The second, the “Cryptid Collection,” features tea evocative of several folkloric monsters, including “Woodland Wanderer” for Bigfoot, “Chai of the Moth” for Mothman and even a new “Bandit’s Brew” for an “honorary cryptid,” Jimothy the raccoon.
The third is designed after horror subgenres, such as religious horror, slashers and folk horror. Dalton has illustrated each packet of Haints and Hollers tea with a delightfully creepy etching-style drawing of its subject.
Appropriately for a bookstore, Dalton has also created several teas inspired by the works of horror authors.
“I do custom blends for horror authors. They’ll let me read their book, and then I make a blend customized to their book so they can sell it to their readers,” Dalton said. “So, you can have a tea and read the book and kind of incorporate that entire little world they designed.”
Those blends are not just for big names, either. Dalton is passionate about independently published and local genre authors, too.
“I’ve worked with trying to get more into the indie side of the artists, so that way they can also have something a little extra special to make their books more likely to buy,” Dalton said.
When Haints and Hollers opens its storefronts, horror novels and their respective teas will be available for purchase together.
“All custom blends that I have had made for the authors, their books will also be available here, and we can do little duo combos,” Dalton said. “That way, they still get a part of the proceeds to help support them.”
Dalton is excited to introduce a space specifically for horror fans to Asheville.
Horror, Dalton said, is more than a business. It is part of them, too.
“They say that you do what you know, and horror is, I mean, it’s always been a part of me. It’s the genre that I’m always looking out. 
If I’m reading, it’s always going to be horror. If I want to watch a movie or put on a show, nine times out of 10, it’s horror, and that’s just going to be a comfort show,” Dalton said. “At the end of the day, I know horror, and I feel at home in more of the dark and the gritty and the Southern Gothic side of things. 
That’s just what I grew up knowing, so why not do it?”
For more information about Haints and Hollers, visit www.haintsandhollersapothecary.com.