[00:00:10] Ray Latif: Hello, friends, and thanks for tuning in to Taste Radio, the number one podcast for anyone building a business in food or beverage. I'm Ray Latif, the editor and producer of Taste Radio, and with my co-host for this episode, John Craven, Jacqui Brugliera, and Mike Schneider. This episode features a conversation with MMA icon Quentin Rampage Jackson, who is a partner with F3 Energy.
[00:00:38] John Craven: Speaking of Rampage, you seem a little upbeat today for somebody who's having Michael Alisa fever dreams all night.
[00:00:44] Ray Latif: That's a reference to the game that Manchester United and Crystal Palace played yesterday. No, I'm happy with it.
[00:00:50] John Craven: They're the hottest team in the league right now.
[00:00:52] Ray Latif: Not to go very deep on this, but I'm actually happy because I don't want United to finish in a place where they'd have to play in the Europa Conference League next season. Yeah, the Conference League's terrible. That would be terrible.
[00:01:02] Jacqui Brugliera: That is terrible. This is where half our listeners just button mash the skip 30 seconds button.
[00:01:08] Mike Schneider: I wish I had a skip button, you know?
[00:01:10] Ray Latif: I know, I'm like, where is it? Not you too, Jack. I thought it was just John who was hating on the soccer. Don't hate on the soccer.
[00:01:16] Mike Schneider: My only point of reference is Wrexham because of the documentary. And I think they just got promoted.
[00:01:21] John Craven: I mean, they did. The Good thing is that our dear friend Adam Stern is over the moon about this because his team is the best in the league at the moment.
[00:01:27] Ray Latif: His team is Crystal Palace. A month ago, he was on the cliff, ready to jump.
[00:01:35] John Craven: They seem to be heading in the right direction. Yeah.
[00:01:37] Ray Latif: Yeah. John Craven, have you recovered from your jet lag? I'm always jet lagged when I come back from California and I did it twice in the past week, so.
[00:01:45] Jacqui Brugliera: Yeah, I feel pretty good.
[00:01:46] Ray Latif: You feel good?
[00:01:47] Jacqui Brugliera: Yeah.
[00:01:47] Ray Latif: You get your lie flat seat. Do you lie flat when you, when you fly? Sometimes. Sometimes. I mean, you know, it's just one of those perks of the job, I guess. I don't, I don't lie flat as much as I sit in the exit row of the JetBlue seats, which are the most spacious ones. But Thank You gotta like, you gotta commit to helping if something goes wrong. And they always give you, I want the verbal commitment, yes, yes, yes, yes. And you say yes, but you don't really mean it, do you? I mean, like, what if something terrible happens? If something terrible happens, they ask me to help, I'll help. Obviously, you'll help, but are you actually prepared to help? Well, I've heard the- Did you read the card? I've read the card enough times, yeah. I've read it, really? Why not? You're supposed to. You're supposed to.
[00:02:30] Mike Schneider: I'm not Sit Next To Ray on a plane. No, seriously. You shouldn't. He's gonna be just darting out of the exit.
[00:02:36] Jacqui Brugliera: He just grabs his Louis Vuitton carry-on.
[00:02:39] Mike Schneider: With his little puppy in it?
[00:02:40] Jacqui Brugliera: He would kick a small child. He'd be like, don't you know how much this costs?
[00:02:44] Ray Latif: My Beats X Gucci headphones. They make me kick those off. The Good chains? Yeah, exactly. They were like, sir, just, we need that. We need the headphones off just for a second. And then they're like, you know, were you willing and able to help? And I say willing. Yes. Able? I don't know. I mean, like, come on, let's be serious about this. I mean.
[00:03:01] John Craven: Okay. We know not to Sit Next to redheads.
[00:03:05] Ray Latif: Anyway, but Jackie, uh, you know, I, I feel like you're willing and able to help with anything. You got your, your camouflage down today. I feel like if anyone were sitting in an exit where I'll seated, I'd want it to be Jackie.
[00:03:16] Mike Schneider: I feel like I'd put on my like super woman outfit and be like, got this everyone like plug up any holes that are in the plane. Jesus. Wow. I'd take over the plane and make sure we land. What do you need an outfit for?
[00:03:25] Ray Latif: Did you say take over the plane if needed? Oh boy.
[00:03:28] John Craven: Yeah. Okay. I was just trying to land it.
[00:03:30] Ray Latif: Fly outside, fly under the plane, hold it up. Well, you know, Alaska Airlines could have used you a few months ago. Too soon? Too soon. There was a hole, there was a humongous hole in that plane. And I flew the, was it 747 Max? 767 Max? Whatever it was.
[00:03:44] John Craven: I read the story about the woman who was holding on to her teenage son when that happened.
[00:03:48] Jacqui Brugliera: That is scary.
[00:03:49] John Craven: That is really, that's horrifying, obviously. Yeah.
[00:03:52] Jacqui Brugliera: Well. Alaska Airlines does have Straightaway Cocktails. I love a more positive relevant note. They're quite tasty.
[00:03:58] Ray Latif: This is not about Alaska. Thanks for going there. I wasn't giving Alaska the beef. Is that still term? Giving them beef? Yeah, it's a Gen Z thing. Yeah. I just turned it into one. Just like standing on business. Boeing is the one that caused that issue. But no, Alaska's great. They do have the Straightaway Cocktails. They have The Good fashioned, they have the margarita. Best cocktail game in the airline industry. Well, I gotta bring up a couple brands that we featured in a recent episode of Elevator Talk. One is called Sibz. S-I-B-Z is the name of the brand. They're a maker of date bites. Three varieties of their date bites, including a goji berry and chia. an espresso and nuts. This one is Ora Cacao and coconut. Which one? Ora Cacao and coconut. Ora Cacao and coconut. Now each one of these these bites are sort of sphere shaped. You need two pieces for each serving. There's five servings per pouch and 80 calories per serving. I love the packaging, it feels very young, Gen Z packaging, the label design that is. It notes that there's no added sugar, they're gluten-free, plant-based, and they just recently got into all Sprouts locations, even though they're only about eight months old. I love the idea of just, you know, natural whole food snacks.
