We Could Make That

“There’s a lot of romanticism in having your own business, and it’s really difficult. My boyfriend would never put himself through what I’ve been putting myself through.” - Lotta Andonian, founder of Eat Chic Chocolates, on entrepreneurship   My guest on the show today is Lotta Andonian, the founder of Eat Chic Chocolates, a company reinventing and perfecting a classic American treat and my favorite candy: the peanut butter cup.    Lotta built up a solid clientele in London that included some wholesale heavyweights, but eventually made the tough decision to re-launch her company stateside. She says it's been more fun to play with flavors in the US where peanut butter cups are second nature as opposed to the UK where she had to beg people to give them a try.   (Sidebar: what is going on Europe?! Peanut butter cups are basically god's gift to humans. Get on board!)   On this show, Lotta and I talk about the decision to move her company across the Atlantic, why pop-ups are a great way to test out a concept and the other differences she spotted in the US/UK markets. She also gives me a crash course on tempering chocolate, some advice for building a social media following fast and the resources that helped her get going.   Lotta is also graciously offering 15% off any Eat Chic order! Head to wecouldmakethat.com/chocolate to peep the show notes and copy the code.  

Amanda Bowen and Fabio Fossati are a couple. They do normal coupley things like work out and go on walks together. But a few years back, they took their relationship to the ultimate level. No, not marriage. Entrepreneurship. On this show, we talk about their drinkable soup company, Fawen, what it's like to go into business with your significant other and how they financed the launch. They also shed some light on the marketing channels that have been most effective for them and how their lives have changed since becoming entrepreneurs. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/soup Obviously since you're reading this, you're a smart human who loves food. That's why you should definitely follow on Insta. All the cool kids are doing it: @wecldmakethat    

I happen to think that all food businesses are built on love stories - but the story of Sadie Scheffer’s Bread SRSLY takes the cake. Sadie was in grad school on the east coast when her crush moved across the country to SF. Rather than wallow in despair, Sadie dropped out of school and followed him. After a few dates, it became clear that Mr. Right didn’t feel the same and the relationship fizzled out. But Sadie was not deterred. She knew the beau of her dreams was gluten-free, so even though she had no culinary background, she decided to try her hand at wooing him by crafting delicious gluten-free treats.   It worked. The two are now married and Sadie got so good at gluten-free baking that she now owns the GF sourdough company, Bread SRSLY, which happens to make the best damn gluten-free bread I’ve ever had.    Though Sadie says she always knew she’d own her own business, it didn’t come easy to her. In this episode, we talk about why this side hustle took off when some others didn’t, the biggest learning curves she’s come up against since starting the company and how her role has changed six years in.   She also gives me some sourdough starter tips and dishes on what it’s like to have a pet lizard.   Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/bread

In 2003, at the age of 30, Andre Hueston Mack was the first African American to be named Best Young Sommelier in America. Soon after, he accepted a somm job at The French Laundry before Thomas Keller sent him across the country to open the most anticipated restaurant of the year, Per Se. In 2007 - really just a few years after he jumped into the food and wine world - he left fine dining to launch his own company, Mouton Noir Wines. Despite his massive success, Andre still calls himself the black sheep of the wine world: "Most people would assume I'm the last person who would know anything about wine. And I like that." Andre does things differently. He thinks differently, he acts differently. His advice in this episode is some of the best you'll find. His style and approach to work are unique, especially in our age of instant gratification. Even the way he raises his kids (they're homeschooled in NYC) reflects an alternate point of view. Andre's philosophy on life truly reflects someone who's not following the herd, but who is totally crushing it on his own terms. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/wine

Tommy Byrnes is a Longhorn-turned-Londoner-turned-New Yorker who co-founded a company called Jalapa Jar. Along with his two other co-founders, Steve and Joel, he’s bringing two of my favorite foods - tacos and salsa - to the New York masses.    But Tommy and the crew are doing things a little differently, effectively starting two different businesses at once: a packaged (but fresh) salsa product and a retail storefront that slangs Austin-style breakfast tacos in NYC.    On this show, we talk about how opening a physical location differs from a consumer packaged good, how the team thinks about prioritization and what it’s like to launch a company on the mean streets of New York.    Full show notes and resources from the show available: wecouldmakethat.com/salsa   Follow us on Instagram @wecldmakethat and on Twitter @AndreaRenee

