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. 4d ago

    Building a THC Beverage Brand at 70 | Mary Bernuth, Pharos Premium Beverages

    Send us Fan Mail Mary Bernuth co-founded Pharos Brands with her husband Rhyno Stenchfield, a company built as much on personal loss as on business strategy. Mary's first husband relied on cannabis through a rare blood cancer diagnosis and years later a twenty minute dating profile led her to Rhyno and to Montana, where the two of them bootstrapped Pharos into the only hemp derived THC beverage brand operating out of that state. In this episode we get into why on premise accounts, not dispensaries, are the real proving ground for a new THC drinker, and why the dispensary model is built for legacy users rather than someone trying a cannabis product for the first time at 60 or 65. Mary also lays out the financial reality of scaling a beverage brand: cap table mistakes, retailer discount bills that quietly eat your margin, the cash flow stacking problem that catches underfunded founders off guard, and the real cost of shipping liquid nationwide. We also cover Pharos's work with Montana legislators including Senator Tim Sheehy, their senior and veteran focused education program launching in Florida, and why Mary believes accessibility outside the dispensary model is the path to mainstreaming the category. If you care about drink entrepreneurship, functional drinks marketing, or mindful drinking as an alternative to alcohol, this one is for you. Guest: Mary Bernuth, Executive Chair and Co-Founder, Pharos Premium Beverages - PharosBrands.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. Ready To Drink Podcast: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  2. Aug 27

    Wesley Noyd on Building BEV edu and Selling Beverages With Insights, Not Ego

    Send us Fan Mail Wesley Noyd is a field sales rep for Monster Energy in San Antonio and the founder of BEV edu, a training platform built to onboard new beverage sales reps and coach veterans who are stuck. No script, no pre-call questions, just two 20-year beverage industry guys talking about what actually works on the street. We get into why hand selling isn't going away no matter how much AI hype gets thrown around, why "insights over relationship" wins the seat at the table long term, and why so many companies are scared to let their reps talk publicly about what they do. Wesley walks through his path from order selector at Coca-Cola to forklift operator to Red Bull district sales manager to Monster field rep, and how that path led him to build BEV edu as a side business that's turning into a second career. We also talk about independent retailer sell-through data, why nobody is really tracking it, treating yourself like a brand inside a company that will never market you the way you can market yourself, and why the beverage industry got too serious somewhere along the way and needs to have fun again. What we cover: Why hand selling still beats tell selling for emerging and mid-size beverage brandsThe difference between a relationship seller and an insights sellerHow to build a sell-through story at store level without paid dataWhy so many leaders operate from a scarcity mindset instead of teaching what they knowWesley's 20-year path from Coca-Cola warehouse to Monster Energy field salesBuilding BEV edu: foundational sales training, a sales system, and a brand builder programWhy beverage sales reps need to have fun on the job again, not just hit numbersConnect with Wesley Noyd and BEV edu: BevEdu.co 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. Ready To Drink Podcast: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  3. Aug 26

    Quick Sips: Coaching The Next Generation of Beverage Sales Reps | Wesley Noyd, Founder of BEV edu

    Send us Fan Mail Wesley Noyd built BEV edu, a training platform for small to mid-size distributors and emerging brands - BEVedu.co He built it because most companies talk about career paths and mentorship, but few actually deliver it and when they do, it doesn't last long.  Wesley wanted to be the coach that sticks around for the people who've tried the free content, tried to figure it out alone and still aren't getting anywhere. This industry runs on people who started in a warehouse or on a route and worked their way up, but not everyone gets a mentor along the way. Wesley is trying to fix that. Full episode drops tomorrow | ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  4. Aug 20

    Quick Sips: Why Trust Beats Transactions For Beverage Founders | Henry Mashburn, CSO & Co-Founder of AHG Pay

    Send us Fan Mail Henry Mashburn, CSO and Co-Founder of AHG Pay, explains how payments data reveals 14 to 15 signals about a beverage business and why trust, not transaction volume, is what actually scales a payments company. He shares how AHG Pay connects beverage founders with the right growth partners and even helps with lobbying in DC. 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

  5. Aug 19

    Beer First. Gluten Free Second. | Otherwise Brewing's Aaron Gervais

    Send us Fan Mail Aaron Gervais is the CEO and co-founder of Otherwise Brewing, one of the only true gluten free breweries in the country. On this episode of the Ready To Drink Podcast we get into what it actually takes to build a gluten free beer brand that competes on taste first, not just dietary need. Aaron walks through the two years of test brewing it took to land on a gluten free lager that could stand next to any craft beer on the market. He breaks down why "gluten reduced" brands lost consumer trust and why true gluten free production won out. We also cover the Breakthru Beverage distribution deal that grew Otherwise Brewing's sales nearly 3x, the planogram strategy for deciding when to lean into the gluten free label versus letting the beer speak for itself and why wholesale velocity now matters more than shelf placement alone. If you're building a beverage brand, launching into wholesale, or just trying to figure out how a challenger brand earns retail trust, this conversation has real answers. What we cover: Why "delicious first, gluten free second" was the founding principle at Otherwise BrewingThe two year R&D process behind their gluten free brewing methodWhy gluten reduced beer brands failed and true gluten free wonScaling through Breakthrough Beverage across 16 states plus CanadaPlanogram strategy: when to market as gluten free and when not toThe real cost of beer sales: why it's still a shoes on the street businessAaron's advice for anyone starting a brewery or beverage brand in 2026Connect with Otherwise Brewing: Website: otherwisebrewing.com Instagram/TikTok: @otherwisebrewing 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. Ready To Drink Podcast: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  6. Aug 14