[00:05:27] John Craven: Me too. So are we going to indulge in this idea?
[00:05:30] Ray Latif: We can indulge in this, but as a segue, I want to get into dates themselves because this came up quite a bit in our conversation with the founders of Sibs. And sort of tie this into a reoccurring segment we have on Taste Radio called Buy or Sell. Dates. I keep seeing dates as like a key ingredient in a lot of snacks or date sugar or date syrup being used as a sweetener in said snacks. I just wonder, do dates have the kind of runway? Do dates have the kind of resonance with mainstream consumers that I think a lot of these brands think they might? John, let's start with you. Putting me on the spot. I got to put you on the spot. You're my spot guy.
[00:06:18] Jacqui Brugliera: Dates. That's a complicated, complicated topic. How so? Consumers kind of awareness and interest in just dates. If you think of a literal date, you know, it's not the most exciting thing out there. They've been around for forever. I do think that a lot of kind of more savvy, better for you food and beverages have, you know, used those to avoid adding like refined sugar, which I think is a totally fine use of the ingredient. I think from a market ability standpoint, consumers aren't like super jazzed about dates. You know, I think there's clearly some exceptions to this of like a brand like Julie's that's just about dates, right? J-O-O-L-I-E-S. But I think for brands whose identity is not specifically dates, it's generally kind of better to go subtle with the dates and talk about the benefits a la, you know, no refined sugar type of stuff.
[00:07:22] Ray Latif: Yeah, I would agree. So you're not necessarily buying or selling, you're just kind of leaving it on the shelf for now.
[00:07:26] Jacqui Brugliera: I mean, I think dates are great in the right situation. So again, if your company is all about dates, fine. If it's not, then I think it's something that generally is better off like staying in the background.
[00:07:37] Ray Latif: Well, so this brand, Sibz, S-I-B-Z, is a brand of date bites. They're all about dates. So in this context, you're buying.
[00:07:44] Jacqui Brugliera: I think this brand doesn't necessarily need to be about dates. I don't know. Does this have protein in it? Like, what's the... No, it's not like a protein ball sort of thing. It's just kind of a... It's a day bite snack. It's better for your snack. Better for your snack. Yeah, I don't know. This is one of those that's like right on the line. Hard To Ray. OK. Like, I look at the picture of the product. It's great. You know, do I need to think about dates?
[00:08:06] Ray Latif: I don't know. I don't know. Mike's been shopping at the bit, looking at the bag intensely. What are your thoughts?
[00:08:12] John Craven: I'm looking at the bag intensely because Sibs, the goji berry and chia from the package to, you know, the experience when you eat it, this one fully pays off. I got goji berry, there's chia seeds everywhere. This one's great. So then I'm thinking, all right, well, the espresso and nuts is going to be similar. Not a lot of espresso flavor in there, right? I mean, the nuts were there, but I was looking for a little bit more espresso oomph. Looking at the back here, the one we don't have with us is pistachio and Ora Cacao. That one sounds awesome. And then we've got this Ora Cacao and coconut. I'd still try the others, but the espresso and nuts didn't really pay off for me.
[00:08:49] Ray Latif: But are you trying it because you like dates? I love dates.
[00:08:53] John Craven: Yeah. I mean, but I know why to eat dates.
[00:08:56] Jacqui Brugliera: Okay.
[00:08:56] John Craven: I know why I would eat them.
[00:08:57] Jacqui Brugliera: But look, I think this is, you know, this is a... I don't need education. This is a type of product that, you know, you can buy in places like Erewhon, I mean, you know, but I'm saying, like, these types of products have been around for a long time, right?
[00:09:11] Ray Latif: I would agree, yes.
[00:09:12] Jacqui Brugliera: And I'm not sure that there's one that's really... Massively kind of blown up, right? Let's try this rocket cow and coconut, right? Okay. So yeah, so I guess my point is that I feel like to some extent the market is kind of Speaking for itself.
[00:09:27] Mike Schneider: Okay, Jackie your thoughts sounds like no one's buying or selling everyone's kind of like waiting to see what happens. I Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think there is still a runway. I mean, people in SoCal too have a really good understanding of dates. There's date shakes and things like that. There's a lot of dates in SoCal. So leading with it, people would be a little bit more prone to reaching for something that's a date snack. But I do agree that as an ingredient and the functionality and keeping it simple, I think as we continue on down this road, people are going to be looking for cleaner, simpler, less sugar snacks and ingredients. So I think just as an ingredient, it makes a lot of sense.
[00:10:11] John Craven: I'm going to go in a literal sense here, Ray. And I would buy, I would buy the Roc-A-Cow and coconut, the Goji berry and chia, but I would sell the espresso and nuts. Okay.
[00:10:22] Ray Latif: So very, very specific about it.
[00:10:24] Mike Schneider: Yeah. And I think the other ingredients that they're combining with the date makes a lot of sense. Like goji and chia, if it was just pure, like, I don't know, here's a, here's a date. I mean, Julie's does it really well, but it's like you said, or like Craven said, there's been a lot of products that have already come and gone or already exist in the market.
[00:10:44] Jacqui Brugliera: Yeah, I guess what I was trying To Ray is I feel like it's something that, again, there are like certain levels of consumers who understand it. I think people generally accept it as like a healthy, better for you ingredient, but I'm not sure that leading with dates is like the path to victory.
