Ready To Drink Podcast

The FreeMind Group
  • 5.0 (3)
  • Entrepreneurship

The Ready To Drink Podcast is built for founders, operators and leaders navigating the next era of beverage.  These are honest conversations with the people doing the work, building brands that last in a crowded and regulated marketplace. Hosted by twenty-two year adult beverage industry veteran Nate Fochtman, the show pulls back the curtain on what actually drives growth - distribution strategy, regulatory navigation, sales velocity, and consumer trust. 

  1. Oct 7

    Solo Founders Wear Every Hat: Burnout, Boundaries and Building Alone | Steph Vrona, HighDef Studio

    Send us Fan Mail Nobody warns you how many jobs you take on when you go solo. One day you are the strategist. The next day you are accounts receivable, sales, marketing and the CFO arguing with yourself about all of it. Steph Vrona is about to hit year three as founder of HighDef Studio, a one-woman retention marketing firm she started after getting fired for telling a CEO his ideas were bad. Host Nate Fochtman has been a solopreneur for 18 years and together they get honest about what running a business alone actually looks like. They talk about turning down referral fees to protect your integrity when money is tight. Steph explains why she refuses to scale with employees and how she builds a six-month program that teaches clients to run it themselves. Nate shares how burnout at year eight took him out for months, and why boundaries are the only thing that kept him going since. They also trade the tools that keep a scattered solopreneur brain on track, from asset inventory lists to morning pages to using AI as an editor instead of a writer. The marketing lessons are here too. Steph breaks down why sales and marketing silos sink campaigns and why independent retailers remain the most underserved operators in CPG. The heart of this episode is the person behind the business. 00:00 What HighDef Studio does  01:15 Starting a company after getting fired for honesty  02:29 Why sales and marketing silos fail  07:02 Loyalty programs and segmentation  15:52 Don't outsource your strategy  18:46 Integrity and turning down referral fees  21:00 The hardest year yet  22:58 Thin margins in taprooms and on-premise  29:07 Wearing every hat as a solopreneur  31:54 Burnout and boundaries  33:36 Asset inventory and morning pages  37:25 When a job starts to look easier  39:43 Why Steph won't scale with employees  40:55 Using AI to find the right SEO vocabulary  43:09 The five-minute kindness challenge Connect with Steph Vrona and HighDef Studio on LinkedIn This is the Ready To Drink Podcast. New episodes drop weekdays covering the alcohol, hemp derived and functional non-alc categories from the operator's seat, not the press release. ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  2. Oct 6

    Craft Beer Needs Its Story Back | Marty Nachel, Beer Author & Founder of the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame

    Send us Fan Mail Marty Nachel has spent 40 years in craft beer as a homebrewer, beer judge, writer and author of Beer For Dummies and Homebrewing For Dummies along with the NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON - International Beer Judge Stories. In 1986 he became one of the first 70 people in North America certified by the Beer Judge Certification Program, and he has since judged at the Great American Beer Festival, the World Beer Cup and competitions around the world. Today his focus is the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame, a volunteer-run nonprofit he started in 2024 to preserve the history of craft beer and honor the people who built it. In this episode of the Ready To Drink Podcast, Marty and host Nate Fochtman talk about why craft beer is struggling after COVID and what could bring it back. Marty explains why breweries need to get back to telling their story, why the local tavern has been a gathering place since the first American towns were built, and why he believes the next generation will rediscover craft beer through its history. He also shares the advice from his recent "lean into legacy" talk to brewers in Chicago, including events, education nights and the simple ideas that turn a taproom into a community. The conversation also covers the founding of the Hall of Fame, its first two induction classes, the new Hall Monitors program for small donors and the Beer Story Project, a book of more than 100 stories from people across the industry. In this episode: Marty's path from homebrewer in 1985 to international beer judgeWriting Beer Across America, Beer For Dummies and Homebrewing For DummiesWhy there was no craft beer hall of fame until 2024How the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame selects and honors inducteesWhy breweries need to return to their founding storiesThe tavern as America's original gathering placeTaproom events that bring people back through the doorWhy craft beer's downturn is a cycle, not the endThe Beer Story Project and what comes nextConnect with Marty Nachel on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram or   AmericanCraftBeerHallOfFame.com This is the Ready To Drink Podcast. New episodes drop weekdays covering the alcohol, hemp derived and functional non-alc categories from the operator's seat, not the press release. ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube The FreeMind GroupOwner-operator market development and PR, built on the street for the last 18 years.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  3. Oct 5

