Pellegrino Essenza

Pellegrino’s green glass bottles can be found at high-end restaurants, hotels, and cafes around the world. In addition, S. Pellegrino has a line of products that start with the same quality, lightly carbonated mineral water but add a twist of Mediterranean flavors. The S. Pellegrino Essenza flavors include Dark Morello Cherry & Pomegranate, Lemon & Lemon Zest, Tangerine & Wild Strawberry, and Blood Orange & Black Raspberry. Each flavor comes in either a 330 ml sleek can or a 500 ml PET bottle.

Blood Orange & Black Raspberry

We had the opportunity to sample S. Pellegrino Essenza Blood Orange & Black Raspberry. The 500 ml PET bottle is wrapped with a subtle, classic S. Pellegrino label with a slight hint of red color added. Unscrewing the silver cap reveals a light and satisfying effervescence. The creamy, slightly salty bubbles of the pure mineral water combine nicely with the very light citrus and berry notes. There is just a hint of flavor that leans slightly more towards citrus than the berry. The subtle sweetness leaves a clean, fresh, and light finish. S. Pellegrino Essenza Blood Orange & Black Raspberry would pair nicely with any rich or complex food flavors, like red meat or creamy pasta.

Summary: S. Pellegrino Blood Orange & Black Raspberry is a refreshing addition to the classic quality of S. Pellegrino mineral waters. The subtle, not-too-sweet flavor combined with the rich carbonated mineral water provides a sophisticated and refreshing drinking experience.

For more information visit S. Pellegrino’s website.

Vio BiO LiMO comes in four original flavors, ViO BiO LiMO Lemon-lime, ViO BiO LiMO Orange, ViO BiO LiMO Lime-cucumber, and ViO BiO LiMO Grapefruit. The product is packaged in a 300ml glass bottle with a screw cap. We sampled ViO BiO LiMO Orange and ViO BiO LiMO Limo Lemon-Lime.

ViO BiO LiMO Orange

The first aroma that hits your nose upon opening is a sweet and effervescent orange, reminiscent of orange FANTA. The rich, strong, orange flavor creates an exciting spin on orange soda that is unexpected but extremely enjoyable. We could do with slightly less carbonation, but overall we loved the flavorful experience of ViO BiO Orange.

ViO BiO LiMO Lemon-Lime

Even the aroma of ViO BiO LiMO Lemon-lime hints at its sourness. This flavor is much more sour than the orange flavor. There is a hint of sweetness as well, but the aftertaste definitely skews towards sour. Overall the lemon and lime in this drink is well-balanced and created a pleasant and refreshing drink.

Summary: ViO BiO LiMO Lemon-Lime and Orange are zesty, less sugary takes on orange and lemon-lime soda. The sour flavor of Lemon-Lime makes it great for sipping, but the more mellow orange flavor makes for an overall smoother, easier-to-drink beverage. ViO BiO LiMO Orange and Lemon-Lime would make for an energizing and refreshing treat, especially for someone who is looking for a lighter, less-sweet alternative to soda.

For more information visit ViO BiO LiMO’s website.

Austin-based Waterloo was founded in 2017 and has quickly become one of the fastest-growing and largest independent sparkling water brands in the United States, with distribution in over 13,000 retail doors, including Whole Foods Market, Costco, Target, Kroger, Walmart, Publix, H-E-B/Central Market and others. The investment will provide Waterloo with additional operational resources, brand-building expertise, and capital to grow its business by accelerating its product and marketing innovation.

“We’re very proud of the company we’ve built so far, the distinct consumer appeal of our products and the tremendous support of our retail distribution network,” said Jason Shiver, CEO of Waterloo. “Choosing the best partners for Waterloo was critical to continuing our momentum and we’re confident that Flexis Capital, Eurazeo and JW Levin will provide deep brand-building experience and industry relationships that will be key to accelerating our growth, while Moore Strategic Ventures’ financial acumen will add firepower to our capabilities. We also want to thank our co-founding partners at CAVU Venture Partners for their support to date.”

As part of the transaction, Stephen Sadove will join Waterloo’s board as Non-executive Chairman and Jerry Levin will join as a Director. The two are Founding Partners of JW Levin Management Partners and have decades of operating and board experience in the consumer, beverage and retail industries.

