Kate: 0:08
Hello, and welcome to The Gale Hill Radio Hour. I'm your host Kate Jones, here with Steven and Alison Cravens, the siblings behind North Shore Crafted Cocktails. Welcome to the show, Alison and Steven.
Thank you. Thank you for having us.
Nice to have you here. North Shore Crafted Cocktails — I have to be careful saying that — North Shore Crafted Cocktails come in cans, and they're based on cocktails served at your family's restaurant, Lager & Vine in Hudson, Ohio. I understand it was kind of a family effort with your mom and dad, Katie and Cliff. I just want to know, how did this line of cocktails come about?
Alison: 0:52
So honestly it was kind of a COVID thing. Our family had takeout running in the entire time Covid was going on, and the state of Ohio let us do cocktails to go. So then we saw that little niche in the market and we were like you know, maybe people would buy these if we put them in a can.
Kate: 1:12
Well, please talk about what distinguishes these beverages from other canned cocktails.
Steven: 1:18
We wanted to make sure we had a drink that was flavor forward in a world full of seltzers is what we kept calling it over COVID. So we wanted to make something that really just tastes good, like you got it from one of our bartenders at Lager & Vine, but straight from the can. It also has 100% fresh juice, no preservatives, gluten-free, 12% alcohol by volume. So it's got a little kick to it, you know.
Kate: 1:41
No kidding, and actually each can has two drinks, and I understand you recommend having it over plenty of ice. Because it can go down too fast maybe otherwise.
Alison: 1:56
Yeah, and you definitely should pour half the can, drink it. Let it sit in for a second and then keep drinking if you feel the need to, because it'll catch up with you.
Kate: 2:07
Yes, I imagine so. So anyway, you don't put preservatives in, so how does it work not to have preservatives?
Alison: 2:17
Mainly the one that we had to worry about was the pomegranate, with it being no preservatives just because in the restaurant we make it with orange juice. Obviously, you'll see in the recipe that it's orange wine that we use in the canned version, and this is solely just so there's no acidity and obviously orange juice is not shelf stable for years and years. It's something you’ve got to use pretty quickly, and then also the 12% ABV was the level we needed to get to in order for all the ingredients to stay shelf stable.
Kate: 2:47
So it's not solely for the kick. It’s really for preserving?
Alison: 2:51
Yes. Our cocktails are shelf stable for about two years.
Kate: 2:56
That's terrific. The benefits of alcohol.
Steven: 3:00
Exactly, exactly.
Kate: 3:01
That's funny. Okay, you mentioned the pomegranate. That's a Pomegranate Martini, and then you also have the other flavor. The Diablo Margatini? And that's an actual trademark or a registered name now?
Steven: 3:17
It is, yes.
Kate: 3:19
The labels are great and they are distinctive. Yeah, so how did you work on those? I mean, how did that all come about?
Alison: 3:28
Yes, it was just we used Canva a lot. I don't know if you've heard of it.
Kate: 3:31
Oh yes, I have a membership to Canva. I don't use it much, but I have a membership.
Alison: 3:36
So we bought, you know, the premium to that and it opened up a lot of stuff and we just kind of played around with stuff. Obviously, the government makes you have certain things on your labels and a lot of that. So we obviously hit those marks and then from there we're just trying to make it something that both men and women would like and catch your eye. And then a lot of cans are like shinier and we thought the matte would probably make it more sophisticated.
Kate: 4:03
It seems to me and I don't have vast experience in this, but it seems like a lot of young adults prefer cocktails. Is that true?
Alison: 4:11
I mean speaking personally, I would so much rather have this, than go and get a seltzer of some kind, and I definitely don't drink beer. So I think definitely. I mean, it's easy because you're not buying all the ingredients, you're just pouring this. No one would even know if you took this, poured it on ice and gave it to your friend, and if they never saw the can, they would assume you just made it. We tasted a few of other similar canned cocktails, similar recipes, and they just weren't. They were way more alcohol- focused and less on flavor. So then it was just kind of like we thought we could do something better than that.
Steven: 4:46
Just a lot of fake sugars in a lot of them as well. Just the certain fake aspects.
Alison: 4:51
Yeah, we tried one of them as a family one time, and it was so hard to drink. I don't remember what it was, but it was something. It was a Cosmo in a can, and it was just so strong like you would think it was just pure vodka. I was like, this is not enjoyable.