    Hemp Beverages Are the Trojan Horse for Normalization | Dan Serard, Cannabis Creative Group

    Send us Fan Mail Dan Serard is Chief Revenue Officer at Cannabis Creative Group, a full-service cannabis marketing agency near Boston that has worked with more than 600 brands. In this episode of the Ready To Drink Podcast, Dan and host, Nate Fochtman, break down what hemp beverage marketing takes when the shot clock on federal hemp policy is still running. Dan explains why "a hemp beverage for everybody" is dead in the water. He walks through how his team builds a full brand toolkit before anyone designs a logo: messaging, buyer personas, content pillars and positioning. He also shares why people buy from people, why Meta punishes product promotion in cannabis and how one wine-replacement hemp brand went from a 0.8x to a 4x return on ad spend by letting Meta learn who its customers are. Spending $500 a month on Meta ads as an alcohol replacement brand is a budget mistake, and Dan explains why. Nate and Dan also cover email marketing that builds trust instead of customer fatigue, and why beverages are the most approachable format for the canna-curious consumer. They make the case that hemp beverages are the Trojan horse for cannabis normalization. Nate shares a story from the Pennsylvania Capitol during the HB 2309 hemp beverage bill hearings, and both explain why the hemp and cannabis industries need to stop working in silos. In this episode: Building a hemp beverage brand from intake to toolkitWhy storytelling and lifestyle content beat product promotion on MetaProgrammatic and CTV advertising for cannabis brandsEmail marketing without discount fatigueRealistic ad budgets for alcohol replacement brandsThe 30 to 90 day Meta learning curveHemp beverages as the gateway to cannabis normalizationWhy unity across hemp and cannabis matters right nowConnect with Dan Serard on LinkedIn or at CannabisCreativeGroup.com This is the Ready To Drink Podcast. New episodes drop weekdays covering the alcohol, hemp derived and functional non-alc categories from the operator's seat, not the press release. ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube Subscribe for more founder stories from the drinks industry. The FreeMind GroupOwner-operator market development and PR, built on the street for the last 18 years.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  4. Oct 3

    Quick Sips: Why This Founder Calls His Customers Back

    Send us Fan Mail Adam Borson of Highlandia says one of his favorite parts of the job is reaching back out to customers who leave reviews or send emails. In this clip he shares a message from a breast cancer survivor who struggled to sleep during chemo and found Highlandia's sleep-focused gummies. It is a reminder that hemp brands are built one customer relationship at a time. Learn more about Highlandia: Highlandia.com  Subscribe for more founder stories from the drinks industry. This is the Ready To Drink Podcast. New episodes drop weekdays covering the alcohol, hemp derived and functional non-alc categories from the operator's seat, not the press release. ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube The FreeMind GroupOwner-operator market development and PR, built on the street for the last 18 years.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  5. Oct 2

    Quick Sips: What would a veteran tell a lawmaker about the impending hemp beverage ban?

    Send us Fan Mail What would a veteran tell a lawmaker about the impending hemp beverage ban? Jimmy Plunkett didn't hesitate. His biggest fear is what happens when we overtax, overregulate or outright prohibit a product people already buy. Demand doesn't disappear, it moves to the black market, and the money goes to organizations that don't check IDs, don't test products and don't pay taxes. Jimmy says his military background is why he thinks so hard about who gains when that money changes hands. He also brought the numbers for North Carolina when the state's hemp industry supports 16,000 jobs and is worth $4.4 billion, with $3.2 billion coming from sales alone. A ban would wipe out $87.8 million in state tax revenue, and that figure is still growing. Regulation keeps those jobs, that revenue and that oversight in North Carolina, but prohibition hands all three to the black market. This episode is part of the Regulate Don't Ruin NC series. North Carolina is deciding right now whether hemp beverages get a real regulated framework or get pushed back to the gray market. That choice affects retailers, manufacturers, and consumers across the state. Learn more and share your own story at RegulateDontRuinNC.com This series is proudly sponsored by Tryon Distributing Co, Crescent Canna & Torch Drinks. ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube The FreeMind GroupOwner-operator market development and PR, built on the street for the last 18 years.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

    Quick Sips: What would a veteran tell a lawmaker about the impending hemp beverage ban?