“We’re extremely impressed with the brand that Jason and his team have built in less than three years,” said Stephen Sadove. “They are a sophisticated, experienced management team and have quickly established Waterloo as a best-in-category flavored sparkling water and a key beneficiary of consumers’ increasing demand for healthier alternatives to traditional soft drinks. We’re excited to work with this team to continue to strengthen the Waterloo brand and broaden its distribution.”

Louis Friedman, Managing Partner of Flexis Capital, added, “Jason Shiver and Jeff Arnold have a history of success developing category-leading brands, and are deploying a similar playbook at Waterloo as they executed to help grow SkinnyPop and Amplify Snack Brands and achieve a sale to Hershey for $1.6 billion. We’re incredibly excited to partner with them as the company embarks on its next stage of growth, tapping into new channels and reaching a broader audience across the U.S.”

Jill Granoff, CEO of Eurazeo Brands, said, “Sparkling water is a large and resilient category, with sales of $4 billion in the U.S. alone growing by double digits annually. Waterloo has experienced phenomenal growth and strong consumer loyalty since launching in 2017, and is well positioned to capture additional market share under the company’s impressive leadership. We look forward to joining forces with Flexis Capital, JW Levin and Moore Strategic Ventures, and partnering with Jason and his team to drive further success.”

Source: Waterloo Sparkling Water

Clean Juice, the first and original USDA-certified organic juice bar franchise, today announced the opening of its 100th location in New Jersey. This milestone in the company’s four-year history belongs to Clean Juice franchise partner and former New York Giants wide receiver David Tyree and his wife, Leilah. The 100th store opening will officially grand open in Morristown, NJ, on Saturday, June 27, 2020.

“Reaching 100 store openings, with many more in development, is a significant milestone, especially given that the Clean Juice brand is barely four years old,” said Landon Eckles, co-founder, and chief executive officer of Clean Juice. “We are proud that the many communities we serve are embracing Clean Juice for its healthy, high-quality products and for the diversity in franchise ownership we promote and strive toward daily.”

David Tyree is known for his history-making “Helmet Catch” that served as the turning point in the Giants’ Super Bowl XLII victory over the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

“Clean Juice stood out to me immediately, and its brand philosophy matched the high standards and principles I set for myself and my family,” said David Tyree. “Integrity was a cornerstone virtue I valued while playing in the NFL and carries through today as a father, husband, team member, and business owner.  The Clean Juice brand epitomizes integrity, high-quality and is unwilling to sacrifice its standards. We are proud to introduce Clean Juice and its healthy, organic menu to our community.”

Clean Juice sources only the highest quality, premium organic ingredients for its organic cold-pressed juices, smoothies, açaí bowls, and a recently expanded toast product line, all of which are made on-site directly in front of guests. Clean Juice aims to provide the perfect nutrition that comes only from organic food. When and if there is a sourced or seasonal product that cannot be found organically, each franchise location notifies guests through its “transparency board” in the front of all stores.

“As a couple committed to health and wellness, it was important for us to do something that contributed to the well-being of our community,” said Leilah Tyree. “We are glad to be a part of the only juice franchise that is USDA-certified as truly organic. Serving high-quality products is a tremendous opportunity we deeply value!”

Clean Juice’s current menu features refreshing, clean, and healthy USDA-certified organic products stretching far beyond fresh and cold-pressed juice.  The company recently unveiled new organic wraps and new organic combos along with their seasonal summer menu that features blue spirulina, a powerful immune-boosting antioxidant. Clean Juice is committed to the health and wellness of communities it serves and engages with non-profits through regular contributions determined by sales of signature menu items. This includes naming several smoothies and fresh juice items in honor of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, one of the leading funders of pediatric cancer research in the U.S. and Canada.

In the company’s short four year history, Clean Juice has achieved numerous awards including #431 as Inc. Magazine’s Fastest Growing Private Companies; a Top New Franchise and one of the Fastest Growing Franchises from Entrepreneur magazine; a Top 100 Movers & Shakers by FastCasual.com; a Top 100 Game Changer by Franchise Dictionary Magazine, a leading national publication for the franchise industry; a Top Emerging Franchise by Franchise Gator; and the Fastest Growing Franchise and Fast 50 in Charlotte by the Charlotte Business Journal. Clean Juice continues to seek and welcome qualified franchisees to its family of franchise partners.   Earlier this year, Landon Eckles was recognized as a Most Admired CEO by the Charlotte Business Journal.