The Washington Post: "His condiments and sauces are legendary." The NY Times: "The hottest culinary experience known to man." The Wall Street Journal: "The legendary grandaddy of ultra-hot sauces."   He is Dave Hirschkop, the founder of Dave’s Gourmet Fiery Foods and Specialty Foods, which make insanely hot hot sauces, creamy hot sauces and family-friendly pasta sauces.    Over 20 years ago, Dave wasn't trying to start a hot sauce company. He was simply on a mission to create the hottest hot sauce on earth because the drunk kids who kept coming to his burrito joint were annoying AF.   He thought it'd be funny to fry their taste buds and revel in their misery. Except they weren't miserable. They loved every second of it, and soon, Dave was bottling his sauce and slanging it way beyond his restaurant. When people told him the sauce was "insane," he took it to heart, naming it "Insanity Sauce," and crafting a persona that included wearing a strait-jacket to expos. To date, Dave's is still the only sauce that's been disqualified from The National Fiery Food Show for being TOO hot. On this show, I took full advantage of Dave's 23 years in the business to grill him on what's changed, the mistakes he sees new entrepreneurs making, and his process of creating products, including an R&D project his team has been working on for six years. Dave also shared some insight into how he chooses new products and categories to launch, how he's stayed motivated year after year, and the true role of a CEO. As someone who's proven longevity in the food space, this interview is an incredible resource for founders old and new. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/dave

Caitlin Makary is a badass. She rides a motorcycle. She rock climbs. And she owns DANK, a banana bread company inspired by her vegan sister and rock climbing friends. Rider, climber, entrepreneur -- you could say her risk tolerance is higher than most. For years, Caitlin worked in corporate fashion, and it took a nudge from an old boss and a massive breakup to catapult her into entrepreneurship. In January 2016, she broke up with her boyfriend and holed herself up in her apartment for four days straight. In that time, she filed her LLC, built her website and designed the branding for DANK. Now, for the last year, she's given her life over to baking, selling and scaling her fledgling business. This was a great episode where I got a look into how Caitlin makes her decisions, including how she assesses risk. We also talk about the parallels between entrepreneurship and rock climbing, the helpful resources she's leaned on to get started and a few motorcylce diary stories thrown in for good measure. To follow along with the show notes and resources from this show, head to wecouldmakethat.com/dank

When I grow up, I want to be Willow King. Or, maybe more accurately, I just want to move to Boulder, CO, hang out with Willow and her co-founder, Mara, and eat fermented things all the live long day. We could go snowboarding (even though I have no idea if Willow snowboards), plan trips to exotic locations (she definitely does this) and dream up ways to pickle our favorite foods (something she's already got on lock). But, since I have no plans to hightail it to Colorado anytime soon, I'll have to settle for bringing her on my show and asking her a bunch of questions about her life and business. Willow is a world traveler, a total badass and the CEO of Ozuke, the makers of fine fermented things.  Willow tells me about her travel adventures, how jet-setting changed once she had kids and how the idea for Ozuke was born. On the business side, she gives her advice for starting a company with a friend, the key factors she sees in food business success and her top tips for fermenting. If you couldn't already tell by my fan-girling above, I had a lot of fun recording this episode, and I think you'll have a lot of fun listening to it. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/willow

Brian Huebner is the founder of Fire Cider. Fire Cider has a winding tale - two of its three co-founders, Brian’s sister, Amy, and her now-husband, Dana, were high school sweethearts separated by a move. Years later, they reconnected via Facebook, ended up falling back in love and moved back to their hometown in the Berkshires.    While this was all happening, Brian was busy drawing comics and selling windows as a door-to-door salesman in the DC area - something he says built up his tough skin. But when he returned home and heard what Amy and Dana were up to, he joined on to lead the sales and the three have been riding the wave ever since.     On this episode, Brian and I talk about getting the business off the ground, how his generation is revitalizing the once defunct Berkshire economy and the trademark issues Fire Cider got wrangled into early on.   If you’re a start-up thinking about how to protect your brand as you grow, this is an episode you quite literally can’t afford to skip.  Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/fire

