Grateful Mary, a vibrant artisanal reinterpretation of classic Bloody Mary mix, is pioneering a new breed of mixer: small-batch, delicious, healthy, and in one of its two debut formulations, enhanced by CBD. Produced by Frontier Brands, Grateful Mary is now on shelves at retailers throughout the Southeastern United States and at dozens of Spec’s Wine, Spirits, and Finer Foods throughout Texas. Grateful Mary is available in two variations: Grateful Mary Bloody Mary Mix Traditional and Grateful Mary Bloody Mary Mix CBD Recovery.
Grateful Mary CBD Recovery is the first CBD-infused Bloody Mary mix to be mass distributed on the U.S. market.
Both Grateful Mary Traditional and Grateful Mary CBD Recovery boast gourmet taste usually reserved for craft cocktails found in premier bars and restaurants––all with lower sodium and a fraction of the sugar found in other brands, as well as the absence of any high fructose corn syrup. The CBD used in Grateful Mary CBD Recovery is odorless, colorless, and flavorless, which means that while the two versions offer different restorative experiences, the taste across the two is consistent, designed to be enjoyed with or without alcohol.
Grateful Mary achieves a distinctive umami flavor profile through a commitment to premium ingredients and a recipe perfected over years of experimentation. All natural tomato juice is used to create the base. Notes of oaky, bourbon barrel-aged Worcestershire nod to the brand’s Southern roots, and mingle with organic horseradish, a custom pepper blend, and a craft organic pickle brine, batch made in-house. Smooth but tangy with a tantalizing hint of heat, each sip finishes with a subtle dill punch that delights but never lingers.
Health benefits attributed to CBD include assistance in managing pain, inflammation, and anxiety; muscle relaxation; and calmness. Frontier Brands partners with a US lab that utilizes proprietary cannabinoid extraction processes — Nanotek — a newly-developed process that significantly increases the absorption rate of CBD molecules within the body. Creating a water-soluble CBD isolate in a 40 nanometer particle size — the smallest, optimally-sized molecule for maximized bioavailability (i.e. absorbed by the body rather than excreted) — Grateful Mary offers its customers a 10x potency & absorption rate compared to other CBD isolates on the market at a fraction of the cost. What this translates to is a more powerful, faster-acting CBD beverage that greatly reduces the drinker’s hangover recovery time in smaller milligram doses.
Grateful Mary CBD Recovery delivers a holistic experience. In addition to a bright, refreshing taste created to be enjoyed with or without an added alcoholic spirit, the mix’s capsaicin found in the chili peppers works in tandem with the CBD as an anti-inflammatory aid, helping to expedite natural relaxation. Grateful Mary also emerged as a healthier vehicle for CBD than other choices such as gummies, which often rely on outsized portions of sugar and other unnatural, unwanted additives.
Ultimately, Grateful Mary is a testament not only to premium ingredients and slow, traditional small-batch practices, but also to friendship. Creators Mason Noel, Jaan Cohan, Carl Gatti, Ian Leadon, and Fritz Colinet came together with an idea: Why not make a Bloody Mary mix that tasted delicious enough to serve alone––and then offer a variation infused with CBD?
Longtime friends who have logged years in the music and hemp industries, event production, bar programs, and more, Jaan Cohan and Carl Gatti began playing around with the idea of a Bloody Mary featuring CBD several years ago. To Jaan and Carl, an entire cocktail menu featuring CBD seemed not just feasible, but the future. Starting with a Bloody Mary just made sense––and the two decided they’d call their version Grateful Mary.
When Jaan met Ian, the co-founder and CEO of Frontier Brands––an innovative brand and product development firm specializing in bringing groundbreaking ideas to the marketplace––the two connected, and Jaan shared he and Carl’s vision for a CBD-infused Bloody Mary. Ian was immediately on board.
Meanwhile, Mason Noel, a 20-year veteran of the U.S. Army, had been perfecting an artisanal Bloody Mary mix for years. Globetrotting as he served, Mason fell in love with international cuisine. Back in the States, he began tinkering with recipes: a barbecue sauce here, a global fusion there. Mason also began making a Bloody Mary mix––one that would even charm someone who thought they didn’t care for the drink.
Mason met Ian, Jaan, and Carl, and the four began hammering out what would become Grateful Mary: zesty, a little spicy, Southern, and refreshing. Final recipe in hand, the friends reached out to branding giant Fritz Colinet, who shepherded the creation of Grateful Mary’s gorgeous imagery. Collaborating with artist Elizabeth Hoffman, the five friends emerged with bold iconography that feels like it’s always been here: beautiful, natural, and saturated with earthy color.
“The Grateful Mary artwork is an extension of the taste and aroma that’s been bottled––it all comes together to touch all the senses,” says Fritz Colinet, Executive Creative Director, Retna Media. “The women featured on each label are powerful, spiritual, inviting, approachable: We recognize understated confidence and enlightenment. People can see themselves in the artwork, and ultimately, in the brand. We wanted every bottle to be something someone would be proud to display in their home.”
“A love of food and culture brought the five of us together, and somehow, we were able to capture all of that in a bottle,” says Mason Noel, Co-founder Grateful Mary, LLC and COO for Frontier Brands. “We’re grateful to so many people who tasted it over the years, helping to ensure we got it right. When we see somebody sip it for the first time, and their eyes light up, then a smile spreads to their face––well, that’s it.”
“We made Grateful Mary as healthy as we possibly could––it really is just as nature designed every ingredient to be,” says Ian Leadon, Co-founder and CEO of Frontier Brands. “Once you taste Grateful Mary CBD Recovery and feel the relief it offers, you realize there’s more to this drink than just a delicious taste. When someone thinks of a CBD Bloody Mary, which is going to start happening more and more, we want that idea to be synonymous with Grateful Mary.”
“It all starts with ingredients––that’s something the five of us have agreed upon from the start,” says Carl Gatti, Co-Founder of Frontier Brands. “I hope everyone who tries Grateful Mary can enjoy the attention to detail and passion that went into creating every aspect of it, from the label artwork to the drink itself. The benefits of CBD are still being researched, but there is a lot that has already been done. Studies have shown that CBD helps with inflammation, relaxation, and stress. With the addition of CBD, Grateful Mary is the ultimate hangover recovery drink.”
“The idea of CBD in mocktails — and in the beverage industry as a whole — has intrigued me for years,” says Jaan Cohan, President & Co-founder of Frontier Brands. “It was rare to see healthier spirit-forward beverages & non-alc alternatives in a bar; today, my colleagues and I are pushing the boundaries of what can be served at one’s favorite bar or in the comforts of home. And I can’t wait to see how Grateful Mary is received by new customers — so far we’ve had an incredible response. For me, just the time and energy spent working alongside friends has made this journey well worth the wait.”
Grateful Mary Traditional is available for $10.99 – $14.99; Grateful Mary CBD Recovery is available for $15.99 – $21.99. In addition to placement in Spec’s throughout Texas, Grateful Mary is in stores throughout the Southeast. In Tennessee, Grateful Mary is distributed by Lipman Brothers. Please reach out to your Spec’s local store, specsonline.com or another preferred retailer in the Southeastern U.S. for pricing, which is subject to change. Bottles can also be purchased through GratefulMary.com.
