Today we’d like to introduce you to Francesca Marciano.
Francesca, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I come from a design background. I worked in interior design, production design for films and event planning. While doing events for a tea and spice company, I fell in love with the world of tea. I took some workshops to better understand the properties of tea, I buried myself in books and attended tastings and conventions all over Southern California.
While planning a party that I was hosting last summer, I forgot to buy the ingredients for the cocktail I planned on serving and was tight on time. I realized I had bags of tea left over from tea shop I worked for and decided to blend the tea into my cocktail—it was a hit! Everyone raved about how delicious the cocktail was and told me I should bottle it. I started experimenting and made handfuls of cocktails for my friends and family.
Every time I hosted an event, I would serve a new cocktail and get feedback. I kept getting told I had to bottle my concoctions. So, I looked into the process of bottling and found it wasn’t that impossible to start my own company. I took everything I learned from my previous jobs and applied it towards Curate Spirits. I knew the types of teas and flavors I wanted to showcase, I knew the aesthetic I wanted, and I began planning out the next steps I would have to take towards getting my brand on its legs.
It has been over one year since I started Curate Spirits. I teamed up with my brother and father, both of whom have extensive backgrounds in the wine and spirits industry. They both worked for a well-known company that sold high-end wine and spirits. My father helped them get off the ground and ran their restaurant and retail space. He then moved on to open a wine and spirits retail space of his own.
It is a wonderful balance between the three of us because we each bring something different to this company: my father handles the business aspect, my brother will handle sales and orders and I take care of the formulas and creative.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Just like any new company, we faced challenges, some we foresaw, and others were a bit more unexpected. The creative aspect has luckily run very smoothly for us, from the formula development process to the designing of our labels and bottles. This has been such a fun and eye-opening journey.
My distiller and I spent a good few months developing the right flavor balance. I was adamant about keeping this product natural, I didn’t want to add any artificial sugars or preservatives, so we had to experiment a lot with our formula to make sure it tasted good on its own. We knew we could rely on the tannins in tea to provide the right type of flavor I was after.
It was very important for me to keep this product as a spirit versus a liqueur. I wanted to create a spirit that had 80 proof and, after much experimenting and brainstorming, we were able to find the perfect balance. I am extremely proud of the products we created and cannot wait to share them with this city. We have one Moroccan Mint Tea Flavored Gin and one Earl Grey Tea Flavored Vodka coming out next year (2019).
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Curate Spirits story. Tell us more about the business.
Curate Spirits is a small family-run business that is local and craft-made. All of our ingredients, bottles, closures, and packaging are from California. We wanted to keep a close eye on everything and have a hand in the entire process from start to finish.
It is important for us to be involved so that we know where the materials and ingredients that make up our products come from, and we are confident all our choices make the difference. We strive to provide our customers with a natural products, free of preservatives and colorings, that can be enjoyed on the rocks or mixed into a cocktail.
I created this brand with hopes to market it mainly towards women because I don’t feel many spirits companies think about women without attaching the incentive that it is low in calories. I wanted to create something for women that I enjoy myself as a woman. I want people to just enjoy Curate Spirits without any incentive other than it is naturally made.
Nowadays, we are all much more conscious of what we are consuming, and if we want to enjoy a good drink, at least we can enjoy it knowing it is made with natural ingredients.
Our tea-infused spirits are unique because I hand blend each of the teas to create flavors specific to each spirit we work with. We have two spirits coming out: one gin and one vodka. I named this company Curate Spirits because that is what I do—I curate each flavor and spirit together to create something memorable.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
If I hadn’t decided to use the tea in my cocktails for my dinner party and instead just sent my husband out to grab the original ingredients, this whole idea and company would not have come to fruition.
I like to call it fate rather than luck, but whatever you call it, it has definitely played a huge role. This business is a gamble, and there is never any certainty, but I am a huge believer in getting what you put out into the universe.
I am hopeful this company will take off since I’ve poured my heart and soul into this.
Pricing:
- vodka: $35
- gin: $39
Contact Info:
- Website: www.CurateSpirits.com
- Phone: (310) 560-8388
- Email: CurateSpirits@gmail.com
- Instagram: @CurateSpirits
Image Credit:
Harrison Marciano
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