What do Colombia, Kermit the Frog and a mariachi band have in common? Not much, except for the fact that they're all tied together in one person: Jonathan Echeverry. As a kid, Jonathan split his time between Atlanta, where his family owned a Mexican restaurant, and Colombia, where they owned a coffee farm. Now, Jonathan has full circled back to the summers of his childhood with his new company, Paper Plane Coffee Co. As the founder of the company, Jonathan says he's connecting to something much bigger than the bean: "Now, I find myself going back to my roots and trying to continue the legacy of my family through coffee."  If you love coffee — or if you know nothing about coffee — this episode is a deep dive into this magical bean. For example, did you know coffee is a fruit that resembles a cherry and that it can taste like hibiscus or bell pepper when picked ripe from the vine?   In this episode, Jonathan gives me the lowdown on how climate change is affecting Colombian beans, what you should taste for when trying a new cuppa joe, and what struggles he's had in starting a business.  Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/coffee

Leiti Hsu is a professional connector. Chances are she's had dinner with your favorite chef, and interviewed your favorite food personalities for her radio show, Word of Mouth. Most recently, she launched a travel concierge service called Journy. Journy's goal? To put the power of the concierge in your back pocket, for a price anyone can afford. On this show, Leiti gives me the deets on Journy, including their newest advisor -- the powerhouse entrepreneurial golden child, Gary Vaynerchuk. She also tells me about the makers and food trends she's most excited for and her most memorable meal.    Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/leiti

I hate to run. And on more than one occasion, I've found myself in this conversation: Me: "I hate to run." Multiple other humans: "I hated running, too. But then I read "Born to Run," and now I love running. I run every day. It changed my life." For Shane Emmett, the CEO of Health Warrior, the book "Born to Run" didn't only inspire him to pick up a pair of sneakers -- it also spurred him into entrepreneurship. The Tarahumara people are the focus of the book "Born to Run." And while many people who read this book focused on how the Tarahumara run barefoot, Shane zeroed in on another interesting tidbit: their diets. Turns out chia seeds are a huge part of the Tarahumara diet -- and a huge reason why they're able to run such impressive distances. But when Shane discovered this, chia seeds were weird to Americans. You couldn't find them in every store across the country, and they certainly weren't being heralded as a superfood. So, Shane and his co-founders decided that chia needed to be shared with the people, and Health Warrior was born. And while Shane had no experience in the food business, four years later, Health Warrior is in over 10,000 stores nationally, including Target, Whole Foods and Wegmans. The team has also ballooned to 50 people, though that doesn't mean it was smooth sailing. Shane walks me through the mistakes made, capital raised, and just how hard it is to get a food company off the ground Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/chia

Leeann Rybakov grew up in Kiev, Ukraine, where buckwheat is ubiquitous on every table. And while her mom continued to serve it once they moved to the United States, Leeann didn’t see it around all that much -- not that she really thought about it anyway. After working for eight years at her family’s logistics company, her husband encouraged her to follow her passion for cooking and attend culinary school and launch a food company.  Enter buckwheat. As she toiled away on concepts for a healthy bowl company, she started making “noshes” to keep herself energized. She didn’t think much of these buckwheat-based, no sugar snacks until a friend stopped by one day. As he devoured one after the other, he yelled, “buckWHAT?!” and the rest, as they say, is history. I talk to Leeann about the current challenges she’s facing, what she wishes she’d known before launching and what it’s like to have a baby while you’re also bootstrapping a business. She also gives me the skinny on buckwheat, including how to enjoy it if you’ve never dabbled and the myriad of health benefits associated. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/buckwhat

Aaron Glassman is the founder of Macaccino and the owner of the Golden Mean Cafe in Los Angeles.  A few years back, an old man came into the restaurant holding a bag of something magical. Inside was maca, a root that's grown at high altitudes in the Andes mountains. Maca root is a superfood that's reported to help your body function way better. Seriously: better memory, more energy, more sexy times. It's basically a godsend. Aaron tinkered around with it to make it delicious, then put it on his menu at the cafe where it proceeded to skyrocket to the "Best-Drink-Ever-Most-Ordered-Of-All-The-Things" list that I'm sure his staff keeps track of with gold stars in the kitchen. On this episode, we talk about how caffeine tricks your body into being awake without actually creating any sustainable energy, how maca root is a full body adaptogen and a natural stimulant, what happens when our bodies become too acidic through our modern diet and why the worst time of the day to have your first cup of coffee is in the morning.   Aaron shares his tips on coming back into balance, dives into what it means when people say something is "heart centered" (this one always threw me for a loop), and gives his tips on how to enjoy his favorite drink. Rock 'n roll kiddies, this one's a gem.   Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/maca