[00:11:04] Ray Latif: Now I have a product here that I bought from Imperfect Foods, which as you know, or as our listeners might know, is a subscription food delivery service that rescues produce and products that are imperfect in one way or another. Either they're close to their expiration date, or maybe the produce is a little misshapen, or they just have excess inventory. This product is called Smash Bites, and it is marketed by Chia Smash, which is a maker of jams that are infused with chia. So these are peanut butter and superfood jam bites. There's four per pouch. On the front of the pack, they note there's seven grams of plant protein, and the ingredients are peanuts, dates, raspberries, cacao, and sea salt. So once again, we see dates in this product. The question I have in the buyer's cell that I'm going to be asking is about a specific word on the front of pack here. Superfood. Superfood as a term has jumped the shark. Buyer's cell.
[00:12:13] Mike Schneider: I think I'm still buying. I think there's still... That it has jumped the shark.
[00:12:18] Jacqui Brugliera: You're buying is... Yeah. I'm at the rate of making this very confusing. It's a double negative.
[00:12:24] Mike Schneider: Okay. I am selling that it's jumped the shark.
[00:12:27] Jacqui Brugliera: Yeah.
[00:12:27] Mike Schneider: Okay.
[00:12:27] Jacqui Brugliera: So confused.
[00:12:28] Mike Schneider: I think that there's still a lot of people that don't know what a superfood is and is still understanding what functional ingredients are. And we were, you know, at the forefront of product innovation because we're in the industry and we've known what superfoods are for a while, but I think there's still a lot of education for people. So I think I am selling that it's jumped the shark.
[00:12:53] Ray Latif: So it still has residence. I should have asked that way.
[00:12:55] Mike Schneider: It still has residence, yes.
[00:12:56] Ray Latif: Superfood still has residence as a term that people are interested in and attracted to.
[00:13:02] Mike Schneider: Yes, I would say so. Okay, fair enough.
[00:13:03] Ray Latif: All right, John, you're nodding your head in agreement.
[00:13:05] Jacqui Brugliera: Well, I don't know what the buyer sell.
[00:13:07] Ray Latif: I'm going to rephrase it for a third time, but superfood still has resonance by herself.
[00:13:12] Jacqui Brugliera: OK, so I feel like superfood at this point is probably on par with using a phrase like all natural or I don't know, better for you. You know, they're just subtle sort of reassurances to the consumer that something good is inside. I Thank You know, superfood kind of at a most basic level you know, I think is used to kind of denote things that are, you know, nutrient dense or some, you know, again, better for you type of ingredient. And I think it's fine. I mean, I think, again, like, it doesn't really... kind of poison the overall message of a brand that uses it, in that it's pretty, like, innocuous and, you know, low-key, right? As opposed to, like, really screaming about some functional ingredients. So, you know, I look at this and it says Superfood Jam Bites. Okay, well, I mean, I guess you're basically telling me that it's not, like, grape jelly, right? So that's cool. You know, it speaks to, like, product quality. So, I think it's fine in this situation. I think we're brands similar to what I was saying with dates, like, really use it as part of their, like, core identity, like, I don't know, being a superfood juice or something like that, and really starting to get, like, you know, down in the weeds of whatever the actual, like, hero ingredient is and its benefits, like, that kind of takes away from the fun. You know, but this is, this is good. I mean, it's a pretty well done package, I think, having tried the product, but.
[00:14:42] Ray Latif: Well, have a bite while Mike weighs in on the superfood debate. Superfood still has residence as a term.
[00:14:48] John Craven: Does for me. I mean, the word super doesn't tend to let me down. You got superfood, supermarket, super Jackie's, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, you know, all those are good for me.
[00:14:58] Ray Latif: Okay, so the key word in there is super. Yeah, you're just gonna adopt and embrace anything.
[00:15:03] John Craven: This is super everything man super everything you keep talking about cow over there and that just Leads to this I've got is I had a conversation with Jonas Ketterle last week about Ceremonial Ora Cacao. Did you even know there was ceremonial? I knew there was ceremonial grade matcha, of course So this is a similar concept to that where is making these ceremonial Ora Cacao that's meant for you to drink it You know, sort of like you'd have a coffee or a latte. And there's some that have just flavors like Tantric Rose Blossom and Oaxacan Spice. Tantric Rose Blossom. Vibrant Vitality. And then also there's some that have like adaptogens. There's a Mystical Mushroom. I can't wait To Ray this. You should try it too. Can I see? Yes. What's the name of the brand? Aura. Aura.
[00:15:49] Jacqui Brugliera: Aura. Ora Cacao. I thought Ceremonial Cacao was like when I was a kid putting little mini marshmallows in my Swiss Miss. be next level from that yeah we're gonna try it later okay yeah I mean I'm you're definitely in for this I'm into a hawk and spice same that sounds great I'm not tantric rose blossom that's definitely your jam right mystical mushroom that sounds pretty good leave it to your barista that's gonna happen or pure cacao we got to make sure that's not too mystical that's all pure cacaos it's plural I didn't know the Plurality of Cacao was cacaos and why would you ever have a Plurality of Cacao why wouldn't you
[00:16:28] Mike Schneider: I've actually started to see a couple of cafes pop up in San Diego that serve ceremonial cacao. So it's not aura. It's just like their own kind of coffee cafe, but it's there's focused Ora Cacao and the different benefits of it and different flavors, which is kind of cool.
[00:16:45] John Craven: Gotcha.
[00:16:46] Ray Latif: All right. Last one, last buy or sell. How do you guys feel about brands creating better for you versions of Legacy Snacks? Do you feel like this is something Thank You want to continue to see, or is this something Thank You're like, eh, I'm still, I'm still a fan of the Legacy Snacks?