Kate: 5:07
That's very interesting. So so when you say flavor forward, that's what you mean, by having the focus on, well, fresh and so it's so like the real thing.
Steven: 5:23
Exactly. With no preservatives, like you know you were just saying, and instead of it being something that's just super alcohol and just has a punch, we try to hide it like you would in a restaurant with, like your garnishes, stuff like that, so that it does have that little taste of alcohol, because you want that in a cocktail, but it doesn't overpower by any means.
Kate: 5:46
Right. I wondered about the process. What was the process anyway? Lots of trial and error? What exactly happened? What occurred?
Alison: 5:54
Yes. So we use a brand called Meta-Brands out of New Jersey. They're the ones that create the recipe, put it in the can, pack it and ship it our way. And so they actually were very — they worked with us very well, actually, throughout the past, I would say, year and a half or so, and they would send us samples. We would taste it. We'd be like something's not right. We'd taste it compared to ours, like we'd have one of our bartenders make us one real quick, then taste the canned version, taste the bartender’s version. We're like, I mean, something's not right, and send it back and say, we think we need try to change something, like you know, more lime juice or more of this. And then they'd send us another sample. We'd taste that and then we'd all sip it and we're like, I don't know. And finally we got to a point where we could pour a canned version against the handmade version and no one could figure out the difference.
Kate: 6:44
And you even did have people try it, and they didn't know which was which.
Alison: 6:48
Yeah, we had a lot of our staff because obviously they're used to either making it or drinking it or know what it's supposed to taste like, and they couldn't tell the difference.
Kate: 6:56
Oh, that's terrific. Yeah, so did you agree? Did the four of you tend to agree on things, or were there disagreements?
Steven: 7:06
We were basing it off of the cocktails at Lager & Vine, and we all collectively agreed that that's what we wanted it to taste like. So it really was just trying to figure out how do we get it to taste like what we wanted to, and we all had at least the same vision of what we wanted it to be.
Alison: 7:21
Yeah, yeah, I would say we were all pretty much in agreement with the whole process. I mean, there were definitely times where I think some of us pinpointed different aspects of it, and the rest of us were like, yeah, no, you're right. Now that you brought that right to my attention, we need to change that.
Kate: 7:35
So that is really excellent. So how long did all that take? Did you say about a year and a half about?
Steven: 7:41
Yeah, and then about a year of getting licenses through Ohio, which was, you know, its own challenge in itself.
Kate: 7:48
Right, can you sell only in Ohio?
Steven: 7:51
Yes, it’s pretty much by state by state who controls the liquor, especially with our type of beverage. Obviously, beer and wine are a little bit different, but with, you know, liquor and cocktails like that, it's state by state.
Kate: 8:04
Okay, so do you have plans to go to other states?
Steven: 8:09
We do. We first want to try to expand into Columbus. Right now we're just in the Northeast Ohio area, so Cleveland, kind of the Canton, and we have one location that just picked up in Columbus as well. A nice market in Polaris. So yeah, we're just trying to really take over kind of Ohio right now. And then I think we've been talking about maybe Florida being the next one, the next jump.
Kate: 8:29
Well, good luck with all of that, and I heard something about, I think, from your dad, about looking for distributors on the East Coast.
Alison: 8:39
Yes, we are using right now a distributor that we've used at Lager & Vine for so long, Private Reserve out of Garfield Heights. Great people, but their main focus is wine. So we stuck with them, a) because we have a good relationship with them, and then also this gave them a new opportunity, a new item to branch out, to give to their clients and such like that. So we were like, let's start there, but obviously as we grow we're probably going to have to look into something else, but that's way down the line for now.
Kate: 9:11
So, are you having fun?
Steven and Alison: 9:15
Oh yeah, yes. It's stressful, but it's fun.
Kate: 9:17
Yeah, I imagine there are a lot of things that pop up that you haven’t really thought about.
Steven: 9:23
A lot of surprises, and it's helped us, I feel, become more adaptable people. That will at least even help us going forward and allows us to be able to pivot when we need to and solve problems when they arise, even though we might never even have heard of the problem before starting this.
Kate: 9:40
So do you have one in particular, a problem that just took you by surprise?
Steven: 9:45
Yes. So we hired a lower out of Akron, and we were basically when we started the company, we were going for a distributor's license, which in reality isn't what we really needed. So it was a very complicated process to try to figure out. How do we now pivot to a supplier license, which is really what we needed? So we were kind of steered in the wrong way, I would say.