Drew and Mac Anderson are brothers. Their sister is Emma. Emma married Luke. Drew and Luke met over some beers, as brother-in-laws have been known to do. They realized they'd both been fermenting stuff in their kitchens. A lightbulb went off, they started jarring their creations and Cleveland Kraut was born. Then, Mac graduated from college, stepped up as lead sales guy and became (one of) the shining golden children of the enterprise: "Mac is like our Lebron James. He’s as tall as Lebron and a superstar when it comes to sales,” says Drew. Oh, by the way, Emma is totally cool with it all and her gut microbiome has never been happier. Now, these three Cleveland natives are singing the praises of fermented goodies, peddling their wares all around the country and having a hell of a good time doing it. And despite what you may have heard about families and friends doing business together, this trio says at the end of the day, the most important thing isn't their kraut, but each other (collective awwww's all around). On this show, the guys give me a rundown on the history of fermented foods, the difference between pre- and probiotics and why things like sauerkraut are so freaking good for us (did you know your gut plays a major part in regulating your mood? Shout out to lactobacillus!) We also chat about the companies that have inspired their journey over the last few years, what it's like to work with your literal bros day in and day out, and who would play them each in a movie. This was a fun episode that I think you're going to really like!    Show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/kraut

I want to be Joy Wilson's friend. But then again, everyone does. That's why she's been awarded "Best Baking Blog" by everyone from Saveur to The Kitchn since she started joythebaker.com in 2008. In writing and in person, Joy is a sweetheart with a personality that makes you want to bake a cake with her, then get into your PJs and drink wine while swinging together on a porch swing, talking ish about the dude that dissed you at the bar last weekend. Not that I've thought about this in any detail at all...::side-eye:: Aside from her blog, she's also the author of two internationally successful cookbooks: "The Joy the Baker Cookbook" and "Homemade Decadence: Irresistibly Sweet, Salty, Gooey, Sticky, Fluffy, Creamy, Crunchy Treats." Now, she's busy working on a new cookbook, Over Easy, an ode to brunch due out in March. On this short episode, I asked Joy what she'd do if she had to start all over, how she thinks about integrating herself into a new community and and how she started the hilarious side project, Drake on Cake. She also divulges who her favorite makers of the moment are, the cookbook she's baked from most and what food trends she's currently crushing on.   Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/joy

When the going gets tough, the tough slow down. Or at least, that's Candice Ross' motto. She's the founder of the Brooklyn-born and based Stagg Jam, where she makes tasty jams and marmalades in cool flavors including seasoned sorrel, cherry chai, spicy orange with red pepper and fennel, and grapefruit rosemary, a nod to her Louisiana roots. For the past year, Candice has steered the Stagg ship, aiming for ideals that would make her grandad proud (she named the company after him, after all.) For Candice, there's nothing more important than community, whether that's here in Brooklyn, or at home in the south. And in a world where everyone's trying to outdo one another, she's taking a different approach. One that's  all about pumping the breaks and making things as simple as possible: "Things are crazy and we live in a complicated world, but you don’t have to be overly complicated about it.” In this episode, we talk about striving for simplicity, the new wave of "Made in Brooklyn," and the biggest lessons she's learned in the first year of business, including how she handles herself when things go wrong. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/stagg

Ricky Hirsch is the founder of Think Jerky, a beef jerky company that’s taking a health-conscious approach to our favorite meaty snack. Think has far less sugar and salt than typical jerky, it’s made using high-quality ingredients and meat — and it’s actually crafted by real chefs — Laurent Gras, a three-starred Michelin chef, Gail Gand, a two-time James Beard award winner and Food Network host, and Matt Troost, a Chicago Baconfest champion.    Ricky and Think are also award winners in their own way. The company, which is less than a year old did $1 million in sales in their first 11 months. They were the fastest company ever into Starbucks and GNC, and they were one of the top five most backed food campaigns on Kickstarter. Plus, they’re donating 10% of all profits to the David Lynch Foundation, an organization focused around meditation.   With accolades like this under their belt, you'd think they were a team of at least a dozen. Shockingly, it’s only Ricky and one other employee leading the charge (though they are hiring.)   This is one company to keep an eye on because I think they’re about to do really big things.  Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/jerky