Source: Clean Juice

Sitting inside Dotonbori ZERO GATE, a vibrant and bustling shopping complex in central Osaka, the new outlet invites customers to relax and enjoy some of its award-winning tea drinks and soft-euro bakes within a welcoming and beautifully designed store environment.

“As a brand dedicated to becoming the innovator and promoter of the tea culture, we wish to deliver an exceptional experience for the local residents, one that reflects our passion for creating unique tea-based drinks for tea lovers worldwide,” said Peng Xin, Founder of Nayuki.

The new store covers 200 square meters and creates an inviting space for tea lovers to unwind and sip on its popular drinks which combine traditional and modern elements. The design of the store features special details to match Japan’s modern culture while retaining its classic interior space brightly adorned by the stylish ceiling lightings designed by world-class designers, as well as other creative elements that give fresh life to the lounge areas.

Nayuki will bring customers in Japan a wide range of tea drinks from its classic delicacy “Supreme Cheese Fruit Tea” to the summer favorites such as cold brew tea series. Expertly handcrafted by the tea baristas trained by the professional Nayuki team, each tea features a rich and unique flavor that is blended with a natural hint of fruity sweetness and lingering floral aroma.

Alongside its cream-topped fruit teas, the store will also bring its exquisite “soft-euro bakes” beloved by the Chinese customers to Japan. Nayuki soft-euro bakes are made based on the baking method of low oil and sugar while delivering well-balanced mouthfeel and nutrition. Customers in Japan can now enjoy Nayuki’s signature “fruit tea and soft euro bread pairing” concept featuring the famous Supreme Cheese Strawberry tea and Strawberry fresh cream bread combo.

The high-quality and efficient supply chain is Nayuki’s secret in delivering premium tea drinks. The company has formed multiple partnerships to establish orchards and tea fields where raw materials are cultivated under strict standards from cultivation to processing. To offer the best taste to customers, Nayuki’s team visit prominent tea-growing regions around the world to select premium tea leaves and fruits.

“At Nayuki, we are not only producing a product but an all-around experience with which our customers can immerse into the tea culture with new-style tea drinks made possible by the modern techniques and traditional concepts of tea,” Peng Xin explained.

Source: Nayuki

This new-to-market concept of lightly sparkling soft drinks for kids in special “colour me can” formats allows kids to free their imagination to colour in, wipe and recolour various fun characters and pictures that feature on the 250ml cans with any crayons or felt tips.

The low sugar brand has been created by Alisha and Lee Eason – busy working eco-conscious parents who for years have been frustrated by the lack of healthy sparkling drinks available for their own children.

Alisha commented “Our kids have always loved to drink sparkling water and they often put fruit in their drinks to make it into a more fun “kiddy” cocktail so we wanted to take this and make something more accessible and fun to the younger audience. All the current sparkling drinks out there for children are high in sugar with dubious ingredients, added plastic straws etc. We just wanted to create a wholesome healthy drink in a fully recyclable can to allow them to have healthy drinks with an added twist of fun but at the same time also teaching them to look after the earth as the UKs fixation with single use plastic bottles seems to continue.”

Three real fruit combinations will be launched – Apple & Blueberry, Pineapple & Mandarin and Peach & Mango. Each can only has between 2.2-2.4g of sugar and only 22 calories with no refined sugars or preservatives. The cans will be retailing on shelf between £1.20-£1.49 with a June launch planned.

Bravura Foods have been selected as the exclusive distributor and brand partner and are already in talks with the grocery supermarkets and high street retailers for ranging plans, in addition to a number of export interests. Karl Morris, Director at Bravura Foods adds “We absolutely love this brand, its so unique, fun and entertaining for young consumers and exactly what the market needs.” Fellow Director Lisa Gawthorne adds “I think it’s a winning concept – to combine a fun activity with healthy hydration and it really has been a stagnant sector dominated by high sugar fizzy drinks for such a long time”.