[00:17:08] Jacqui Brugliera: Depends on what the product is like if I didn't like the legacy snack, then I probably don't care about a better for you Upgraded version. How do you feel about Funyuns? Not my jam.
[00:17:19] Ray Latif: Not your jam. No, so you probably wouldn't be interested in these new Lesser Evil Moonyans So Lesser Evil, the well-known brand of better-for-you snacks including popcorn, cheese balls, etc. has launched a new line of products that are Very similar To Ray famous snack, Funyuns, but these are called Munyuns. M-O-O-N-I-O-N-S.
[00:17:51] John Craven: I feel like you baited John there, because when was the last time we said no to anything Lesser Evil?
[00:17:55] Ray Latif: That's a fair point. Okay, so they have two varieties. Hold on, hold on. Hurry this up.
[00:17:59] John Craven: See, he wants To Ray it.
[00:18:01] Ray Latif: They have a hyperspace hot onion. They have an intergalactic onion. Both are made with organic avocado oil.
[00:18:08] Jacqui Brugliera: I've got space for those that crazy So which one I'm a little confused by the hierarchy here So it's crunchy organic corn rings, but then it says hyperspace hot onion So is it corn is it an onion is a little bit of both. Is there actually onion in a fun?
[00:18:27] Mike Schneider: You know, I don't even know there is it that's the the beauty actually have onion and Funyun yeah
[00:18:35] Jacqui Brugliera: So this seems a little like which one we trying I mean, I don't know hyperspace hot onion Do you do you go into hyperspace when you eat?
[00:18:43] Ray Latif: Talked about this, you know, I sure hope space is a trending kind of term For Gen Z.
[00:18:50] Jacqui Brugliera: It's like it's yeah, they all want to go to space exactly off this place All right, how is it for someone who's not a Funyuns guy I mean I This is like they made a corn puff just into a ring. Yeah. Yeah, that's what a Funyun is. I don't want to think about onions. Like they should let Funyuns die. They deserve to die.
[00:19:11] Mike Schneider: Oh, OK. You have a hate for onions. I love onions and Funyuns.
[00:19:15] Jacqui Brugliera: It doesn't have onion in it. Don't call it that.
[00:19:17] Mike Schneider: I know, but it tastes oniony and it looks like it's just fun. It's like playing with your food, you know? No, it's onion powder.
[00:19:25] Ray Latif: Organic onion powder at that.
[00:19:27] John Craven: That's a flavor. Here's what I have To Ray about these. They are fantastic. They are fantastic. Lesser Evil never lets you down. They're fantastic. Well done, Lesser Evil. Way to confuse us in the best way possible. So confused, but tasty. Okay. These are so good. The spice is perfect. You can't, definitely you can't eat one. You have to eat many.
[00:19:46] Ray Latif: Okay. So you're better for you Doritos better for you corn chips cheese ball better for you on a Funyuns. You're all about that I mean if I want a snack and Lesser Evil around that it's there's a good chance that I'm gonna eat it So it has more to do with the brand than it does with the product itself. You're just Thank You trust the brand and
[00:20:06] John Craven: I think everything this brand does is great.
[00:20:08] Ray Latif: Yeah, but I'm saying, let's say somebody else came out with a better for you Funyuns.
[00:20:12] John Craven: Oh, if somebody else came out with a better, who, like Good Crisp or something? Sure. I'm in. Okay, so it has a lot to do with the brand.
[00:20:18] Jacqui Brugliera: Okay, but yeah, I think that's the point though. It could be, this sort of makes sense as an established snack brand expanding into this. If a brand just launched and all they did were recreate Funyuns, I don't know. to be maybe not the best strategy.
[00:20:33] Ray Latif: Okay.
[00:20:33] John Craven: I mean, if you put a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos in front of me and said, Mike, you eat this whole bag, I'll give you a million dollars. You're going to lose a million dollars. So let's put it that way too. I mean, I love Cool Ranch Doritos.
[00:20:44] Ray Latif: Wait, you said you would eat the bag. I would eat the whole bag. You'd probably eat it for a dollar. You don't need a million dollars. Just saying. I'm just going to point out that, look, if you want people to trade up from the legacy, not better for you, snacks of our childhood, Thank You got to be spot on when it comes to texture and flavor. You've got to. Otherwise, why would someone trade up? And I think that leads me back To Ray conversation about a brand called Harken, right? So Harken is a maker of Better For You candy bars. I've talked about them on the podcast in the past, and they have really nailed the flavor, the texture, the sweetness level of products that we know and love, like a Snickers. And so that is the reason, I think, that Harken ended up on shelves at over 3,500 Walmart stores across the United States. Katie Lefkowitz, who is the founder of the company, recently posted this on LinkedIn. She's not only on the shelves at Walmart, she is at the checkout aisle where people typically see snack bars and whatnot. So I feel like that is exactly the type of brand that is doing what not only customers want, but retailers want as well. The retailers know that this is a no-sacrifice type of product and that their customers will respect the fact that it is and buy it.
[00:22:20] John Craven: Jackie, you got to get your hands on some of these munions, especially as a Funyuns lover.
[00:22:23] Mike Schneider: You're going to love these. I eat like three bags of Lesser Evil popcorn a week, so this is going to be the next thing.
[00:22:29] John Craven: They have organic avocado oil, Jackie. I know.
[00:22:31] Mike Schneider: Sounds delicious. And they got a spicy version.
[00:22:34] John Craven: They have an upside-down cow on the back.
[00:22:36] Mike Schneider: Come on. Love them even more look.
[00:22:38] Ray Latif: I'm gonna just put that Okay, anything else that DNS on the table DNS I do have my tickets. I don't have my train tickets yet, but I do have my tickets to BevNET Live. Everyone should have their tickets to BevNET Live. It's coming up very soon, June 12th and 13th in New York City.
