TexaCola: A New Texas Legend

TexaCola is inspired by the flavors of our hometown and growing up in South Texas.

So how did we think of TexaCola? Well it's kind of a long story and since this is a blog I think we have enough room to tell it! You see in the Summer of 2017 I had this idea...to make a craft soda. And not to make craft soda using weird ingredients, but to make them approachable. Flavors real people know and enjoy. After a few false starts and ideas that didn't go anywhere a chance meeting with Gregg led to a conversation about him making a soda.

You see, Gregg, is a brewer. He makes beer. What I didn't know at the time was he was also an apiculturist (beekeeper) and a maker of pretty much everything. This guy also makes soap out of the remaining mash from breweries. Pretty cool? Huh. What I also didn't know was that Gregg knew how to make soda!

I had known Gregg off and on from our time at Alamo Beer Company. I had worked with Eugene, founder of Alamo, for several years prior to opening his manufacturing facility. You could say, I was Gene's marketing sidekick (I forgot to mention that I did own my own marketing shop for 10 Years). Just after the brewery opened, that's when I met Gregg, who was the lead brewery. By the way, our first batches are being bottled at Alamo because of the great relationship we have with the guy. Eugene is a good guy.

Okay, there's some backstory, so where was I? Oh yes, Gregg makes Soda! This was perfect. I had this idea about creating a soda that captured the essence of my heritage here on the Southside of San Antonio. Growing up in South Texas we are at a crossroads of flavors, the intertwining of European and Native American ingredients. This is where the term "TexMex" was born. And that's what I wanted. Soda that was familiar but had touches of South Texas.

After hearing this vision, Gregg said to me, " why don't we infuse it with local honey?" And that's how Southside Craft Soda was born. The local honey, the regional ingredients, the inspiration of South Texas culture, it all came together.

It was December 2017, my family had gathered for an annual Christmas Party and Gregg's first concoction, a Honey Cola - which turns out was more of a Honey Cream, what we call it now - was introduced. We had built a large red jockey box and the soda was poured for family and friends. Nobody really liked it. Too much cloves. The recipe was adjusted. In January 2018, we introduced a couple of other flavors over at Hoppy Monk off of 1604 in San Antonio. A ginger probiotic soda, a pineapple (Tepache) probiotic soda, an improved honey cream soda and a citrus cola. People really liked them. That's when we knew there might be something here.

So this is story is about the Citrus Cola. What made this cola special was how special the sourcing for the product was. Citrus, is so important to the people of South Texas. It's a major crop that drives the Valley's economy. Oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruits are important fruits and are staples for us around here. We squeeze citrus in just about everything. From soups to drinks. The zest, freshness and flavor can enhance or perfect any concoction. The most important aspect of citrus is that it provides refreshment in the heat of the South Texas.

In order to appeal with Texans and as a symbol of our own Texas identity, the citrus cola, was branded Texa Cola. Because that's what this soda is. It is a fusion of honey, citrus, Mexican pure cane sugar and other natural ingredients.