ZEVIA – Natural Diet Soda

ZEVIA Natural Black Cherry

I am blogging from Northern California at the plant where ZEVIA originates. The day began at 6:00 a.m. with the new ZEVIA Natural Twist. This is our refined flavor that tastes much better than our already great previous formula. The Natural Root Beer has a fuller and sweeter flavor than before, and will likely be a favorite of not only root beer fans, but many soda drinkers who didn’t care much for root beer before ZEVIA. The new ZEVIA Natural Orange has a much richer and sweeter orange taste than the previous versions. The new Natural Cola is seriously the best cola ever created. We really hit the mark with this new formula.

ZEVIA Natural Ginger Ale

Today is the birthday of ZEVIA Natural Black Cherry and Natural Ginger Ale. I am especially excited about these flavor introductions because they taste better than any other black cherry or ginger ale available. Please ask your store to order these because they are delicious!

Such a big day for ZEVIA. New formulation. New Flavors. New look.

-Derek

Introducing the new look of ZEVIA! Yesterday was an exciting day watching the ZEVIA cans roll off the line with our new logo and new color palate. No more fishing around for the right flavor, we are bringing you a bright blue Cola, a citrus-y Orange, a limey Twist, a Deep Brown Root Beer, a rich dark Black Cherry, and a forest green Ginger Ale. Picking the right design and right colors is so nerve racking, but we’ve pulled it off! We believe that our new design reflects what ZEVIA is: fun, refreshing, and all-natural. Our roll out will be steady in the next few months and we want all of our stores to pick up our rainbow of flavors. Chill & Enjoy!

-Jes

ZEVIA on Tyra Banks Show

Here is me looking rather dorky with my new ZEVIA can and a large flat screen prominently displaying ZEVIA, Jorge Cruise and Tyra Banks. More importantly, the young gals on the show were extremely brave in telling their true stories of life with obesity. Of course, we were all excited to know that ZEVIA was getting some air time on Tyra, but even more so, we are so happy to be part of the lifestyle plan for these girls. We have given each of them ZEVIA in order to ease their transition to a new healthy eating plan. You CAN have great taste and zero calories. You CAN have the fizz and pop of a soda without artificial chemicals . . . and gals, you CAN loose the weight and live a healthy lifestyle – ZEVIA is rooting for you 100%!

-Jes

New ZEVIA Cans

ZEVIA is getting a bit of a facelift. To better convey what ZEVIA is: natural, pure, and clean – we designed a new logo and have new packaging.

Today, we are at the Ball factory where our newest cans are being made. Above is a photo of the original three ZEVIA flavors (Natural Cola, Natural Twist, and Natural Orange) plus our new Natural Ginger Ale.

Next off the line will be Natural Root Beer and the new Natural Black Cherry!

-Derek

Jamie & Macy at Wine Event

This past weekend, ZEVIA was the only non-alcoholic beverage at Seattle’s Winter Warm-Up Wine Event. Guests tasted over a dozen wines from local wineries, handcrafted beer from Pike Brewery, and chilled ZEVIA from Jamie and her friend, Macy (see photo above). Jamie reports that most of these wine connoisseurs tried ZEVIA and loved it. You might wonder why we sampled ZEVIA at a wine event. Since most people have yet to even hear about ZEVIA, we get samples out as much as possible. When people try ZEVIA, they tend to head to the stores to buy it, and they tell their friends how great ZEVIA is. It’s nice when there’s an occasion like Warm-Up Wine Event because ZEVIA really stands out and we develop lots of new ZEVIA fans.

-Derek

New Zevia Logo

2009 will be a big year for ZEVIA. You’ll see ZEVIA in lots of new stores. We are adding two new flavors next month, and maybe more later this year. The taste of ZEVIA is being enhanced by way of a stevia with a cleaner sweetness. ZEVIA will be marketed as a soda, as opposed to a “carbonated stevia supplement”. And, the “look and feel” of ZEVIA is being updated to better reflect what ZEVIA is: pure, clean, natural, contemporary, refreshing, and one-of-a-kind. Above is a preview of the new logo. You will find ZEVIA with the enhanced taste and new look on store shelves in March.

-Derek

Raul, Manger at Bristol Farms Hollywood

Last week, I toured Bristol Farms and Albertsons stores in Southern California with Abigail, our sales manager there. There was good and bad news. The good news is that So. Cal. loves ZEVIA! Raul (pictured above with me) is a Bristol Farms grocery manager. He says they have trouble keeping ZEVIA in stock. He told us about some of the customers. There’s a banker from downtown who buys 5 cases per week. There’s a celebrity woman who buys a full case every two days.

Abigail Promoting ZEVIA at Albertsons

The bad news is both Bristol Farms and Albertsons stores have been experiencing stock-outs. Customers are buying it so quickly that our distributors can’t replenish it quickly enough. One Bristol Farms had only Natural Twist (lemon-lime) left, and none of the BF or Albertsons stores I visited had Natural Cola.

We’re working with our distributor to correct this issue. As the brand grows, the distributors have to keep more inventory in stock. They’re beginning to understand this.

Thank you for your support. We depend upon you to spread the word about ZEVIA.

-Derek

Michael, Jamie, Jeff Sampling New Flavors

Natural Black Cherry and Natural Ginger Ale! We are so excited about introducing the latest in our product line. Our extraordinary flavor artist, Phil Sprovieri (truly, a mad scientist), spent hours and hours overseeing research and development of the best tasting new sodas on the planet. As with all flavors, ZEVIA Black Cherry and Ginger Ale will be completely natural with zero calories (and zero of everything else you don’t want: zero sugar, zero net carbs, zero fat, etc.).

We picked Black Cherry because our ZEVIA Leaf Newsletter readers voted it the next flavor [if you're not a Zevia Leaf subscriber, then please sign up on our home page]. We picked Ginger Ale after tasting lots of samples of potential flavors (see photo above of Jamie, Jeff, and Michael after taste testing), including grape and cream soda; and taking into consideration the valuable feedback and flavor requests from our customers and stores. We can only add two flavors, and we had a difficult time picking because all of Phil’s prototypes were refreshing and delicious. You are going to love Natural Black Cherry and Natural Ginger Ale, which will hit your stores in or around March or April.

-Derek

Derek and Jorge Cruise

Last week, I visited Jorge Cruise in his home of San Diego. Jorge is the internationally acclaimed health expert for busy people. He has helped thousands shed weight and live healthier lives the easy way. His program really works. You may have seen Jorge on Good Morning America, the Today Show, Oprah, among others. He writes a syndicated column you can find in USA Weekend Magazine.

Jorge has been very good to ZEVIA. Without any compensation or even an agreement, Jorge has been promoting ZEVIA at his clinics, in his Belly Fat Cure guide book, at JorgeCruise.com and even on TV. In fact, Jorge will be on the Tyra Banks show in February explaining why ZEVIA is the only healthy choice for people who drink soda. ZEVIA has no sugar, no calories, and no artificial sweeteners. It’s one of a kind – as is Jorge Cruise – and we are honored Jorge has recognized us and is helping people discover ZEVIA.

-Derek