[00:23:03] John Craven: Bring the three hardest questions, the ones that are keeping you up at night. The answers are there. You're going to move your business milestone or two as a result of attending. It's also a lot of fun. We can't wait to see you. The other thing is if, you know, some people are saying, oh, I'm not that great a networker. I'm a little bit shy. You know who can help you with that? Us. We'll help you. If you need intros or you're feeling a little shy, let us make some of those intros for you. That's what we're there for.
[00:23:29] Ray Latif: Mike used to be a very shy networker. He used to be the kind of guy who would be like sitting in the corner with his chair actually turned and faced in the corner. And then one day someone patted on his shoulder and said, Mike, come with me. And they held his hand and walked him around the room. And then he has since done that for countless other people in the beverage industry and beyond. So, I mean...
[00:23:52] John Craven: But the reason my chair was facing the corner, Ray, is because in kindergarten I was a bit of a chatterbox.
[00:23:57] Jacqui Brugliera: You got a time out of PevNet Live.
[00:23:58] John Craven: Really? Yeah. Okay. Sure did.
[00:24:02] Mike Schneider: Yeah, there are so many different experiences at BevNET Live for brands and founders and other industry professionals. There's sampling opportunities, there's retailer one-to-one meetings, we have the new Beverage Showdown on stage, and a lot of these all have deadlines, so I'd recommend signing up now so you can get into the sample bar, you can sign up for meetings, you can just really take full advantage of everything that BevNET Live has to offer.
[00:24:29] Ray Latif: That's a great point, Jackie. I think that the sooner you sign up, the sooner you register, the better you're going to have an opportunity to map out your plan for the event, figure out what meetings you'll be able to take, and just know in general how you're going to tackle the event and New York City in the most efficient way. Because of course, New York City is a big part of the show. You want to be able to do retail check-ins, have meetings with folks in the area, distributors, investors, what have you. So definitely sign up, map out your plan, as Mike pointed out, come with any questions you have, send us a note if you have any questions about the show at all, and we will direct you in the best way possible. Jackie, you mentioned the sample fridges. I am really looking forward to finding products and beverages that make me feel better, feel strong, feel healthier throughout the show. And I really think that if I find a product that has a key ingredient called a muse in it, I'll probably drink at least a dozen of those products. Well, maybe not a dozen, but yeah.
[00:25:40] John Craven: Well, knowing you, you'll at least put a dozen in your bag to take home.
[00:25:44] Jacqui Brugliera: And we have the 50-gallon drum of hand sanitizer Thank You ordered.
[00:25:47] Ray Latif: Exactly. But I do want to point out that Amuse is the presenting sponsor of this episode of Taste Radio. As I mentioned, now more than ever, consumers looking for ways to boost their immune systems, and Amuse gives them that edge. It is a dietary and food ingredient clinically shown to stimulate immune function at the cellular level. Incorporate Amuse into your innovation strategy and help your consumers optimize their health throughout the year. Learn more at amusehealth.com. That's I-M-M-U-S-E health dot com.
[00:26:21] Jacqui Brugliera: Yum. Yum. Can I call one more product? Sure. This is the new chocolate mint chip IQ bar.
[00:26:30] Taste Radio: Okay.
[00:26:31] Jacqui Brugliera: Which is extremely delicious. Huge fan of mint chip flavored things, and this product does not disappoint. It's got 12 grams of protein, plant protein, one gram of sugar, and it's also enhanced with a bunch of things, MCTs, Lion's Mane, fiber, super tasty.
[00:26:52] John Craven: That's usually a bigger bar for 12 grams of protein. How many calories is that thing?
[00:26:56] Jacqui Brugliera: Hold on here. It's 170 calories. Oh, not bad. So it's pretty dense. It's a 1.6 ounce bar. But yeah, highly recommend. Nice.
[00:27:05] Ray Latif: Jackie, is that some hot sauce I see by your side?
[00:27:08] Mike Schneider: Yeah, I always have hot sauce by my side at all times.
[00:27:12] Ray Latif: Hot sauce and popcorn.
[00:27:14] Mike Schneider: Yeah, actually, have you ever tried putting hot sauce on popcorn? Yes. Because it's delicious. That or jalapenos. But, uh, uh, we got a care package from Kartik from Dusura.
[00:27:26] Ray Latif: By the way, is Kartik now like an unofficial employee of DevNet. He's at least a Taste Radio VIP. He's a VIP for sure. Ultra VIP for sure. Kartik, chill dude.
[00:27:40] Mike Schneider: Yeah. He's always looking out, you know, sliding into DMS, like sending us new products. I love it.
[00:27:46] John Craven: Other people's products too.
[00:27:48] Mike Schneider: Like, yeah. Yeah. So he sent over, I think it's pronounced jab low. It's a Filipino hot sauce with a punch has a cute little devil guy with like punching gloves on, on the front. And they say that this is the first Filipino hot sauce produced in the United States. It's really delicious. It's like creamy and gingery. I wouldn't say it's super spicy, but it could, I know you tried it on a taco, Mike.
[00:28:15] John Craven: It was almost like a taco. I had it on a fish sandwich. I had it on, it was haddock and English muffin and Diablo and man is that stuff. That sounds delicious. And if they're setting the bar for Filipino hot sauce in the U.S., they have set it very high.
[00:28:30] Ray Latif: Can I pause for a second? I'm sure a listener is wondering what the heck kind of sandwich an English muffin haddock in hot sauce.
[00:28:37] John Craven: I don't know. I had haddock left over from the night before. So that's the scraps. And I wanted a high protein breakfast. So I put that together.