Alison: 10:04
A lot of money down the drain.
Steven: 10:05
Yeah, and a lot of time.
Kate: 10:05
Well, sometimes you get bad advice, but you learn from it.
Steven: 10:12
We did, and once we got on to the right track, it was pretty quick, which was nice.
Kate: 10:16
I understand that you have two more flavors coming out. So what are they?
Alison: 10:22
We're trying to do it like a summer-by-summer type of thing, because we do feel these are more of a summery drink, very refreshing, again on ice, and all that. So right now we started with our two flavors, which we talked about, and then we're going to try to move into — we don't really that these are a hundred percent set in stone, but we have talked about like a tequila and tonic with fresh lime juice, something more simple. A classic, cocktail. Kate: 10:47
That sounds really really good to me.
Alison: 10:52
Yeah, that's our dad's favorite. And then we have a sparkling Juniper Sunrise, and this one actually involves gin. So we want to start, we basically want to try to get almost every type of alcohol in a can so that everybody can get what they want, if that makes sense.
Steven: 11:06
And even adding the carbonation to these two. Our first flavors obviously are uncarbonated, like they are at the restaurant, but the tequila and tonic would obviously be sparkling, and same with the Juniper Sunrise.
Alison: 11:16
Okay, that's also why we're not completely set in stone, because we have realized the nice aspect of “I can pour one, meaning half the can, into a glass, sip it, go to bed and then I could sip the other half the next day.”
Kate: 11:32
And it's perfectly good the next day.
Alison: 11:33
These new ones, if it's sparkling, once the can's open you’ve got to finish that.
Kate: 11:38
Well, can you do a simpler one? Perhaps one that's like your Hendricks on Main? Which is absolutely great.
Alison: 11:49
That's a good seller, yes. Yeah, we are definitely in a discussion. The tequila and tonic is definitely a guy drink. Like we said, our dad's favorite, so I think it's like something he wants and I know a lot of people would drink it. But we really do need to talk about if we want to go into the sparkling aspect of it. Because our whole goal, right now at least, was separating ourselves from the seltzer drinks. I think adding carbonation might put in some more confusion.
Kate: 12:13
Yeah, that's true. Unless you do skinny cans or something. Only one serving. For your dad.
Alison: 12:23
Yeah, do like the short over.
Kate: 12:25
Let's see here. Is there anything else you want to talk about? About this grand endeavor of yours?
Alison: 12:35
I mean, if anyone listening has not seen our Fox 8 New Day Cleveland special, we were on August 2. We were on at about 11:30. The link's on their website, so check that out, and then also our website at NorthShoreCraftedCocktails.com. You can find all the locations and everything. We're in every Acme, almost all the Heinen’s at this point, which is really exciting, and then a lot of other small beverage and wine stores.
Kate: 13:03
Good, good. Well, I guess I didn't ask you a general question that I always ask, and that is what have you learned and how have you grown from this endeavor?
Alison: 13:16
Learned, oh my God, everything. I feel like I’m doing school and doing these projects. I go to Miami University in Oxford, I'll be a senior, so I've done a lot of like you basically create your own product and market it or build it, but it's like a fake kind of thing. It's like kind of like a test run, like they want you to have experience doing it, create and be passionate about something, but then obviously at the end of the class you're like I presented it but it's not a real thing. So this was like real-life marketing, like pitch deck for me, and it actually came to fruition and we actually got it in the stores and on the shelves and all that stuff. So I think I learned a lot.
Kate: 14:03
Yeah, you should get an A.
Steven: 14:03
That's what I was going to say. When you make a mistake on one of those projects, it's like you get a B.
Alison: 14:09
Yeah, my teacher said I could have did this better.
Steven: 14:11
But with, like you know, with a real product, the stakes are high and I guess we kind of learned to work under that pressure as well. It’s one thing to do it in school, it's a whole another thing to do it in the real world.
Alison: 14:22
So I never even thought about, like when he brought up the lawyer, I never thought about the legal aspects, the licensing, how expensive licensing can be. The lawyers are expensive, the time and effort that we put in. I mean, like I said, I think we were delayed about a year from all of that. And then, like the original recipe, we had a specific agave, that we had to bring in for the El Diablo, and then there wasn't enough of it, so we had to switch to a different one. Like, just things that we didn't expect, never thought about. It was definitely not a smooth process, but we learned every step
Kate: 14:49
How happy were you to have your parents — who have been in the restaurant business for so long, and beverage is obviously part of that. How helpful were they to you?