Source: Doodles

1. Let’s start from the very beginning. What is the story behind Stonebush?

Our leadership team has broad experience in the beverage and consumer packaged goods industries – I myself was a key account manager with Coca-Cola for five years. So once responsible adult-use cannabis became legalized in California in 2016 and there was a growing need for innovative yet approachable products, making cannabis wine was a no-brainer for us. We got right to work to make the best dealcoholized, THC-infused wine possible and launched Stonebush in October 2019. The past several months have been very exciting and we’re looking forward to the future as our brand and the market as a whole continue to evolve.

2. THC infused beverage brands are a new category in the market. What are the biggest challenges Stonebush’s team has overcome during the development process?

The first challenges were making sure that our THC-infused wine tasted great and had a precise dosage of cannabis with a quick onset time. To achieve that, we partnered with infusion specialists Vertosa, who developed a custom cannabis emulsion system so our Stonebush Pink looks and tastes like rose and ensures that imbibers will feel the effects of the THC in just 10 to 15 minutes.

We use a blend of Lemon Skunk, Purple Trainwreck, and OG Kush from California’s Emerald Triangle to create the lovely euphoric and cerebral high that our customers enjoy. And each serving of Stonebush is 7.5 mg of THC, which is typically a manageable dose for consumers of all levels of cannabis experience.

The next challenge involved packaging. We wanted to use a classic, clear wine bottle, but California cannabis packaging laws prohibit see-through packaging. To solve that, Stonebush is still served in a clear bottle, but the bottle packaged within a colorful, branded, easy-to-transport box.

3. The beverage itself looks really fun and tasty. Can you tell us more about its qualities?

Absolutely! We really pride ourselves on the taste. Reminiscent of rosé, the flavor is pleasantly tart with notes of citrus. There is no “weed-like” taste to overwhelm the light, crisp wine. It’s also low in calories at just 18 calories per glass — a traditional rosé wine with alcohol has about 130 calories per glass.

For the wine-making process, we use traditional European fermentation techniques along with Californian grapes. The de-alcoholization process is done using equipment often referred to as spinning cones that produce a low-temperature vacuum distillation. This is the very best process to remove alcohol from wine, while maintaining the flavor and keeping aroma intact.

4. A clear marketing strategy is one of the keys of success. Who is Stonebush’s target market?

We have a fairly wide target market. Women gravitate towards the cannabis wine, but in general, new and moderate cannabis users have become fast fans of Stonebush. As a beverage, it’s familiar, yet exciting, and the controlled dosage makes it an ideal sipper for the canna-curious.

5. It looks that the very beginning for Stonebush was pretty great. What are the biggest goals set for 2020?

Making our product more accessible, including by being available in more stores and later this year and offering single-serving bottles. The cannabis beverage industry has a great deal of potential and we are just getting started!

6. Your experience in beverage industry is truly breathtaking. In your opinion, what are the biggest trends every beverage startup shouldn’t miss these days? Where the industry is heading?

As people continue to become more health-conscious there is a trend towards beverages with lower sugar/calorie content and a move away from beverages with artificial coloring and preservatives. You can also see a lot of new and unusual flavors available.

For more information visit Stonebush’s website.

Listening to its community of fans has always been a priority of Spindrift and that’s exactly how Pineapple came to be. Following years of fans asking for Pineapple through comments, messages, and tweets. The new flavor will be available online to the community first on March 18^th and begin rolling out on shelves in April.

“There has never been a sparkling water made with real pineapples- so we had no reference point for flavor. After trying pineapples from around the world, it was clear that the golden pineapple from Costa Rica was ideal,” said Bill Creelman, founder, and CEO of Spindrift. “Choosing the right ingredients is the most important step in the innovation process because we don’t add sugar. Pineapples can be very rich and our taste profile is light and refreshing, so it took a lot of testing to get it right. We are thrilled with the round sweetness of Spindrift Pineapple and can’t wait to hear what our community thinks.”

Spindrift Pineapple is non-GMO verified, kosher, and certified gluten-free. Sales from Spindrift continue to support 1% for the Planet and $1 from each case of Spindrift Pineapple sold on drinkspindrift.com will be donated to Reforest the Tropics.