[00:28:43] Mike Schneider: It was a stretch, but it was delicious. And it was for breakfast. What? And it was for breakfast.
[00:28:48] John Craven: Oh, yeah. I eat fish for breakfast. So strange. I've got my emotional support mackerel in my hand right here from fish life right now.
[00:28:55] Ray Latif: Don't try and change the subject.
[00:28:57] John Craven: You guys, I'm on a bit of a protein kick, and I guess I got really jealous of Amanda Smerlinski and fitting all that protein in, so I started eating stuff for breakfast, too, like high-protein breakfast.
[00:29:09] Mike Schneider: Okay.
[00:29:10] John Craven: And fish, you know, it's there for you when you need protein. It's okay, Mike. It's not your fault.
[00:29:15] Mike Schneider: Fish sandwiches, fish sandwiches for breakfast.
[00:29:17] John Craven: I'm not gonna apologize for it. I mean, they eat fish in Japan for breakfast, so why can't I?
[00:29:22] Mike Schneider: Fair enough.
[00:29:23] John Craven: Fair enough. Okay.
[00:29:24] Mike Schneider: That's true.
[00:29:25] Ray Latif: Continue, Jackie, please.
[00:29:26] Mike Schneider: Yeah. So you could have fish for breakfast. You could have a non-alcohol cocktail for breakfast, too. Sure. Because, you know, why not? And this is Erk. It's a Himalayan non-alcohol cocktail. This one is kind of like a twist on a lemonade. It says it's India's simple yet delicious version called Nimbu Pani with classic gin-based cocktails like Tom Collins. And then there's another one, this one, it's called Western Gots, and it sounds like it's kind of like a play on a red wine. So, very interesting. Definitely curious To Ray. And it's spelled I-R-K? It's spelled A-R-K. A-R-K. Underneath it says it's pronounced U-R-R-K. Erk. Okay. Nice. Yeah.
[00:30:14] Ray Latif: Alright, it's time to get to our featured interview for this episode. MMA fans are undoubtedly familiar with the name Rampage. The sobriquet belongs to one of the sport's icons, Quentin Jackson, a former titleholder in the UFC's light heavyweight division. Quentin is still active in the MMA community and currently aligned with the United Fight League, which was founded by entrepreneur Harrison Rogers in 2023. Harrison is also the founder of F3, a nascent brand of energy and mood-enhancing drinks, of which Quentin is a partner. I sat down with Quentin at the 2024 Beverage Forum where he spoke about his role with F3, why he urged Harrison not to get into the beverage industry, and how he's using novel social platforms to promote the brand. He also addresses a touchy topic that almost landed me in hot water. Hey folks, it's Ray with Taste Radio. Right now I'm honored to be sitting down with the one and only Quentin Rampage Jackson, who is a partner with F3 Energy. Quentin, great to see you.
[00:31:22] Thank You: Good to see you too. Thanks for having me. Does everyone, do they call you Q, Quentin, Rampage? It's crazy, man. I got so many names. Some people call me Q, some people call me Ram, some people call me Page, some people call me Quentin. I don't care what you call me.
[00:31:35] Ray Latif: How about Quentin?
[00:31:37] Thank You: I think Quentin is a formal way to do it. Yeah, that's what my mama called me.
[00:31:40] Ray Latif: Okay, good. Actually, my mom called me Quint. Quint? Yeah. You're from Memphis, you told me.
[00:31:45] Thank You: Yeah, from Memphis.
[00:31:47] Ray Latif: Do you spend much time in Memphis or are you out here in LA?
[00:31:49] Thank You: I'm out here. I live in Orange County. I don't get enough time to go back home that often. Yeah. Yeah. I don't get enough time to go back.
[00:31:57] Ray Latif: I've never been to Memphis. I've been to Nashville. I'm sure there's a little rivalry between the two cities, but not with me, though.
[00:32:04] Thank You: No, no, no. It's cool. Nashville is a great town.
[00:32:07] Ray Latif: It isn't. I mean, it seems like everyone goes there nowadays because it's like the Las Vegas of the East.
[00:32:12] Thank You: Yeah. And it's probably safer than Memphis. Oh, really? I would say.
[00:32:15] Ray Latif: OK. Good to know. Well, you seem like the kind of person who can take care of yourself wherever you are.
[00:32:21] Thank You: Yeah. Yeah. I can take care of myself. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Well, but, you know, you can never be too safe.
[00:32:27] Ray Latif: How long have you been in LA or Orange County?
[00:32:30] Thank You: I think I've been out here probably like 23 years maybe.
[00:32:33] Ray Latif: Okay. So, I mean, starting out fighting and Thank You got into Hollywood as well.
[00:32:38] Thank You: Yeah. Yeah, I did a little dabble into movies.
[00:32:41] Ray Latif: Yeah. And now you're a beverage entrepreneur in so many ways.
[00:32:45] Thank You: In so many ways. In so many ways. Yeah, I'm with F3 Energy. I really gravitated towards them because my business partner, Harrison Rogers, wanted to make a healthy energy drink. He wanted to make one with like supplements and BCAAs and he could globa and I was like, okay, man, let's try it out. Yeah.
[00:33:04] Ray Latif: Well, it's, this is not an easy business. No. And when you, when you jump into the beverage industry, you're kind of like, you're on for a ride Thank You're not sure how you're going to get off of.
[00:33:14] Thank You: I know, tell me, but I asked him not to.
[00:33:17] Ray Latif: You asked your partner not to.
[00:33:18] Thank You: Yeah, I asked him not to because, you know, he started the first MMA league to give fighter benefits.
[00:33:24] Ray Latif: What was the league?
[00:33:25] Thank You: It's called UFL. UFL.
