Have you ever thought about starting a craft spirits company? Many of us working behind the bar wonder where our careers will lead us next. Although I do believe one can have a long career in service, many people just don’t want to. Starting your own spirits brand is an alluring career move, especially since we’re so familiar with the market and the products that are available. Many bartenders have started brands or consulted with producers to create products that work better in cocktails or to bring back products that were unavailable. Absinthe, for example, didn’t start to become widely available in the US until after the laws were amended in 2007. At the time, domestic production was almost non existent.
Starting your own company and creating a new product can be an extremely rewarding career, but it also comes with a lot of hard work and challenges to overcome. My guest today is Absinthia Vermut, founder of Absinthia’s Bottled Spirits. Absinthia fell in love with the category in the late Nineties and began bootlegging absinthe at home. In 2013 she founded her company and began working towards bringing her organic absinthe brand, which is absolutely delicious and I’m not just saying that because she sponsored this episode, to market.
Absinthia had a lot to share about the challenges she faced starting her company, everything from legal nightmares getting the label approved with the TTB to marketing a still widely misunderstood product category. Check out our conversation about starting a craft spirits company in the player or wherever you get your podcasts. Also be sure to visit our homepage and check out Absinthia’s website to learn more about her story. She’s also started a new podcast about absinthe, so be sure to subscribe to that as well. Thanks so much for listening, I’ll see you next time!