Source: Spindrift

1. What is the story behind Blue Marble?

It’s a love story. When Danyelle and I started Blue Marble we were newly dating and the company was focused on full strength ready-to-drink cocktails. We now have 9 flavors of cocktails, 4 flavors of seltzer’s, gin, vodka, and water! We both started out in the medical industry servicing consumers with products. We never thought about starting a beverage company or building a factory. We simply wanted a great ready to drink cocktail to entertain our friends with. What we found was lots of sugar, watered down, artificial or simply bad tasting products. It was hard to find an enjoyable product that was clean and tasted great, thus we completely reinvented ourselves, learned everything about the RTD industry, completed lots of data analysis, and decided we could start something spectacular.

The name Blue Marble was a perfect fit for what Danyelle and I believe in. We like to work hard and play hard. We’re now engaged and planning to get married later this year. You can typically find us on our boat enjoying lots of different water sports. It’s sad to see the destruction happening to our beaches and oceans through single-use plastic. Blue Marble represents awareness, clean, and all-natural, just like our beverages. We were donating to charity organizations long before we were generating revenues.

Developing our beverage lines was quite the learning experience. We knew what we wanted and were involved in every aspect of every flavor – all 16!  We sought out looking for the best ingredients, hired PhDs to scale our formulations and ultimately had to build our own factory to meet our quality expectations and quantities.  There was so much more than we expected! The travel is so insane but we love it! As the faces of Blue Marble, we love being involved.

From working with our distributors, in 45 states, our clients like Disney and Legends, and with all of the amazing people backing Blue Marble’s success. I have always bootstrapped my own companies because I knew the industry and had relationships, this being new for us we raised 3 million dollars through strategic investors who helped us make connections.  Don’t get me wrong, people often ask “How do you guys do it, how can you spend 24/7 with someone and not kill each other”? Well, we definitely have our moments but usually, exhaustion is the cause but there is nothing we would rather be doing than creating Blue Marble together.

2. Blue Marble has 4 different beverage lines. Can you tell us more about each?

I guess you can say we are overachievers! We started with RTDs, added seltzer’s, water and gin and vodka. We already had what we needed to make each of them, so it came down to developing the branding around each.

Blue Marble’s RTD line is simply in a league of its own.  We use real fruit concentrates, and never any preservatives. They all are dye and gluten-free and are all-natural.  Our Bloody Mary was voted World’s Best Ready to Drink Cocktail – and you will know when you try it. Everyone asks “Which is your favorite?” I say it is kind of like having kids… they are all my favorite.  We chose a perfect pour 200 ml (6.8 oz) can because a lot of our business is on-premise, such as cruise ships, arenas, amusement parks, and golf courses. RTDs are definitely the hardest to develop and scale. We had to develop our own water and blend up all of our own spirits including vodka, rum, and tequila.

Our spiked seltzer line is simply better than what’s on the market because it’s made with our premium vodka, not beer malt or beer sugars as they are disguised as. It is shocking that consumers really don’t know what’s in their seltzer. That’s something we are changing! Much like our RTDs, our seltzer’s are all-natural, gluten-free and taste amazing. They have been coined “the White Claw Killers”.

Our vodka and gin are badass! The bottles are unique and scream premium. Put one on a lighted bar and you will see the earth (the blue marble) light up. I love vodka and what we put into making ours makes it incredibly smooth, its the first one I can actually enjoy on the rocks, the same holds true with our gin. I love seeing people smile when they take their first sip!

Canned water may sound silly but when we see the destruction from single-use plastic it’s a natural product for us to offer.  Our benchmark was Fiji and I am happy to say that when blind taste-tested, people prefer Blue Marble. We want to bring awareness and what better way to do it than offer our Blue Marble Pure Love Canned Water!

3. It must be hard to compete in such different categories. What makes Blue Marble beverage products differ in the market?

There is nothing I love better than beating the big companies at their own game – I am used to doing this my entire career.  Consumers are smart and savvy – they know quality when they see and taste it and that is what makes us different. If you want the best Blue Marble is the way to go. Passion it was is driving Blue Marble and we have a great love story of loving each other, our planet and our consumers.

