While the hemp-fueled THC beverage category may be just getting started, it's been a more complicated path for an over-arching industry still waiting on perceptions and legislation to catch-up with consumer preferences.  Today's episode features a sit down with Ricardo Baca, named one of the 7 Most Powerful People In America's Marijuana Industry, and founder/CEO of a leading integrated communications firm, Grasslands. In our conversation Ricardo talks about how his journalism work helped educate the mainstream on cannabis, and where we are in the current environment with the industry essentially split into two factions. We also touch on what he's hearing on legislation at the federal level, and how that may or may not impact a THC beverage category that's currently taking off. Lastly, we talk about the future, and how the industry has really become one with the broader health and wellness movement that has shaped more mindful drinking habits.

Mentioned in this episode:

Grasslands

Fable Libations

U.S. of N/A Episode/Ben Kennedy, Fable Libations

We'd love your feedback!

As mindfulness and moderation in drinking continues to become a bigger thing, so too are festivals that celebrate discovery in the non-alcoholic world, along with finding holistic wellness and community. In this bonus episode we recap our visit to Bluffton, South Carolina for the first-ever Lowcountry Dry Fest. Hear from the three principals behind this new event; Kayla Lewis of NAPS Chicago, Jessa Frances De La Rosa of Untoxicated World, and Jane Harmon of Amethyst NA Spirits.

Mentioned in this episode:

NAPS Chicago (IG: napschicago)

Jessa Frances

Untoxicated World

Amethyst NA Spirits

We'd love your feedback!

While Athletic Brewing may today be known as one of the fastest-growing breweries the craft beer industry has ever seen, its origins were more deliberate and intentional, with a rollout strategy that stayed local for as long as possible. Bill Shufelt's founder story goes back nearly a decade, and in those early years he carefully constructed a foundation that would serve the company well as it emerged as one of the faces of a new mindset around adult drinking.

In this episode we talk with Bill on a variety of topics, including: 

• Athletic Brewing's role in today's evolving drinking habits, and how quality and culture are table stakes for the company.
• The 18-24 month process they went through to come up with the brand name (including what the backup name would have been had "Athletic" not been available). 
• The importance of Dry January in getting in front of a new audience, regardless of how consumers may choose to interact with the category.
• Which Athletic brews and seasonals Bill enjoys the most, and what's in his refrigerator at home.
• Advice for fellow NA entrepreneurs on the best way to achieve scale, balancing the need to learn from mistakes with a desire to grow quickly.

Mentioned in this episode:

Athletic Brewing
How I Built This Podcast (Bill Shufelt episode)
Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Association (ANBA)

We'd love your feedback!

Entrepreneurial from a young age, Busty Lush founder Laurel Harrop has always been open to trying something new. Little did she know when starting a successful lighting recycling business that her next venture would involve creating a stylish icon of the non-alcoholic drinking movement. In our conversation, we talk with Laurel about a number of topics related to Busty Lush's first four years in business, including:

• What drew her into the NA category initially.
• Why being female-driven, owned and operated was so important to her.
• How the brand's personality and uniqueness has been critical to competing alongside larger players.
• What's next for Busty Lush, both on the shelf and behind the scenes.
• What new channels Laurel is trying to push the brand into in 2025.

Mentioned in this episode:

Busty Lush
Chambers Austelle
Recess

We'd love your feedback!

How many beverage companies started by making their product in a 53' tractor trailer that traveled the country? That was the question we asked ourselves upon hearing the origin story of the Wynk THC-infused seltzer brand, which initially competed in the state-by-state regulated cannabis industry. In our conversation with co-founder and CEO Angus Rittenburg, we talk about where the brand started, how they have evolved, the ways they're navigating a highly fragmented (and increasingly regulated) category in terms of marketing and distribution, and lastly, how they intend to compete in a space that is only expected to continue explosive growth in 2025.

Mentioned in this episode:
Wynk Seltzers
Countdown by Wynk
Ceria Brewing (brief mention)
BERO Brewing (brief mention)

We'd love your feedback!

In a category still getting its footing in the consumer consciousness, creating a perfectly flavored cocktail infused with THC/CBD is a task with many layers to it. So explains today's guest, Ben Kennedy, who along with his wife Kristen founded Fable Libations, a Denver-based brand in the growing hemp-derived beverage space.

In our conversation Ben talks about how his background in advertising and marketing helped him lay the groundwork for building a brand, and the meticulous process he and his team followed to create the right combination of flavors. He also touches on the challenges in creating a recipe not based on an alcohol counterpart, but a unique drink that requires consumer education and adoption. Finally, we touch on the many legislative changes taking place that impact decisions around distribution and product development, and what's ahead for Fable.

