Press Releases

RIPE® Cocktail Mixers Now Available in Select Whole Foods Market® Locations

(March 9, 2010 - Wallingford, CT) -- RIPE®, the first-ever premium line of chilled, all-natural pure squeezed cocktail mixers, announced today that Whole Foods Market is now offering RIPE’s entire product line in its Northeast and North Atlantic stores. With their pure squeezed fruit and vegetable juices, specially filtered water and other natural and organic ingredients, RIPE mixers offer a distinctive alternative to existing high-calorie mixers on the market.

“We are excited that Whole Foods, where people know they’ll find the highest quality natural products, recognizes the need for a superior-tasting natural cocktail mix,” says Michel Boissy, RIPE’s co-founder and CEO. “Creating delicious, preservative-free cocktail mixers is our passion and we take great care in distributing our products cold. That way, when our products reach the shelves, they are as fresh as possible."

The cocktail mixers are available in produce section of 50 Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFMI) stores in five states including Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey (excluding Marlton and Princeton), New York and Rhode Island.

Fueled by frustration and sub-par cocktails, entrepreneurs and RIPE co-founders Michel Boissy and Ryan Guimond developed the Pure Squeezed Margarita Mix, Pure Squeezed Bloody Mary Mix and Pure Squeezed Sour Mix as a much-needed change from high-calorie cocktail mixers made with concentrate, high-fructose corn syrup and preservatives. RIPE offers an unprecedented freshness to the cocktail mixer category with a blend of only the finest, fresh squeezed, natural ingredients that are precision flash pasteurized and cold-filled. RIPE products are refrigerated with an average shelf life of 30 days.

The Sour Mix ingredients are pure squeezed lemon juice, 100% organic agave nectar, and reverse osmosis filtered water. The Margarita Mix ingredients are pure squeezed lime and orange juices, reverse osmosis filtered water and 100% organic agave nectar. The Bloody Mary Mix ingredients are premium imported San Marzano tomatoes, pure squeezed celery and lemon juices, certified balsamic vinegar, fresh horseradish, grey Celtic sea salt and spices. Each mixer, packaged in one liter enviro-friendly lightweight recyclable bottles, contains 60 calories per serving, prior to adding alcohol. The Bloody Mary Mix contains about six servings and the Margarita and Sour Mixes each contain about 10 servings.

About RIPE
Founded in 2008 in Wallingford, CT, RIPE www.drinkripe.com offers the first-ever all-natural, premium pure squeezed cocktail mixer. RIPE’s products include Pure Squeezed Margarita Mix, Pure Squeezed Bloody Mary Mix and Pure Squeezed Sour Mix.

Bad Cocktails Turn into Good Business for Wallingford Start-Up

(October 30, 2009 - Wallingford, CT) Fueled by frustration and a string of sub-par cocktails, a pair of local childhood friends turned entrepreneurs, are poised to literally squeeze life into the national beverage market, with a line of fresh, all-natural adult cocktail mixers.

Michel Boissy, a chef by training and Ryan Guimond, who’s just picky about his drinks, have launched Freshbev LLC, makers of RIPE pure squeezed cocktail mixers.

“This is a revolution for the cocktail mixer industry,” said Boissy. “We were fed up with having to subject ourselves to glow-in-the-dark green concoctions, processed juices and preservatives just to get a decent cocktail at home. We make RIPE pure squeezed cocktail mixers with as few ingredients as possible so they are pure, simple and fresh. Our mixers are made cold, precision flash pasteurized and distributed cold as a true indication of our commitment to freshness."

Launched at the 4th Annual Newport Mansions Wine and Food Festival, September 25, 2009, Freshbev’s line of RIPE products, which includes all natural cocktail mixers like Pure Squeezed Margarita, Pure Squeezed Bloody Mary and Pure Squeezed Sour Mix, became the talk of the event, generally centered around wine.

“RIPE was very well received at the Newport Festival. It was great to see such a positive reaction to a product we are so passionate about.” said Guimond. “There seems to be an industry mentality that freshness and taste shouldn’t matter if you’re just going to put alcohol in it. We beg to differ and we’re finding that a lot of people agree with us. In fact, a fresh cocktail made with RIPE fresh mixers is like bringing a high-end restaurant bar to your own crib." 

Next up for Wallingford’s dynamic duo is the The Metropolitan Cooking and Entertaining Show, November 7-8, 2009 in Washington, D.C., where they’ll attempt to make a name for themselves alongside celebrity chefs like Paula Deen, Giada De Laurentis, Tyler Florence and Guy Fieri. Success at the show could translate into a major boon for Wallingford’s economy as Freshbev continues to innovate and grow it’s product offering.

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