This is another in-between-isode where I talk to cool people in the world about the trends they’re seeing out and about, their favorite makers of the moment and exciting projects that they’re working on.    Today, I’m talking to Joann Pai, known to her fans on Instagram as @SliceofPai. Joann is a food and travel photographer currently living in Paris, though her work has been featured in publications around the globe, including Vogue, Saveur, The NY Times and Conde Nast Traveler. Her clients include everyone from the Shangri-la Hotel to Coca-Cola to the Gap, and a bunch of other big names in between. She’s also the co-founder of Slice of Paris, an Instagrammer’s guide to Paris and Acornmag, a collaborative food and lifestyle magazine.    On this show, we chat about how Joann got started and built her Insta following to over 140,000 followers(!!), what she’d do now if she had to start over and the top misstep she sees Instagrammers making when they take pictures of food.  Full show notes available: wecouldmakethat.com/pai

If you were a parent, chances are you’d want your kid to turn out like Sagan Schultz. Sagan is the CEO of the functional beverage and nutrition company, WellWell. He has a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience, a medical degree AND MBA from NYU and he’s a certified personal trainer. He’s also a certified sommelier and a self-proclaimed fitness junkie. WellWell is a watermelon-based, tart cherry juice that aids in muscle recovery. Sagan developed it in his kitchen because he wanted something to help his body bounce back faster after a workout — and here’s something I love: using his medical and science backgrounds, he created it by thinking of what he wanted it to accomplish for him, not by how it would taste or sell. (Though his somm background certainly came in handy when tinkering with flavor combos.) I asked Sagan how he does it all (despite my hunch that he’s freezing time, he promises he’s a mortal), and the advice he has for people who say they have no time to get things done. We also talk about medical school in the US and the shocking lack of proper nutrition education taught to soon-to-be doctors. I also snuck in some questions about wine — specifically the best bottle Sagan ever drank, and the tips he has for picking the best bottle of Riesling (spoiler alert: they’re not all sweet!) Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/wellwell

It must be pasta week on We Could Make That because my guest today is Brian Rudolph, the co-founder of Banza pasta. Banza is a pasta made from chickpeas that has double the protein, four times the fiber and nearly half the net carbs of average pasta.    Plus, it tastes really, really good—and they have a mac and cheese that reminds me of creamy Velveeta and doesn’t make me hate myself after eating it.    Banza started not so long ago in Brian’s kitchen, and has now skyrocketed to national popularity. Time Magazine named Banza one of its top 25 inventions of 2015, and after just a year in business, Target picked Banza up in stores across the country, which puts Banza’s store count somewhere around 4500. Very, very impressive.    On this show, we talk about what it’s like to launch before you’re ready, appearing on a reality TV show, and the ins-and-outs of Venture for America, a program that places recent college grads into sparkly new startups.    If you’re thinking about launching a food business - or any business - this is a good one to listen to. And even if you have no desire to go into entrepreneurship, you’ll still find Brian’s story highly relatable and fun to hear.   You can follow along with the show notes and find resources mentioned within at wecouldmakethat.com/banza.

Linda Miller Nicholson, or Salty Seattle as her fans know her, has been called the "Lady Gaga of Food" by The Cooking Channel. She was also a competitor on the hit show, MasterChef, and in 2018, she's releasing a cookbook, published by HarperCollins all about her latest obsession: pasta.    Linda's got a thing with pasta. Specifically, she’s spent the last few years figuring out how to infuse the bold colors of the rainbow into dough to create edible artwork, like emoji ravioli — yes, its as cool as it sounds.    After spending time in Torino, Italy, the birth place of the Slow Food movement, Linda now lives in the forest outside of Seattle with her husband, son, two dogs, 30+ chickens, five ducks and an insane pizza oven that she had flown in from Maine.    I met Linda when I was living out in Seattle in 2010, and she quickly became on of my closest friends. Her over-the-top personality, inspiring and expansive shoe collection and hilariously cheeky writing had me from the start. Stepping into her a kitchen is a lesson in everything imaginable - from how to sous vide to how to slow cook scrambled eggs to how to spherify pea puree so that it bursts in your mouth at precisely the moment you bite down.    In this episode, we talk food trends, Linda's favorite makers of the moment and how to dupe your kids into eating their veggies.   Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/linda