Alison: 15:11
Oh, very helpful. Our mom, obviously she's kind of more of the brains, I would say she's more crunching the numbers, she thinks a lot more creatively and I don't know. And our dad, I mean he's full-heartedly poured himself into this business, literally, and he likes to give us all the credit. But there's definitely way more credit that goes his way, and he needs to accept it for sure. Yeah that's when I say family business, like it might be under our names, but they're definitely in it. It’s all four of us, very much an all-four effort.
Steven: 15:47
And with their experience, you can't replace it. Like you said, 25-plus years. I mean, me and her grew up in the Chop House down in Cleveland, in like the office, just in a playpen, because that's just how it was at that point.
Alison: 15:58
Yeah, I played hide and seek. We played hide and seek after hours at Fleming Steakhouse.
Kate: 16:04
It was nice location.
Alison: 16:07
Exactly, and you know the white tablecloths made it really nice to hide under tables. But yeah, I mean I always called restaurants really our playground, our version of it. So we wouldn't ever change it for a second. Obviously, our parents do work really, really hard, yeah, and they're great at what they do. Agreed.
Kate: 16:25
And they’re great at what they do.
Alison: 16:26
Agreed.
Kate: 16:27
So, Steven, what about you? What have you learned? How have you grown?
Steven: 16:30
I think it was like I mentioned earlier. It was the adaptability. Really, like you know, when a problem arises, there was no choice of just kind of backing away. We had so much time especially invested in this, so it was really about finding those solutions to things that, like she was saying, I never would have thought of. Just you need to figure it out on your own and even get crafty with it. And what you need to figure out, like if it was talking to the lawyer for four hours one day or, you know, going to our distributor and setting aside space for us so that the Ohio Liquor Control would come in and approve the space. Just things that we had to kind of think about on the fly. And it really has helped me, I feel, being an adaptable human being.
Kate: 17:12
And you are going to Kent?
Steven: 17:15
I am yes.
Kate: 17:16
And that's also in marketing. So do you feel that that's also helped your line of work that you want to go into?
Steven: 17:24
100% because with this whole canned cocktail business, we've gotten exposure from social media and even more traditional media. Like she was saying, we were on the news on August 2, so I think it's kind of even made me more confident being on camera or with my voice over the mic, just stuff like that. It'll help me going forward at least with confidence and strategies and all that stuff.
Kate: 17:47
Yeah, that's terrific. Is there anything else you'd like to say besides, of course, we'll link to the website and do all that. I'll have links I can put in the descriptions and all that kind of stuff.
Alison: 17:59
Yeah, I mean other than everyone just go give it a try.
Kate: 18:02
Yeah, it's really good.
Alison: 18:03
Again, it'll sneak up on you. Be careful.
Kate: 18:04
Right, and all those people who aren't in Ohio, when they're visiting they can get grab some. Go to Acme or any of the other locations, and some restaurants. It's interesting you do have some restaurants carrying the canned versions.
Alison: 18:18
Yes, and if you do visit Lager & Vine, we do sell them by the four- pack as well, to go. We just can't sell our canned version within the restaurant, just because liquor licenses can't overlap.
Kate: 18:33
OK, but yeah, you can definitely take a four-pack of either to go, and you can take it home. And are they the four-packs all the same flavors?
Alison: 18:40
Yes, so right now you just have to buy a four-pack of El Diablo or a four-pack of Pomegranate for $19.99 each.
Kate: 18:47
OK, and which one would you buy?
Alison: 18:50
I'm an El Diablo person, but I'm bigger on tequila, which you've got to have a taste for that, but yeah, it's good.
Steven: 18:58
Funny enough, mine would be the Pomegranate. And when we've been tasting, like I did a tasting at Heinen's in Twinsburg a few weeks ago, it was nice to see that people had a different favorite. I'd have one where it was like, oh, that El Diablo was way better. And then the next person would be like, oh, the Pomegranate. That really speaks to me. So it's just really nice.
Kate: 19:16
Oh, I love that. Well, I'm going to do one of those. Well, thank you so much for being on. This has been a pleasure talking with you both.
Alison and Steven: 19:24
Yeah, thank you for having us, thank you for having us.
Kate: 19:27
This is Kate Jones with The Gale Hill Radio Hour. Until next time, thanks for joining us. Please share this episode with anyone who appreciates a good cocktail.
