Huckleberry, Pink Punch, and Moscow Mule are just a few funky flavors offered by Montana’s THC-infused beverage company, Sinful Beverages. It’s a sinfully good, fast-acting drink with natural flavors and no earthy aftertaste! Their mission is to craft drinks for Montana’s cannabis enthusiasts and those avoiding alcohol.
Since their inception in 2021, founders James Stephens and Taylor Woods have been innovating beverage enjoyment and effects. Their product lineup includes 16-oz drinks and 1.7-oz shots, each packed with a potent 100 mg of THC. Their fast-action shooters, perfect for mocktails, come in various flavors with recipes on their website.
Sinful Beverages: Name and Foundation
Before venturing into the cannabis sector, Stephens and Woods began developing flavors and fragrances for the commercial market. “I was always interested in the chemistry behind it,” he elaborated. “I got really intrigued by things like the various cannabinoids and what they could do. and the fact that no one really looked at or explored cannabis from a scientific perspective because it had still been illegal.”
Stephens’ fascination with the chemistry behind terpenes and cannabinoids led them to explore the untapped opportunities within the cannabis industry.
Their collaboration began when Woods, seeking a space for his startup, joined Stephens at Blue Marble Biomaterials. This partnership, rooted in mutual respect and innovation, eventually blossomed into Sinful Beverages.
“We always joked that we were gonna do companies around the seven sins,” he recounted.
The brand’s name signifies a bold stance against Montana’s conservative views. It aimed to transform cannabis use from a “sinful” indulgence to an embraced lifestyle choice.
“We kind of liked the approach,” he said. “Honestly, family members, society… pretty much everyone always kind of made the use of cannabis feel sinful, and we’re like, you know what, instead of like feeling bad about it, let’s just own it and go all in!”
All about the Terps’
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Central to Sinful Beverages’s success is their meticulous craftsmanship of in-house flavors. The team crafts each flavor to harmonize with specific terpenes, enhancing effects. Whether aiming for relaxation with linalool or an energy boost with limonene, their beverages are crafted for personalized experiences.
“Much of the formulation with terpenes is trying to leverage what we know from the scientific literature on how we can utilize terpenes to adjust your effects,” he said.
However, the true challenge was eliminating the bitterness profile associated with cannabinoids. Thus spawning the development of a beverage line that’s both flavorful and enjoyable.
“In many of our earlier products, we worked with Lemon Haze extract,” he said. “Whether it was live rosin, live resin or distillate. We’d put the terpenes back in and pair it nicely with a lemon and lime flavor,” he added.
Navigating Legal Landscapes
The path to establishing the Sinful Brand was fraught with regulatory hurdles, from the complexities of medical marijuana laws in Montana to the evolving legalization landscape. Despite Montana’s I-148 Bill legalizing medical marijuana in 2004, “tethering” was enacted in 2011, restricting patients to registering and purchasing from a single dispensary. Dispensaries were also limited on how many patients they could serve making it more challenging for patients to receive the needed care.
Fast forward through the tumultuous timeline of Montana’s legalization; the Farm Bill paved the way for Sinful Beverage’s creation and growth in the cannabis space.
The Flavors of Montana
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Now, the duo has been formulating new natural flavors with the help of local farmers and flavor houses. Stephens described some of the brand’s top flavors, personal favorites, and epic fails. “My top one- because it’s my flavor- is orange vanilla,” he said. Although he stopped drinking alcohol, his screwdriver of choice would be vanilla vodka with orange juice. They’ve formulated many flavors based on current trends and seasonal preferences. During the holidays, they also created a cranberry-spiced flavor while toying with the idea of a chili lime for the summer.
I really like a green apple one we made that tastes like those green apple caramel suckers you had back in the day.” he mused. He collaborated with a flavor house to create Strawberry Lemonade and Huckleberry flavors, mimicking freshly picked Montana huckleberries.
He even created a collection that tastes like the traditional alcoholic drinks people usually get at a bar.
“Even though they’re not the most popular, we did a whole line on alcohol and making drinks,” he said. Some flavors included Moscow Mule, Cosmos, and even Fireball Whiskey.
“I thought they were fun,” he said. “We learned, though, that most cannabis users don’t want (THC products) to taste like alcohol,” he admitted. Nonetheless, the range of flavors has allowed them to bridge the gap between ex-alcohol consumers and cannabis users in the community. One of the epic fails in the lab included their attempts at making coffee which ended up tasting bitter.
Where Can You Buy Sinful Beverages?
Sinful Beverages is available in 230+ dispensaries across 61 Montana towns and 11 dispensaries in 5 New Mexico towns. They plan on expanding further to other recreationally legalized states with gummies as a new addition.
Sinful Beverages’ journey, led by Stephens and Woods, is a testament to the transformative power of passion and innovation in the cannabis industry.
Their advice to aspiring cannabis entrepreneurs?
“If you’re not having fun in cannabis, you should get out.”
