Mary Pellettieri is a craft beer connoisseur, not surprising given she spent 25 years working in the industry. But that all changed when she was researching different ways to bitter beer. She quickly became intrigued by the complex variety of herbs used in European amari, vermouth, and bitter wines.
She would ultimately leave her career to start Top Note in 2013 along with her business partner, Noah Swanson. At the start, they were crafting syrups but pivoted to soft beverages in 2017.
One of the first indicators that they had created something special was the positive response they received at a local farmer’s market.
They had spent hours going through “old recipes for inspiration in their self-constructed commercial kitchen” and from there had formulated a Bitter Orange Syrup that was “full of warm spice and bitter orange zest.
The response was so positive that they decided to bring their products to a broader audience.”
Some of their first bottled mixers included Indian Tonic Water, Bitter Lemon Tonic Water, and a unique non-alcoholic Ginger Beer formulated with date sugar.
They use natural cane and date sugars for sweeteners (no high-fructose corn syrup here), and pure botanical extracts that are GMO- and gluten-free for bitters and spices.
Within a couple of weeks, they were nominated for a SoFi award from the Specialty Food Association for their Indian Tonic Water. When asked what that meant to them, Mary replied:
“Amazing. It was validation and the reason to believe early on. It keeps us going, knowing we make one of the better-rated products out there and we are pleasing customers every day.”
The recognition didn’t stop there, though. In 2020, their Club Soda No. 1 was added to their product line and “quickly earned the title of “Best Club Soda outside of Japan” by leading Japanese whisky makers.”
Speaking of 2020, both then and now, Mary and Noah have faced challenges many growing businesses see.
“Covid was a doozy. But the economy in general is as well, the cost of money, the lackluster VC world….it seems like it is starting to change. But being patient has been a study of stoicism for all of us. Staying in business, being scrappy, and now posting profits is our triumph! “
Milwaukee has been crucial to their growth story. Despite Milwaukee’s somewhat ‘small’ size, many businesses find it to be an incubator for their companies due to benefits like strong entrepreneurial communities, access to financial solutions, relatively low cost of living, and a growing focus on advanced technologies
“It is a small town with the same benefits of being big. The bars are very supportive of us. But we still have growth to achieve here! We want to be the dominant brand on the shelf and in bars in our backyard.”
While they continue to dominate the market in Milwaukee and the greater Midwest, Top Note is getting ready to expand with moves into the Carolinas and the West Coast this year.
Interested in trying? You can find a retailer here.