[00:33:27] Ray Latif: So originally you were with UFC and now... Oh yeah, I was with
[00:33:32] Thank You: many other organizations, Pride, UFC, Bellator. And then one of my other fighter friends, Frank Mira, asked me, hey, you want to be like a coach against Tito Ortiz to coach these fighters, like your fighters fight his fighters? I'm like, OK, yeah, team captain type thing. I'm like, yeah, let's do it. And I met Harrison Rogers, and he wanted to make this league where fighters have benefits, like health insurance, life insurance, that he wanted to give them shares in the company. And no one has ever done that in my sport. Football players, basketball players, they get benefits, and they get compensation after they retire. But MMA, you don't have that. Boxing, I don't Thank You have that either. I was like, yeah, man, that's a great idea. And my son was talking about fighting coming up. I was like, that'd be something great for my son, because I wish they had that when I was coming up. And so I partnered up with him, and he's doing great. And he turns out to be a stand-up guy. And he wanted to start an energy drink to be able to give the fighters more shares, so the fighters can make more money when they retire. And I was like, man, you want to stay away from the energy drink business. Because I was with Monster. by Monster and I've been with them for like several years at this point, probably close to 15 years. And, you know, Monster is a great company and I didn't really want to be involved in an MMA league that was promoting Monster Energy drink because I was so loyal to Monster. But then When he told me, yeah, I'm gonna give the fighter shares and stuff like that. And he really needed me to help him promote the energy drink. My contract with Monster was up and I didn't re-sign. So it's like, all right, I'll help you out. Cuz Monster, they didn't really need me.
[00:35:23] Ray Latif: Well, I mean, it's better to own part of an energy drink brand than just be an ambassador for one, I would say. I mean, in some cases, but so F3 seems to be like the in-house brand. I know it's two different companies, but for the UFL, F3 is the premier, the exclusive energy drink partner of the league.
[00:35:42] Thank You: Yeah, correct.
[00:35:43] Ray Latif: So let's, yeah, let's taste it. So in your hand, you have, what's the flavor there?
[00:35:47] Thank You: This is citrus clarity. It's not cold. I love them cold.
[00:35:52] Ray Latif: I'm fine either way. But yeah, I mean, this is a good looking can. And so, as you mentioned, on the front of the can, we have ginseng ponix. Is that how you pronounce ponix or panix? I don't know. I just call it ginseng. Okay, ginseng. Ginseng is good. Then we got BCAA, some L-theanine, and some ginkgo biloba. All right, let's try it. I got the tropical theory variety.
[00:36:13] Thank You: Yeah, see, you pronounced the L-theanine correctly. I couldn't pronounce that one.
[00:36:18] Ray Latif: Yeah, L-theanine has a calming, relaxing function to it. And I like that because you get the caffeine and Thank You got to even it out with the L-theanine as well.
[00:36:28] Thank You: It's delicious. Yeah, Thank You. This one's my favorite. The citrus is my favorite for some reason. But I love all the flavors so far.
[00:36:35] Ray Latif: I'm a, so I'm a, I'm a believer that there's not enough fruit punch flavors on the market. Remember we were growing up, it was fruit punch everything. The tropical theory. This is a good fruit punch flavor. I like this.
[00:36:44] Thank You: It's crazy. You said that before I got with Monster, I was with this MMA company called Throwdown and they, they just made their own energy drinks. I guess back in the day, this was years ago, everybody was trying to do energy drink. And they made me a fruit punch one, because they asked me, what flavor do you want? I said, fruit punch. And it tastes like carbonated Hawaiian punch. I missed that one.
[00:37:06] Ray Latif: That is a dream come true.
[00:37:07] Thank You: Yeah, I asked them to make a fruit punch. They haven't made it yet, but maybe I got to ask them again.
[00:37:12] Ray Latif: probably get away with renaming this Fruit Punch. Maybe you add a little bit of like natural red coloring, because natural is important to me. I mean, I feel like, yeah. Well, how involved were you in the formulation?
[00:37:24] Thank You: Zero. Yeah. I was zero, zero, zero involved, because in the beginning, remember, I was still with Mustard. Right. And so I wouldn't, I'm loyal like that. I wouldn't touch it. You'd also get sued probably. Yeah, also get sued. I was like zero involvement until I hit up my friend. One of my friends works for Monster. He's over the MMA department. And it was like a real hard, conversation with me because the guy, my friends brought me in and I was like, uh, Huns, are you okay if I, if I don't re-sign my contract and I go with another brand? He was like, oh, I hate Thank You have to do this, but he, he understood. And, you know, I told him I get, I get shares in this company as well. And that can, you know, set me up for me and my kids for a lifetime.
[00:38:07] Ray Latif: Yeah. Now you said F3, before we hopped into the mics, you said F3 has been on the market for eight months. Yeah. You know, getting out there on the market's really important. Just getting your first few accounts, getting to some retail is really important. But once you're on shelf, that's actually the harder part, right? Like you're on shelf, what do you do next? You have to get people to buy the product, get it off shelf. How are you involved in sales promotion, getting people to buy F3?
[00:38:30] Thank You: Well I just do whatever they ask me to do because I really believe in this product. I love the way it tastes and I feel like if If people taste it one time, it pretty much sells itself. We have some success on Kick streaming. Okay.
[00:38:45] Ray Latif: Is that like a... Have you ever heard of Twitch? Of course, yeah.
[00:38:49] Thank You: So it's like Twitch.
[00:38:51] Ray Latif: It's for MMA?
[00:38:53] Thank You: No, it's for anybody that streams.
[00:38:55] Ray Latif: It would The Good for MMA because it's called Kick, right?
[00:38:57] Thank You: Right. It is good for MMA and fighting. But I think it's owned by a company called Stake. Stake? Yeah, a betting company. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
[00:39:08] Ray Latif: I know. There is just so much going on right now.