  6. Sep 29

    Quick Sips: There Are No Stupid Questions When Building a Beverage Brand | SailWell Founders

    Send us Fan Mail There Are No Stupid Questions When Building a Beverage Brand | SailWell Founders SailWell co-founders Justine Charmley and Taylor Ondrejca started their women's functional beverage brand with no industry background. Their biggest lesson is to keep asking questions, even when you're surrounded by experts. Experience doesn't mean someone knows everything or has your best interests at heart. Founders have to dig deep into every partner they bring on. Watch the full episode of the Ready To Drink Podcast: A Women's Functional Beverage Brand Made By Women. The FreeMind GroupOwner-operator market development and PR, built on the street for the last 18 years.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  7. Sep 25

    Army Vet Takes On NC Hemp Ban: CBG, the VA and Small Business | Jimmy Plunkett of Pressure Goat

    Send us Fan Mail Jimmy Plunkett is an Army combat engineer, a construction tradesman and a co-founder of Pressure Goat, a hemp dispensary in Charlotte, North Carolina. On this episode of the Ready To Drink Podcast, Jimmy shares how a knee injury and a crash with a drunk driver ended his military career and sent him searching for pain relief that didn't come in a pill bottle. Jimmy explains how CBG helps him manage chronic back pain and the brain fog from his concussions without intoxication. He talks about why hemp beverages give sober and California sober friends a way to socialize, and why Pressure Goat goes out of its way to stock North Carolina made brands with full lab results. We also dig into the fight over North Carolina hemp legislation. Jimmy lays out what's at stake for veteran owned, women owned and minority owned small businesses if lawmakers over tax or over regulate the industry. He argues that prohibition pushes consumers back to the black market, and he makes the case for 21+ sales, ID checks, child resistant packaging and real testing standards instead. Jimmy also clears up a common fear among veterans about whether cannabis use puts their VA benefits at risk. He encourages every vet to keep talking to the VA and to lean on the organizations built to help them. Check Out Pressure Goat: PressureGoat.com New episodes drop weekdays covering the alcohol, hemp derived and functional non-alc categories from the operator's seat, not the press release. ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube This episode is part of the Regulate Don't Ruin NC series. North Carolina is deciding right now whether hemp beverages get a real regulated framework or get pushed back to the gray market. That choice affects retailers, manufacturers, and consumers across the state. Learn more and share your own story at RegulateDontRuinNC.com This series is proudly sponsored by Tryon Distributing Co, Crescent 9, and Torch Drinks. The FreeMind GroupOwner-operator market development and PR, built on the street for the last 18 years.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

    Army Vet Takes On NC Hemp Ban: CBG, the VA and Small Business | Jimmy Plunkett of Pressure Goat

  8. Sep 23

    Quick Sips: Knowing Your Consumer's Story | Jared Langston of Good Liar NA Beer

    Send us Fan Mail "It's not churn and burn. It's understanding your customer because you're there talking to them." Jared Langston of Good Liar NA Beer on why weekly in-store tastings are his best market research. Good Liar NA Beer: GoodLiar.com This is the Ready To Drink Podcast. New episodes drop weekdays covering the alcohol, hemp derived and functional non-alc categories from the operator's seat, not the press release. ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube The FreeMind GroupOwner-operator market development and PR, built on the street for the last 18 years.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

The Ready To Drink Podcast is built for founders, operators and leaders navigating the next era of beverage.  These are honest conversations with the people doing the work, building brands that last in a crowded and regulated marketplace. Hosted by twenty-two year adult beverage industry veteran Nate Fochtman, the show pulls back the curtain on what actually drives growth - distribution strategy, regulatory navigation, sales velocity, and consumer trust. 

Information

  • Creator
    The FreeMind Group
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    98
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The FreeMind Group
  • Show Website
    Ready To Drink Podcast