# Bonus: Raising the bar in the alcoholic beverage category with G’s Dry Hard Ginger Beer

- Show: [The Startup CPG Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast)
- Published: 2023-02-07
- Length: 25m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-02-07-bonus-raising-the-bar-in-the-alcoholic-beverage-category-with-gs-dry-hard-ginger
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/752306db

## Summary

Donna Katz, founder of G’s Dry Hard Ginger Beer, explains how she reinvented the ginger beer category by fermenting it dry to eliminate added sugars, resulting in a 4.5% ABV, 87-calorie ready-to-drink beverage. She details the 17-month R&D process, including early failures like bottle explosions and the non-linear scaling of ingredients, and discusses the complex three-tier regulatory system for alcohol distribution in the US. Katz also describes her go-to-market strategy, focusing on saturating California’s independent retail before expanding into major chains like Target and Safeway.

## Chapters

- [0:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-02-07-bonus-raising-the-bar-in-the-alcoholic-beverage-category-with-gs-dry-hard-ginger#t=4) Introduction and Product Overview
- [2:57](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-02-07-bonus-raising-the-bar-in-the-alcoholic-beverage-category-with-gs-dry-hard-ginger#t=177) Fermentation Process and Seasonal Flavors
- [5:49](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-02-07-bonus-raising-the-bar-in-the-alcoholic-beverage-category-with-gs-dry-hard-ginger#t=349) Origins and R&D Journey
- [7:24](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-02-07-bonus-raising-the-bar-in-the-alcoholic-beverage-category-with-gs-dry-hard-ginger#t=444) Packaging Design and Vintage Poster Inspiration
- [10:33](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-02-07-bonus-raising-the-bar-in-the-alcoholic-beverage-category-with-gs-dry-hard-ginger#t=633) Scaling Challenges and Regulatory Hurdles
- [18:24](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-02-07-bonus-raising-the-bar-in-the-alcoholic-beverage-category-with-gs-dry-hard-ginger#t=1104) Retail Expansion and Go-to-Market Strategy

## Topics

- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Retail, wholesale & distribution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/retail-and-distribution)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Certification & compliance](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/certification-and-compliance)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- G’s Dry Hard Ginger Beer (product)
- Shelfie Award (other)
- Target (company)
- Safeway (company)
- Startup CPG (company)
- Pearl Jam (other)

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- [259 - It's definitely NOT beer with Not Beer founder Dillon Dandurand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/people-of-packaging/2024-05-01-259-its-definitely-not-beer-with-not-beer-founder-dillon-dandurand) (People of Packaging)
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- [How I Built Resilience: Kara Goldin of Hint](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-04-01-how-i-built-resilience-kara-goldin-of-hint) (How I Built This)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-02-07-bonus-raising-the-bar-in-the-alcoholic-beverage-category-with-gs-dry-hard-ginger. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to The Startup CPG Podcast.