    Cannabis Secret Shopping Exposes Why Dispensaries Are Losing Customers | Tammy Puyear, TPP Services

    Send us Fan Mail Most dispensaries have no idea what their own store feels like to a first time customer. Tammy Puyear runs TPP Services, a secret shopping company for cannabis dispensaries and brands in Missouri. She built a business around a blind spot the entire industry ignores: nobody inside the four walls of a dispensary experiences it the way a real customer does. In this episode we get into why cannabis retail keeps replicating the same sterile, transaction-first experience that killed craft beer's soul for a decade, why loyalty programs built on discounts miss the entire point of loyalty and why an $8 price hike from a dispensary group protecting its own house brand can kill a new brand's momentum overnight. We also go deep on the stuff nobody wants to say out loud: vertical integration and 70% margin demands squeezing producers in Missouri, the entrapment feel of federal rescheduling paperwork and why hemp beverages are quietly becoming the on-ramp into the cannabis consumer journey whether the industry admits it or not. I share my own story too. Four years sober from alcohol and opiates and still working in the beverage industry every day and why I think hemp beverages and dispensaries need each other more than either side wants to admit. What we cover: Why secret shopping cannabis dispensaries surfaces problems leadership never seesThe retail vs. brand side of dispensary secret shopping in MissouriWhy merchandising in dispensaries still lags a decade behind craft beer and CPGThe underutilization of loyalty data and what real retention looks likeHow a dispensary group jacked an $8 price and killed a competing brand's salesVertical integration, 70% margins and the cartel lawsuit reshaping Missouri cannabisRescheduling vs. descheduling and why the paperwork feels like entrapmentWhy hemp beverages are the beginning of the cannabis consumer journeyPennsylvania HB 2309 and building a bill that lets everyone competeGLP-1s, sobriety and what a shrinking drinking population means for this industryConnect with Tammy Puyear and TPP Services: Website: Tammy-P.com YouTube: The Real Run THC 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. Ready To Drink Podcast: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  7. Aug 13

    Alex Kllanxhja on Drink Entrepreneurship: Leaving Corporate Beverage Sales to Build Pipeline Autopsy

    Send us Fan Mail Alex Kllanxhja spent 14 years in beverage sales, cutting his teeth as one of the first reps at Oskar Blues before moving into chain accounts and national sales at Breakthru Beverage. Then his employer doubled his workload with zero extra pay, handed him a small trophy for it and that was the moment he decided to bet on himself. Now Alex runs Pipeline Autopsy, a fractional VP and CRM consultancy working across craft beer, wine, spirits, and hemp-derived THC beverages. In this conversation we get into what actually breaks inside a beverage sales pipeline, why landing a chain account is far harder than people think, the hidden costs nobody warns new brand founders about, and why he'll turn down a good product if the brand's values don't line up. We also talk about running lean as a solopreneur, why limiting your own expectations makes you better at sales and why cold outreach volume still beats cleverness every time. Topics covered: Building a CRM culture inside a growing craft beer supplierWhat chain accounts actually demand versus what founders think they demandThe hidden costs behind every new point of distributionWalking away from a corporate sales role after burnoutRunning a fractional VP practice as a solopreneurWhy cold outreach volume still winsConnect with Alex Kllanxhja: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alex-kllanxhja Website: pipelineautopsy.com Email: hello@pipelineautopsy.com The Ready To Drink Podcast covers the people, brands and policy shaping the beverage alcohol, hemp derived and functional non-alc categories. Ready To Drink Podcast: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com Support the show Presented by The FreeMind Group - FMGStrategy.com

  8. Aug 12

    From Gym Buddies to Brewery Owners: The Battle River Brewing Story | Toms River, NJ

    Send us Fan Mail Gary Morrison, co-founder of Battle River Brewing in Toms River, New Jersey, joins the Ready To Drink Podcast to tell the story of how three business partners with zero homebrewing experience built a 25-tap craft brewery in the heart of a revitalizing downtown. Gary breaks down why Battle River went wide instead of picking a defined beer style, how a late night text about a beer that would never be brewed again turned into a business plan, and what it actually takes to navigate New Jersey's fragmented brewery license laws. We get into the state's restrictions on food service and events, the lobbying fight behind those rules, and why New Jersey brewers have to build differently than brewers in states like Pennsylvania. We also dig into Battle River's self-distribution model, the mistakes they made scaling too fast across every county before pulling back to their core market, and why Gary believes every craft brand should understand franchise law and treat itself as an asset before signing with a distributor. Topics covered: Battle River Brewing's 25-tap, wide-portfolio approach and the "seat for every ass" philosophyHow three non-homebrewers and gym buddies built a brewery from scratchNew Jersey brewery license restrictions and the on premise liquor lobbyChoosing downtown Toms River to help revitalize a historic Revolutionary War era townSelf-distribution strategy, early scaling mistakes, and pulling back to the core marketFranchise law and why a brand is an asset the moment it signs with a distributorBattle River Brewing | BattleRiverBrewing.com The Ready To Drink Podcast covers the people, brands and policy shaping the beverage alcohol, hemp derived and functional non-alc categories. Ready To Drink Podcast: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | ReadyToDrinkPodcast.com 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
    83
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The FreeMind Group
  • Show Website
    Ready To Drink Podcast

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