Mentioned in this episode:
Fable Libations

We'd love your feedback!

How can a mountain town, hundreds of miles from the ocean, be expected to defend itself from a major hurricane? That's what the residents of Asheville, North Carolina and the surrounding Blue Ridge mountains had to be asking themselves on Friday, September 27th, the day Hurricane Helene took a devastating path through the region.

In this episode we return to the story of our first-ever N/ATION road trip back in February. On that day we experienced the AVL that we know and love; clear blue skies, and a cold, crisp air that only the mountains can deliver. We happily strolled through The Marquee during that trip in the artist-haven River Arts District, also home to the Southeast's first non-alcoholic bottle shop, NoLo.

Fast forward to today. We sit down for a remote discussion with NoLo's new owners Jennifer and Jason Phillips, who had helmed the business for all of 57 days before Helene's arrival. In our conversation we talk about what the situation on the ground looks like one month out from the storm, which decimated an estimated 80% of the structures in the River Arts District, including The Marquee, as part of a wider impact to WNC. We also talk about the value of community in times like these, and how that has helped them begin the recovery process. Lastly, we talk about what's next for NoLo as well as the city after the "biblical" event. While the storm may have washed away the physical store, it hasn't dampened the Phillips' passion for serving the sober and sober curious community in their beloved town.

Links/Resources for those who would like to responsibly visit or support Western North Carolina: 

• VisitNC.com 
• DriveNC.gov (up-to-date road conditions and closures)
• Explore Asheville  (shop, support and donate to AVL businesses)
• Bright Barrel Brewing (fellow WNC NA business now helping to supply water)
• Jeter Mountain Farm

Recommended options to support the local community (from NoLo):  

• MANNA FoodBank - Asheville NC
• Brother Wolf Animal Rescue
• World Central Kitchen (still on the ground feeding WNC every day)
• American Red Cross North Carolina (home and disaster support for WNC)
• RADA Hurricane Relief Fund (River Arts District Artists, Inc.)
• Always Asheville Fund (helps small independent travel/hospitality businesses)
• Global Empowerment Mission Small Business Relief Fund (You Tube video)
• Rebuild Marquee Asheville (NoLo's original space, home to 300 artists) 

How to support NoLo:

• Follow them on IG
• Visit their website, and subscribe to Nolo News
• Visit WNC and stock your VRBO/Airbnb with NA. 

We'd love your feedback!

Cannabis beverages have exploded in the market, not coincidentally just as consumer preferences seem to be shifting away from alcohol. In today's episode we're joined by Lehua Brands CEO Sierra Elaina, herself a veteran of the alcohol industry having formerly held key leadership roles in sales and marketing for Diageo. In our conversation we talk about what's driving the category, how the cannabis industry is recovering from prior setbacks, parallels that exist to growth in the NA sector, and lastly, what the future of these beverages may look like.

Mentioned in this episode:
Lehua Brands

We'd love your feedback!

If you've enjoyed an American craft beer over the last few decades, you've benefited from the efforts of our guest today. Keith Villa founded Blue Moon Brewing Company for Miller Coors back in 1995, which would of course become an iconic brand that helped usher in a new era of craft beer that we know today. His trailblazing efforts in craft beer didn't stop there, though, as he would start Ceria Brewing in 2018. Ceria is known for two things. One, launching a very early-stage, cannabis-infused beer. When they had to pivot due to being so early to market, they currently brew one of, if not the only, completely zero-proof beers made in the U.S. In our conversation we talk about what microbrewing looked like in the mid 90s, before fast-forwarding to the last decade in brewing.

Mentioned in this episode:
Ceria Brewing
Blue Moon Brewing
Brewing With Cannabis (book)

We'd love your feedback!

The state of the (NA category) is strong, and getting stronger. Today's episode has a bit of a "state of the industry" feel to it, as I'm joined by Laura Silverman, founder of Zero Proof Nation, one of the most authentic voices in the non-alcoholic beverage movement.

In our conversation we first talk about her advocacy in the space, and how much has changed in the time she's been involved. She made a decision to go alcohol-free in 2007, well before the modern movement even existed. We then talk about the growth that's happening right now, and how that's both exciting and maybe a bit concerning with so many new brands competing in the same space, as well as the hemp-derived market that has really come on strong these past couple of years. We end by talking about some of Laura's favorites, and we ask her to weigh in on some of the language the media uses to describe the category.

Mentioned in this episode:

Bright Barrel
Go Brewing
The Open Road
Spirited Away
Sans Bar
Seedlip
CaliSoberMom
Dry Atlas
All The Bitter
Zeronimo
Partake Brewing
Uncool
Lyre's

We'd love your feedback!