Agricultural Industry Buddies Launch Drinkin’ Buds Powdered CBD Drink Mixes

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Matt Swanson and Justin Hopf, founders of Sheboygan, Wis.-based Drinkin’ Buds cannabidiol (CBD) powdered cocktail mixes, originally didn’t set out to start a line of CBD-infused drinks. But when the friends weren’t sure what to do with the hemp biomass they grew during the 2020 season, an idea clicked.

Swanson, a United States Marine Corps veteran, and Hopf, who comes from a farming family, met and became good buddies while working at Bayer Crop Science. The friends decided to grow hemp biomass. Their first season was productive, Hopf relates. “But after we got started, the entire market kind of crashed regarding profitability.”

The dilemma sparked a conversation about how there was a lack of hemp cocktail mixes on the market. “We wanted to be an end-to-end company,” Hopf says. “There are lots of CBD products out there, but nobody really tackled the hemp cocktail mix end of that. That’s where we found a niche and directed our focus.”

With assistance through the Sheboygan County Economic Development Corporation, and the Small Business Development Center at UW-Green Bay, Swanson and Hopf went to work on developing a product.

Old Fashioned, Naturally!

Being in Wisconsin, Swanson and Hopf started developing a mix for the old fashioned, the Badger State’s quintessential drink. Developing a consistent and appealing liquid CBD cocktail mix proved challenging. They switched gears and focused on a dry powdered formula with a water-soluble CBD isolate, which Hopf says was easier to work with. The lengthy trial-and-error process also led to incorporating the bitters by baking them onto the sugar.

The Drinkin’ Buds line includes the Old Fashioned, Margarita and Bloody Mary mixes. Each contains 15 milligrams of CBD per serving, with 20 servings per container. Each container retails for $27.99 on the website. The Bud Pack ($79.99) contains all three varieties.

Alcohol can be added to make a traditional cocktail, or the mix can be used in mocktails. (The U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau currently prohibits hemp-derived CBD from being added to beer, wine or liquor.) Hopf recommends that any variety can be mixed with lemon-lime soda for a refreshing non-alcoholic drink.

The Old Fashioned mix can be used as a brandy sweet or whiskey sour. The versatile Margarita mix can make a standard lime margarita, or it can be mixed with fruit flavorings for a strawberry or raspberry margarita. Lemon-line soda or vodka can also be added. Recipes are available at drinkinbudshemp.com/recipes.

Hopf notes that promotion has been challenging due to social media platform policies that prohibit marketing CBD. They do in-store samplings, farmers markets and events such as the Shepherd Express’ Margarita Fest.

Drinkin’ Buds mixes are available through the website or at retailers such as Gathered Roots, in Fond du Lac, and Green Bay Olive Oil Company. The Old Fashioned is on the menu at Drink Wisconsinbly Pub, in the Deer District. Hopf says they recently got approval to sell at Woodman’s Markets.

For more information, visit drinkinbudshemp.com.