Eddie Tancredi loves to win. And he loves to cook. So when he discovered that he could cook to win competitions, he was all in. For the last 12 years, he's rotated between the culinary competition circuit - competing against heavyweights like The Food Network's Bobby Flay - and cooking in the world's best restaurants. His last gig was as Executive Chef and Managing Partner of Adega restaurant in Cleveland's hottest downtown building, The 9. Oh yeah. And he was on the freaking US OLYMPICS team for cooking. Where he won a bronze medal, by the way. As if that wasn't enough, he also won the American Culinary Federation Chef of the Year in 2013 after knocking the socks off judges with his red hot skills. For now, Eddie's taking a brief break from the heat to turn his attention to entrepreneurship. This year, he launched a line of spices under his new brand, ETC: Eddie Tancredi Culinary, and has plans to release his signature dressings in the next few weeks. We get into Eddie's path - from burning steaks as a teenager to attending the West Point of culinary education, The Greenbrier. He also takes me through what it takes to pass the Master Chef exams, compete as a culinary Olympian and generally make it to the top of the pack in an industry full of egos. I also asked him about the most underrated tool in the kitchen and what spices you should be using to crank up your kitchen game. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/eddie

This is an in-between-isode, where I talk to food writers, Instagrammers and generally cool people about their favorite makers and food things of the moment.  Serena Wolf didn't set out to create a diet fit for the modern man. In fact, she was just writing on her pink blog about her life in Paris, going to culinary school and throwing dinner parties with her roommate. Then, she moved back stateside and shacked up with her now-fiancé, Logan. Turns out, Logan was a typical dude. He ate totally satisfying but completely unhealthy food. Thinking she wanted him around for awhile, Serena decided to put her culinary chops to the test and set out to create Logan's favorite gut busters...just a smidgen healthier by using whole foods and no unpronounceable ingredients. Logan loved the food. Serena loved the food. The internet peoples loved the food. And so, The Dude Diet was born. Released just last week, the cookbook is a guide to eating clean(ish) for people who like to eat dirty. On this show, I get the skinny on the cookbook creation process, her fave recipes for newbies and the makers she's crushing on right now. She also divulges her most loved kitchen utensil and announces that she'll be on The Today Show THIS FRIDAY. Set your DVRs kids, this is one you don't want to miss. Full show notes, with resources: wecouldmakethat.com/dude

Mike Kurtz is the founder of Mike’s Hot Honey in Brooklyn, NY. Mike’s Hot Honey is a chili-infused honey that Mike discovered while backpacking through the mountains of Brazil. But the story doesn’t start and stop there.    In fact, after he made that delicious discovery, he didn't rush right home and open his company. Instead, he came back to NY, landed a job with a record label and eventually convinced the Boston Globe to let him travel to 30+ countries on five continents in one year.   When he came back from that, he still didn't start the hot honey company. Rather, he picked up a pizza apprenticeship with the famed Paulie Gee, went to work slinging pies and occasionally drizzled some of the honey he was making at home onto a few slices. Then, wayyyy down the line later when customers were practically begging him to sell his concoction, there was no other option - he had to give the people what they wanted, so he finally started a company. In this episode, we talk about making a hobby your career, how meeting Paulie Gee changed everything and his around-the-world trip, including top picks for quick eats and favorite food cities. He also takes me through the best advice he's been given, his mom's granola recipe and the lessons he's learned at each stage of the journey. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/honey

