New Beverage Showdown 23 - Semi-finals: Muddle and Mint

Speaker 1 [00:14] Next up we have Hally Turner, who is the founder and co-owner of Muddle and Mint. Come on up. Are you? Please just keep an eye on your timer. Thank you.

Hallie Turner [00:27] Hi, Muddle and Mint offers alcohol-free drinks for adventurous cocktail lovers. I am Hally Turner, founder and owner. I grew up in a small town with a big reputation for drinking. I spent much of my formative years serving as DD or sober companion, and a lot of my adulthood looking for NA options that could easily hang in boozy situations. I started Muddle and Mint with my partner Mika. We combined bartending, culinary, and entrepreneurial experience to deliver high quality, all-natural, alcohol-free cocktails. Our three flavors provide a range of drinking experiences. And they make excellent mixers. This year we won 2 golds at the International Tonukkah Mixer Masters. This month, 3 silvers at the Bartender Spirits Awards. We are primed to be a go to option for the sober curious, millennials and Gen Z, and we have all of our customers have occasions in which they do drink, which we heard earlier. They can effortlessly mix muddle and mint with their favorite spirit or drink straight out of the can. We join a growing number of NA options. What makes us different? We combine fun and complexity. Fun, we use familiar flavors, no functional or chemical additives. Complex, our recipes result in sophisticated cocktails that invite you to slow down, sip, and savor. We are the only option delivering these sophisticated drinks in a non-carbonated can. You can take the bar-like experience. With you anywhere we are available in 80 retail locations in Minnesota launching in Cub liquor stores next week. We have a competitive MSRP of $3 per can, retail margins 30% to 40%, and a long shelf life having gone through commercial formulation with Bev Source. Muddle and Mint is offering the adventurous modern mocktails we all deserve. Thank you.

Speaker 1 [02:26] Good job. Great job. Brittany, we've definitely seen more and more consumers look for alcohol-free, social tonics, social beverages. Um, what do you think of Muddle and mint within that growing space?

Speaker 3 [02:39] I love it. One, I absolutely love the name. I think the brand name is so cute and, and appealing. I think two people are absolutely looking for a variety of choices when it comes to mixers, non-alcoholic. Alcoholic mixers, um, so there's a variety of use cases there which I think is really appealing. I love, I wish I had a full glass of ice to pour this over though it was a little sweet when I first tasted it, and I think it was because I needed some ice with it, but I overall I really love the brand.

Speaker 1 [03:07] Yeah, Jackie, do you understand what this product was, what this brand was from the, from the label?

Speaker 4 [03:11] Yeah, it took me a little bit, um, I think also the name Muddle and Mint you expect there to be mint in every skew, which I don't believe is the case. Um, there's also a lot of real estate, um, left on the can that they could do a lot with with explaining what this is, um, I think also focusing on both mixer. And non-alcoholic cocktail, there might be some issues just trying to keep focus with that um I think it's might be my personal opinion better as a mixer just because it is a little bit sweet, um, and, um, as just straight out of the can it's just, yeah, a little bit too sweet.

Speaker 1 [03:46] David, um, again, you know. With Coke looking at to become a total beverage company incorporating uh a brand in this growing category seems like a no brainer, um, do you think Mud and Mint is, you know, fits within that kind of opportunity for Coke to invest?

Speaker 5 [04:00] Um, well, I, I think the category is super interesting, the mixer category, it is, um, you know, especially because it, it, it hasn't been disrupted, um, so I, I would say that there is opportunity there, yes.

Speaker 1 [04:15] And Alison, you get the last word on muddle and mints, um, you know, we heard about a little bit too much sweetness in these products, but you know. Would you reach for this kind of product if it was an opportunity if there was an opportunity to buy it on the shelf?

Speaker 6 [04:25] Yeah, I think it's a little bit hard to tell what it was. We were like, is there alcohol in this? And they're like, oh wait, there's not, but it says cocktails. So I think it's just if, if they did a little bit of tweaking there, I think for sure.