Old Fashioned In a Can be found in more than 100 different stores around Wisconsin.
was gone, Lisa’s father still enjoyed making Old Fashioneds and used a special mix to do so. Scott thought that he could do one better by creating a mix that was ready to drink and all you had to do was add ice and liquor, so that’s what he did. The Rogers also made sure that the mix is drinkable straight from the can if you choose to not add in alcohol.
“The original purpose of an Old Fashioned is so you could drink the liquor,” Scott Rogers said while explaining that the liquor used back in the day tasted awful and needed extra ingredients to make it drinkable. He believes that the meaning of an Old Fashioned has been lost over time and that people need to understand that it’s supposed to be a pleasant drink.
Scott also had another motivation when starting the business with his wife, boredom. Scott was forced into early retirement in 2015 after suffering a traumatic brain injury caused by a skiing accident so boredom became a common occurrence for him, especially during the Covid 19 pandemic.
Shortly after the recipe experimentation began, Wisconsin’s Drink LLC was born in March 2021 and received its licensing a month later in April. Scott and Lisa quickly began making their product in May 2021 at Wausau’s MCDEVCO. MCDEVCO is an economic development agency that helps central Wisconsin entrepreneurs and small businesses. The Rogers rented out the MCDEVCO commercial kitchen to make their first batch of Old Fashioneds. Maple Old Fashioned Along with the sweet Old Fashioned flavor, the Rogers also created a maple flavor with the help of Anthony Renken. Renken is the CEO of the Northwoods Maple Farm in Merrill. The Rogers met Renken in June of 2021 and shortly after, the three of them decided to start experimenting with maple Old Fashioned recipes.
After creating the maple mixture, the Rogers moved their production to Renken’s maple farm in September 2021. While the Rogers moved their company to Curtiss for more space in April 2022, they still work closely with Renken. Distribution and Retail Wisconsin’s Drink quickly made its way into retail in June 2021 after being picked up as a vendor by Nueske’s Schoolhouse Market. Nueske’s sells products from over 80 Wisconsin vendors and the Rogers thought that it would be a great place to sell their product.
In terms of distribution, Wisconsin’s Drink began working with General Beverage in March 2022. General Beverage is a wholesale beverage distributor for Wisconsin retailers. Before working with General Beverage the Rogers distributed the product themselves to a few stores locally. Now the Old Fashioneds can be found in 100 different stores throughout Wisconsin. Some of these stores are in locations such as Merrill, Abbotsford, Wausau, Stevens Point and Marshfield. You can also order the drinks online at wisconsinsdrink.com. Continued on page 21
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General Beverage has picked up one order of Old Fashioneds that included 300 cases of the sweet old fashioned mix and 300 cases of the maple mix. With 24 cans in a case that makes 14,400 cans for the order. There are currently several pallets of the drinks waiting at the door and ready for General Beverage to pick up.
While the Rogers have been waiting for the next pick up they’ve been going to several tastings for their product. The Rogers have been travelling around Wisconsin to several grocery and liquor stores giving out samples of their drink.
“We’re trying to figure out how to get to that age group. How to get people intrigued who are in their 20’s to want to drink Old Fashioneds,” Lisa stated when talking about the age groups the drink usually appeals to. Lisa expained that during the tastings for the drink, many of the younger people are looking at the product for their parents and not themselves. They hope that in the future they are able to get younger people, who are of the drinking age of course, to step into the world of Old Fashioneds.
Process One thing you might be wondering is how the drink is made. Lisa walked through the process of making a pack of the Old Fashioneds step by step while pointing out each station that is involved.
To start the canning process, the cans are put through a date coder machine that dates each can’s bottom. The cans are then sanitized and sent over to the filling and seaming station. Here, the cans are filled by the tubes that are connected to the large brite tanks that hold the drinks. After being filled, the top of the cans are seamed on and the cans are cleaned and labeled. From there, the cans are put into a four pack with an orange top and put into cases of 24 that sit on a pallet to wait for pick up. Before getting the filling and seamer machine Lisa had to seam each can by hand. She was reluctant about the machine at first but is now very grateful for the extra assistance.
There are two large brite tanks that hold the drinks, one for the maple and one for the sweet. While in the tanks, the ingredients are mixed and lightly carbonated. Scott made sure to note that the mix has a carbonation similar to beer.
The bitters for the drink are high quality Angostura bitters that come all the way from Trinidad. Scott mentioned that these bitters are pretty pricey but finds that it is a necessary purchase in order to have the best ingredients in their product. While bitters do contain alcohol, it’s very minimal and the volume of bitters used in the drink still allows the drink to be considered non-alcoholic. Labels Each sweet Old Fashioned is labeled with a picture of a veteran who has passed. The pictures originally started with Scott’s grandfather but after Scott’s father passed away his picture also became a label for the drink. Now, people can submit pictures of their veteran loved ones who have passed on to be made into labels. There are currently 28 veterans on file and 24 of them are put into a label roll at a time. The average pack of Old Fashioneds will have a different veteran for each can but you can specialty order a pack or several of one veteran.
Challenges and Rewards The Rogers both agreed that the most difficult part of owning Wisconsin’s Drink is waiting for the supplies and ingredients. Many of the companies they work with are constantly busy so this causes a delay with getting the supplies needed to make the drinks. Another challenge they have faced is getting people to understand what exactly their product is and what they are about as a company. Lisa mentioned that during the tastings she and Scott have been going on, many of the salesmen have been very helpful with explaining their product and getting people interested. Wisconsin’s Drink ads can also be heard on a few radio stations.
“Working with my husband,” Lisa replied when she was asked about her favorite part of owning Wisconsin’s Drink. Lisa and Scott run the company by themselves with some part-time assistance from Lisa’s parents. Even with the challenges they face, Lisa finds it rewarding to do something that is bigger than the two business owners. She never imagined that the company would move so quickly and proudly speaks of their progess.
