Top Note Enters Partners With KeHE Distributors

Milwaukee (June 19, 2017)Top Note, a Milwaukee-based maker of premium craft mixers launched by former craft brewing veteran Mary Pellettieri, has entered into a distribution partnership with KeHE Distributors LLC, a national leader in distribution of natural, organic and specialty food and beverage products to natural, specialty and grocery retailers.

KeHE will carry Top Note’s newly launched line of award-winning sparkling mixers, as well as the company’s mixer concentrates.  “We are thrilled to enter into this relationship with KeHE,” says Pellettieri. “The premium mixer market is a dynamic category that is experiencing tremendous growth.  Partnering with KeHE will allow Top Note to greatly expand our retail distribution footprint and allow even more consumers to enjoy our award-winning mixers.”

Top Note is launching an August New @ KeHE program and will be available in four regional distribution centers:  Romeoville, IL; Lehigh Valley, PA; Flower Mound, TX; and Elkton, FL.

Top Note’s line of all-natural, non-alcoholic, craft mixers feature bold, notably complex flavors.  Right after releasing its new line of sparkling mixers, Top Note received a coveted 2017 sofi™ New Product Award for its innovative Indian Tonic Water in the Cold Beverage – Drink and Cocktail Mixer category.

Pellettieri is a botanist and 20-year beer industry veteran who saw an opportunity to innovate in a mixer category dominated by highly artificial, overly sweet products.

“Tonics had become commoditized. They’d deviated from their origins and didn’t taste good. I saw a need for better tonics that were balanced,” says Pellettieri. “In brewing, it’s about crafting a balance between bitter, sour and sweet. I wasn’t afraid to play with the bitter spectrum that ranges from a softer, earthier taste to a sharper, quenching hit.”

Top Note uses only the highest quality, non-GMO ingredients. Each Top Note flavor is made from a combination of all-natural roots, fruits, herbs, spices and real cane sugar. No artificial colors or preservatives are used, all varieties are gluten-free and contain half the sugar of standard mixers.

Top Note is available as a sparkling mixer in 4-packs of 8.5 oz. bottles with a suggested retail price of $6.99-$7.99.  There are 2 servings per bottle and 8 servings per 4-pack.  Flavors include Indian Tonic Water, Bitter Lemon and Ginger Beer.

Concentrates are also available in 10oz. bottles with a suggested retail price of $9.99.  Each bottle delivers approximately 10 servings per cocktail.  Flavors include Indian Tonic Water, Bitter Lemon, Ginger Beer, Bitter Orange and Gentian Lime.

About Top Note Tonic:

Founded in 2014 and based in Milwaukee, Wis., Top Note Tonic is an all-natural line of mixers for beverage and cocktail enthusiasts who appreciate a bold flavor profile. Top Note Tonic offers three ready-to-drink flavors – Indian Tonic Water, Bitter Lemon and Ginger Beer. There are also five varieties of concentrates – Bitter Orange, Bitter Lemon, Gentian Lime, Indian Tonic and Ginger Beer. The Top Note Tonic name comes from the field of sensory science since top notes are the ephemeral aromas found in beer, wine and spirits that produce a multi-sensory experience. For more information, visit topnotetonic.com.

About KeHE:

KeHE Distributors, LLC (KeHE) provides Natural & Organic, Specialty and Fresh products to natural food stores, chain grocery stores, independent grocery stores and other specialty product retailers throughout North America. KeHE is an employee owned company with over 4,000 employees in the U.S. and Canada. For more about KeHE, visit www.KeHE.com.