It all started with a search for the perfect Mai Tai.
Andrew Rodbell said he and his friend Charles Sain were at a Yacht Rock Review concert and were disappointed by the cocktail selection at the music venue.
That got Rodbell thinking: “Could we make an authentic cocktail, I mean, with real ingredients, the proper proportions, and full strength, and make it conveniently portable to be enjoyed anywhere, anytime.”
After working with mixologists, and food scientists, and packaging engineers, Rodbell and Sain launched Post Meridiem Spirits, the first canned cocktail company in the Southeast. Rodbell said the team started at a WeWork and now has a growing warehouse on Atlanta’s Westside.
For Rodbell, the company sets itself apart by using 100% real lime juice (as opposed to artificial flavors that he says are industry standard) and transparently listing ingredients on the label. For him, it is all about “elevating the ready-to-drink cocktail category.”
On top of the Mai Tai, Post Meridiem has added a margarita, old-fashioned, gimlet, and a daiquiri to its inventory. Each is served in a 100 mL can with 23-37% alcohol by volume.
While their canned cocktails can be found at liquor stores throughout Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, and South Carolina, the team announced they are officially launching the e-commerce, direct-to-consumer portion of the business.
E-Commerce And Alcohol Delivery After COVID
“It is no secret that building a cocktail company, or any sort of alcoholic company, in Georgia is tough,” Rodbell told Hypepotamus. “The liquor laws are really challenging in this part of the world. But Georgia is home, I’m a fourth-generation Atlantan. And I wanted to give this city a cocktail company to be proud of.”
Georgia has indeed had a complicated history with the alcohol industry. It was the last state in the nation to allow breweries to sell directly to consumers. But COVID restrictions have expedited industry trends around selling direct-to-consumer and offering to-go options for bars, restaurants, and wholesale alcohol companies.
The pandemic has also forced restaurants and other gathering spots to seek out “low touch high-quality options,” which Rodbell says Post Meridiem’s cocktails are able to provide.
“Convenience, premiumization, and authenticity were all trends that had strong momentum before COVID. Now, I think people have been looking for easy ways to elevate their everyday life. And everyone has been home so much lately due to COVID, so consumers have sought out cocktails with higher quality.”
With the expansion into the e-commerce space, Post Meridiem can now ship to 33 states and DC. And if the ease-of-ordering isn’t enough…March 24 is National Cocktail Day, which is a pretty good excuse to order from and support a local cocktail company.
