Thought chocolate milk was the stuff of lunch boxes and playgrounds…think again.
This month, Adult Beverage Company introduced a grown up spin on the beloved classic, a 40-proof vodka beverage called Adult Chocolate Milk. The drink will soon be sold BevMo’s in Tucson and the Phoenix Metro Area . This month, the drink has been launched in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Las Vegas before rolling out to other markets across the nation in the coming months.
Tracy Reinhardt and Nikki Halbur were high school friends who reunited on the social media site after 18 years. Reinhardt, a single mom, had been experimenting with ways to infuse classic chocolate milk with an adult kick. According to Reinhardt, “I posted on my Facebook page: ‘Tracy’s enjoying some Adult Chocolate Milk!’ It was then I knew I was onto something as friends, family and others immediately replied, ‘What’s that?’ ‘Where can I get some of that?’ ‘That sounds so delicious!’”
Halbur also saw the status update and during a visit to California, had the opportunity to taste Reinhardt’s recipe. “I turned to Tracy and said, ‘You need to bottle this stuff!’” With Halbur’s experience in management and manufacturing and Reinhardt’s connections, they believed the product could create an unprecedented niche in the beverage industry.
The duo’s a-ha moment led them to form Adult Beverage Company, a legal partnership, and trademark Adult Chocolate Milk, both of which were funded by them personally. They hired an ad agency, LeeReedy, to create a unique, eye-catching brand identity that would make them stand out from the other vodka brands. “It’s in a class of its own…Adult Chocolate Milk has no direct competition and in a world full of flavored vodkas, maintains a whimsical, creative brand that allows consumers to remember the tastes they all loved back in the day, but now with the ‘grown up version’,” says Halbur.
While Halbur focused her attention on manufacturing and operations, thus solidifying the distillery and bottle manufacturers, Reinhardt went after her strong celebrity contacts to showcase the product at high profile events, such as the Noreen Fraser Foundation fundraiser at Adrienne Maloof’s house, the NFL Players Association Super Bowl Party, the VH1 SOS Haiti Telethon hosted by P. Diddy and Queen Latifah, the Golden Globe Awards and in gifting suites at the Emmys and Academy Awards. “Our growth has been very organic,” says Reinhardt, “People just respond to the product in such a positive way. New opportunities present themselves every day, so we are very lucky that the product and taste is paving the way.” So far, the product has been a major hit with the celebrity set. Even the Queen of the Stage herself, Patti LaBelle, is an Adult Chocolate Milk fan.
Recently, multi-platinum recording artist Ginuwine signed on as the face of Adult Chocolate Milk and will headline the Las Vegas launch party. His new album, which drops in January 2011, will include a track called “Drink of Choice” in honor of the product.
Following the West Coast launch, Adult Chocolate Milk will expand to Florida, New York, Illinois, Georgia, and Washington, D.C. Line extensions of the product are in development and include Adult Orange Cream (think 40-proof Orange Julius), Adult Fruit Punch and Adult Limeade.
Adult Chocolate Milk will be available to retailers in October through Southern Wine and Spirits in CA, NV, NM and AZ. Soon, the general public will be able to purchase it at local beverage stores like BevMo and Total Wine, online at Hi Times Wine Cellars and in local grocery locations.
I’ll admit to being a fan of anything of the chocolate variety, so this little bev is definitely on my to-try list.
To Learn More
Adult Chocolate Milk, www.adultchocolatemilk.com.