[00:39:10] Thank You: So much going on. But that community is really getting behind it because the way Harrison Rogers, the way he structured everything, like the people that stream video games, some different people have followings and some people have larger followings than others. But everybody, you know, they're sitting there streaming or playing video games and they have people watching them. And they sell the cans to them, and they get a percentage of what they sell. While they're live streaming, and a lot of the up-and-comers, they don't have sponsors. Some people on Kick, they're huge. They have a huge following, and everybody don't have that, right? So they don't have big sponsors. So it's kind of like they can work and have a sponsor, but work for it. They sell cans. So I help out with that, and I promote them as much as I can. I go to the fights. I do what anybody that, what you want to call it, like athlete or whatever, would do to support a company that they believe in.
[00:40:08] Ray Latif: The most important part of getting the word out is getting people to believe in the mission, believe in what you're doing in a really authentic way. You're a very authentic person. I can tell just from the 10 minutes we've been chatting. You don't have to make up anything.
[00:40:22] Thank You: You are who you are.
[00:40:23] Ray Latif: Thank You. But sharing that authentic message and talking about why you should be drinking this beyond flavor. How do you express that message?
[00:40:32] Thank You: Well, I just let people know, like, people that, like, who like my sport, MMA, you know, that the best part about this drink is that it's going for, like, To Ray help out the fighters when they retire. Like, a lot of fighters, a lot of the pioneers that started this sport, they retired broke. They don't have money doing GoFundMe when they need surgeries and stuff like that. It's really upsetting. And I'm gonna be honest, it's been one of my fears. When I started the sport, because I knew it coming in, that it's a short-lived career, right? So guys that's involved with this new league, the UFL, the F3 was made and mined just for the up-and-coming fighters that represent this organization. Because that's all we can control. We can't control the big dogs. We can't control the other organizations. you know, the UFL, you know, since he's on, since he, he owns it, the fighters that come up through there, they'll have, they'll have something to look forward to when they retire. They'll have, you know, they'll have like, um, some, some, It's hard to even imagine the people that fight, like the older guys. It's hard to imagine. It's really embarrassing for me to talk about it. For some of these guys, they're broke. A lot of these older fighters, they're broke. And these up-and-coming fighters, can actually not have that in the back of their mind. Like once I retire, I can still support something and still be behind something and still have their families taken care of. Because some of my comrades, I see them and they doing GoFundMe when they get injured and stuff like that.
[00:42:19] Ray Latif: I've got to tell you, I love when a brand that enters a very competitive category like energy drinks can stand out beyond just what's inside the can, right? Like having a business model that incorporates a charitable component, a giving back component, you know, a sharing of the profits. I mean, all that goes a long way to being an authentic founder, I think. Being someone who's saying, oh, I'm not just out there to make a buck. I'm there to do good, you know, while building a brand, while building a business. So I mean, I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to sit down with you, Quentin. I think this is a really interesting company and a delicious product. And I Thank You have a good runway here.
[00:43:00] Thank You: I'm glad you like it. Yeah.
[00:43:02] Ray Latif: And I got to tell you, If I'm being truthful myself, because we're all being truthful here. I was a big Chuck Liddell fan, and I was kind of, you know, when you knocked the heck out of him, I was a little disappointed.
[00:43:14] Thank You: Oh man, I wish you hadn't been truthful about that. That was my first time ever getting booed in my life.
[00:43:20] Ray Latif: You know, he just had such a great following, and you know, he was the Iceman, right? Chuck Liddell? Yeah. But after that happened, you beat him a second time, right?
[00:43:30] Thank You: That was the second time. Was that the second time? Yeah, I beat him in Japan before that, because I was fighting in Japan, and not a lot of American fans knew who I was, because only the hardcore MMA fans basically knew who I was coming into the UFC. So at that time, a lot of newer fans had no idea who I was. And UFC asked me, did I want to fight Chuck for the belt in my second fight? I was like, nah, I said, you don't want to do that. I said, you want the fans to get to know me first. But they didn't listen to me.
[00:43:59] Ray Latif: Well, guess what? I'm a Rampage fan now. And I have been. But like, you know, that moment at the time, I think was a little shocking for a lot of folks.
[00:44:08] Thank You: Oh, yeah. I know. Trust me. I know. People was mad at me. My house egged after that fight. Really? Oh, yeah.
[00:44:16] Ray Latif: Whatever. He was on Entourage. You were on the A-team. I Thank You made out better.
[00:44:21] Thank You: Chuck is the man, though. We get along great. He's a great guy. Good to hear. I look up to him and respect him a lot.
[00:44:27] Ray Latif: You got to share some F3 energy with him.
[00:44:29] Thank You: Oh, yeah. I most definitely will. Outstanding.
[00:44:33] Ray Latif: Quentin, Thank You so much for sitting down with me today. I really appreciate it. It's really an honor to sit down with you. Thank You, brother. Thank You. That brings us to the end of this episode of Taste Radio. Thank You so much for listening. Taste Radio is a production of BevNET.com, Incorporated. Our audio engineer for Taste Radio is Joe Cracci. Our technical director is Joshua Pratt, and our video editor is Ryan Galang. Our social marketing manager is Amanda Smerlinski, and our designer is Amanda Huang. Just a reminder, if you like what you hear on Taste Radio, please share the podcast with friends and colleagues. And of course, we would love it if you could review us on the Apple Podcasts app or your listening platform of choice. Check us out on Instagram. Our handle is bevnettasteradio. As always, for questions, comments, ideas for future podcasts, please send us an email to ask at Taste Radio. On behalf of the entire Taste Radio team, Thank You for listening, and we'll talk to you next time.
[00:45:33] Taste Radio: you