Alex Abbott Boyd grew up with free-spirited, food-loving, hippie-inclined parents (one from the land down under, the other from NYC) who kept a garden and made their own jam. Obviously, this environment can lay the groundwork for a love of good food and flavor, which is precisely what happened to Alex. Emboldened by capable tastebuds and with the early understanding that beverages held a soft spot in his heart, he's traveled far and wide in the name of a good sip. This translates to everything from a days-long bike ride for a freshly poured pint at his fave brewery, to a journey into a remote part of India for a lesson in tea, to a corporate assignment with Pepsi that led him to Cairo, Egypt during Ramadan. Spoiler alert: he quit that last one mid-project and high-tailed it back home with no plan...which ultimately turned into Cocktail Crate. Launched on Kickstarter, Cocktail Crate is a craft cocktail mixer that leaves out the nasties like juice from concentrate and processed extracts, replacing them with high-quality ingredients you actually want to drink. I talk to him about how he came up with the idea, his plans to maintain the ingredient integrity as he scales and the first time he got drunk. Dinosaurs were involved, nbd. For cocktails newbies, he also delves into his favorite resources for learning about libations and talks about what he orders at the bar when the cocktails are questionable. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/cocktail  

Imagine that your whole life you had this abundant bounty of spicy goodness at your fingertips, blindly going about your business and assuming everyone in the country also had the same bounty. Then imagine moving, only to find out that in fact, no one knows WTF you're talking about when you order your enchiladas "Christmas-style." If this makes no sense to you, don't worry -- it will soon. Nate Cotanch is from the Southwest. His mom - one of 17 (!!!) kids - is a New Mexico native, and like most New Mexicans, she's obsessed with hatch chiles, a chile pepper that's only grown in Hatch, New Mexico and only harvested once a year. I've come to find out that it's a very special pepper with a unique flavor and the perfect level of spice. Because of his mom, Nate grew up thinking it was totally normal that once a year during the hatch harvest, his mom would load up her car with fresh chiles, and then spend days roasting them under the broiler. Then, ::dun, dun, dun:: the family moved to the east coast. And well, the first time they tried to order dinner, things got a little weird. Turns out, hatch chiles are a New Mexico thing and not a soul in the South knew about their gloriousness. Fast forward a couple of jobs, some tire kicking about life direction and a move to New York City later, and Nate decides if he can't get hatch chiles in the Big Apple, he'll have to bring them himself. And so, Zia Hatch Chile Company was born. This is his story. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/zia

If someone told you that you could get paid to travel around the South, stopping along the way to pop out and eat barbecue in iconic barbecue cities, you'd probably take them up on it. I mean, let's be real, unless you are a vegetarian, there are few things more satisfying than a hunk of meat cooked over an open flame, possibly dipped in sauce and paired with a cold beverage. Well, friends, here we are. Meet Rien Fertel, a New Orleanian who will make you very jealous with how he makes his coin. In 2012, Rien hit the road in a barbecue bus (yes, he called it that), and hit up a veritable cluster of juicy, meaty establishments across the South. That trip, along with years of other research across Tennessee, Mississippi, the Carolinas and Kentucky, culminated in a masterpiece book called “The One True Barbecue: Fire, Smoke, and the Pitmasters Who Cook The Whole Hog.” We hop all over the place, from Rien's time growing up in restaurant kitchens to how he knew it was time to move back to New Orleans post-Katrina. He also gives his curious pick for best food city (seriously, you'll never guess it), and sheds some light on what it's really like to work as a freelance food writer in an increasingly crowded space. I loved recording this interview and I hope you'll enjoy listening to it. If you do, share it with a friend, or you know, leave a review. ;) Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/bbq

Let's say you came up with an idea for a food company in January. How long do you think it would take you to launch?  Maybe a year? 18 months? If you're Aidan Altman, the answer to that question is five months. FIVE MONTHS, PEOPLE! Insanity. Aidan and his co-founder, Shannon McGlynn, dreamt up their company Spice Foods with a few characteristics in mind: transparency, altruism and health. It's true that Millennials generally think we're the bees knees [thanks mom and dad!], and as you'll hear in our chat, Aidan is no exception, but us Millennials are also pretty down with helping people out and making the world a little smaller and a helluva lot more connected. For Aidan and Spice Foods, that looks like using snack food as a way to break down barriers and get Americans all cozied up with flavors [and, ahem ::cultures::] that have, for a long time, been neglected or labeled as "weird." Stuff like Ethiopian berbere or Argentinian chimichurri, which is so freaking pop-in-your-mouth-let's-have-a-party-on-our-tongues good that it's shocking more entrepreneurs haven't experimented with these flavors. We get into all the good stuff about what it's like to launch a company on a shoestring budget [hint: have good mentors], to why Aidan's chosen to set up shop in Detroit. We also touch on those core characteristics of the company and what they look like in practice. Spoiler alert: Snapchat and Instagram are players in this game. If you're curious about what more Millennial and Gen Z businesses will look like moving forward, I'd say this show is a really, really good lens into what's about to go mainstream. Enjoy! Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/spice