4. The beverage industry is pretty challenging. What are the biggest difficulties you have faced so far?

Definitely navigating the distribution network.  A yes in the industry definitely doesn’t mean yes or guaranteed success. Just because you get signed with a distributor doesn’t mean they are going to push your product. It takes feet in the street, marketing, incentive support and lots of money.  Every state requires its own support.

5. Blue Marbles provides a co-packing service as well. Can you tell us more about it?

Blue Marble Productions, Inc (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Blue Marble Cocktails, Inc), centrally located in Indianapolis, IN., the crossroads of America.  I was approached by several companies to make their products for them. The word had gotten out! We knew how to make complex products. Now we make medical products, kombucha, sparkling fruit juices for grade schools, wellness drinks and even canned water for a famous actor. We are growing our canning facility to almost 200,000 square feet with multiple canning lines this spring and am happy to say some of the biggest companies in the world are trusting us with their products.

I am a nerd at heart and love innovation and you see lots of that in our factory. I built it with virgin eyes and a clean sheet of paper. I didn’t allow the words “Well that’s how it’s always been done…” affect my vision of building a state-of-the-art facility that runs SAP and is full of robotics and world-class teams. The best part is I get to utilize profits from our co-packing efforts and drive them directly into our Blue Marble line.

6. Every milestone is very important. What would you say is the biggest achievement for Blue Marble so far?

There have been many but one of the most exciting achievements included our integration in Disney’s resorts, water parks, cruise line, and a private island. Signing with the biggest distributors like SGWS, Fenway and Empire have definitely helped propel the company and receiving countless gold medals for our product line gave us the assurance that we did it! It takes lots of money to make it all work. We were able to sell all of our Series A stock at $1 per share – something everyone said was impossible as we had 150 million authorized shares – thus putting a pre-revenue on the company at $150,000,000. Not only did we sell out of the stock but we remained as majority owners.

7. What advice would you have given yourself before you started out in the beverage business?

Lots!! The biggest thing is trusting yourself and accepting mistakes, learning, and getting stronger. In retrospect, I would have raised all of the money upfronts which would have accelerated the company quicker. I also think I should have trusted my business instinct a little more and industry types a little less. It is a difficult industry to navigate and there are lots of hands reaching into your pocket, just be prepared with a great product, a business plan as money is not enough. It takes guts, passion, and love!

For more information visit Blue Marble’s website.

“When we acquired the Atlanta territory in 2017, we made a commitment to being world-class in the way we serve this market, our customers and our communities. After all, it is the home of the worldwide Coca-Cola System,” said John Sherman, president and CEO of Coca-Cola Bottling Company UNITED, the parent company of Atlanta Coca-Cola. “This facility demonstrates – through its state-of the-art technology and the aesthetically pleasing environment – our commitment to honor our associates, customers and the communities where we operate and serve every day.”

“Coca-Cola UNITED’s South Metro Sales Center is a welcome addition to the hometown of Coca-Cola,” said Jim Dinkins, president of Coca-Cola North America. “As a valued partner in our U.S. bottling system, Coca-Cola UNITED continues to make incredible investments in Atlanta, creating more local jobs, bringing more of our beverage portfolio to store shelves, and doing more good to make a difference in our communities.”

The South Metro Sales Center will serve more than 10,000 customers throughout Atlanta who refresh some 2.8 million consumers annually with beverages from the expansive Coca-Cola portfolio. The facility, which has been operating since the end of 2019, serves the following counties in metro Atlanta: Carroll, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, Dekalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Newton, Paulding, Rockdale, Spalding, and Walton.

Approximately 750 employees work at the facility, which has a payroll of more than $41 million.

“This facility is one of the most technologically advanced sales and distribution facilities in the North American beverage industry, and it is one of the largest investments that has been made in a U.S. Coca-Cola sales center,” said Mike Suco, East Region vice president for Coca-Cola Bottling Company UNITED. “What a great testament to the commitment our company has to the Atlanta market and the thousands of associates who serve our customers and these communities every day.”

“We’re absolutely ecstatic about the state-of-the-art Coca-Cola UNITED facility joining our community and becoming part of the Union City family,” said Vince Williams, Mayor of Union City. “The strong investment of over $80 million dollars proves they’re serious about a committed relationship with the Atlanta metro area and the Union City community!”

Source: Coca-Cola