Meredith Mills-Merritt didn’t set out to make just another canned cocktail. Drawing on her background in beauty and brand innovation, she reimagined the RTD category with a family Southside recipe built on cleaner ingredients and transparency. We talk about building an alcohol brand from the ground up, why authenticity matters more than marketing, the future of drinking culture, and how the Clean Alcohol Collective is pushing the industry forward. It’s a thoughtful conversation about gin, entrepreneurship, and creating a brand with purpose—not just another product.
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Ep 313 – Robert Björn Taylor: Finding Inspiration in Everything
As our previous lives trickle into the new reality post shut-down, what have we learned? Robert Björn Taylor is taking his learnings in stride. As one of the most formidable forces in Texas cocktails, his background as a creative gives him boundless tools. But what happens when life moves too quickly, and the vices around us push us into a darker place? For some it leads to self destructive art, and for others like Björn, it leads to a chapter of sobriety and freedom. We chat Hitchcock, BLM, emo music, and more…..
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Ep 308 – Amelia Lettieri: Ready to Work, Ready to Drink
Ranch20 founder Amerlia Lettieri learned entrepreneurialism from a hard working, and accounting-minded mother. When Amelia added her drive, a degree, and a fearlessness to make a dream a reality, she arrived at her delicious Ranch20 canned cocktails. Starting with the Ranch Water cocktail, a Texas treasure with tequila, lime, and soda, Amelia committed to using actual spirits in production. The difference in taste is incredibly apparent. We talk about funding, family, and fear. Raise your Ranch Water in the air on 4/11 to celebrate National Ranch Water day.
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Ep 259 – Adam Hannett & James Donaldson: All the Way From Islay
The shores of Islay have been described as beautiful, gray, and obscured. However, this small area of Scotland produces some of the most beautiful and vibrant spirits in the world. Master distiller of Bruichladdich, Adam Hannett and master forager, James Donaldson, have constructed something different on Islay, something truly unique to the flavors of the area. The resulting Botanist Gin is the beauty, smoke, and grayness of Scotland in a bottle. The painstaking process of hand picking botanicals, using different distillates, and crafting something outside the comfort zone of Scotch, is the perfect of The Botanist gin. We chat fatherhood, humility, not recognizing actors, and more.