One went to culinary school. The other didn't. One had a baker for a dad. The other grew up eating dry chicken and overcooked broccoli. Their culinary paths couldn't have been more different. And yet, they both ended up working side-by-side at one of the best restaurants in New York City: Eleven Madison Park. After years of browning butter on stovetops in restaurant kitchens and serving it to their friends at dinner parties, the lightbulb went off and they decided to start jarring this sweet, sweet nectar for all to enjoy. We start out talking about one of the most embarrassing memories of my childhood, so if you're into making fun of me at some point, you should definitely listen. Other than that, we get into the transition from line cooks at Eleven Mad to food entrepreneurs, whether they'd recommend someone go to culinary school, their favorite part of being makers and why they're totally obsessed with butter. Guys? I've gotta say: this isn't your average butter. It's been toasted for 6-8 hours until it's complex and intense and somehow laced with something that will make your tastebuds dance around like they're at Coachella, circa 2011, when it was still cool to dance. You've been warned. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/butter  

When Hansen Shieh was eight years old, his obviously awesome (wait for it) mom took him out for lunch. As he bit into his first Sichuan pepper, his mouth exploded in flavor and heat. And his mom, the badass that she so clearly is, just laughed at him. Now, some 30 years later, Hansen is on a mission to bring the kick of Sichuan and other flavors, including Chinese fermented black bean, tamarind and fish sauce to the mainstream with his company, One Culture Foods. We talk shop about the lessons he's learned in the first year of business, including the most rewarding moment. And Hansen shares his guilty food pleasure, plus the Taiwanese food that he's confident will never catch on stateside.   Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/culture

When Scott Norton and his co-founder, Mark Ramadan, were in college, they had a thought: why are American consumers totally chill about their ketchup? After all, the stuff we all grew up on is loaded with junk like high fructose corn syrup, canola oil and tomato paste. But instead of going back to bonging beers and eating take-out pizza like most college kids would do at this point, they took their concept a step further and asked themselves, "What would happen if we turned the ketchup industry on its head?" The result is Sir Kensington's, a condiment company that replaces all the nastiness with high-quality ingredients like whole tomatoes, raw sugar and humane, free range eggs. In this episode, Scott walks me through his decision making process and the journey he took to launch the company. We also get into how he thinks about business as a force for good, how he came up with the highly amusing and fictional character, Sir Kensington, and what advice he'd give to his younger self. The audio quality on this one is...well, I won't lie to you. It's not good. But the content and Scott's awesome energy more than make up for it. Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/scott

Anarchy In A Jar started with humble beginnings but has now blossomed into a jam company that anyone would be proud to write home about. For starters, the ingredients come from local farms, the founder, Laena McCarthy, is handcrafting each batch out of Brooklyn, NY, and everyone from the NY Times to Saveur to that food blogger you follow religiously are singing Anarchy's praises. Not. too. shabby.   Instead of going to culinary school like many in the food business, Laena started out her career working for the National Science Foundation in one of the most remote places on the planet: Antarctica. Did you know there’s a greenhouse to feed the scientists there, even though there’s no soil allowed? We talk about her time there, how she started her business semi-illegally in the basement of a church, and how the BK food world has changed since she came onto the scene.    She also dishes out some advice for anyone looking to break into the food landscape - but even if you’re not an aspiring maker, there’s plenty of good stuff in here to sink your teeth into.   Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/anarchy  

Zesty Z is the brainchild of founder Alexander Harik, who pitched the idea to his family at the dinner table. They promptly laughed him off before starting to take him seriously. Thankfully for all of us, Zesty Z was born as a new za'atar-based condiment and spread. Alexander is Lebanese-American and grew up eating za'atar, but realized no one had introduced one of his favorite flavors to the masses.  In this show, we talk about Google University — basically figuring it out as you go — to repping your company to how Alexander got his first store placement. It's a powerful story of perseverance, passion, family and food.  Full show notes: wecouldmakethat.com/zesty