Anyone who’s spent time in Germany has probably come across Spezi, or a version of it.
For brothers Joel and Fabian Lerner, it was a familiar flavour in their early childhood, before their family moved to Canada from Germany, where Spezi is one of the top-selling pops. Whenever they returned to visit family, they got to have it again.
Now, they’re launching their own version, called Alpine Mix, for the Canadian market.
What is Spezi?
The pop is a mix of cola and orange. Spezi and related pops are commonplace in Germany and German-speaking countries; one of the most popular versions (Paulaner) sells a reported 90 million litres every year.
Two companies (Paulaner and Riegele) produce Spezi under that name (both are originally breweries and still make beer), while many other companies make their own versions, like Schwip Schwap (from Pepsi) and Mezzo Mix (Coca-Cola).
“There’s a bunch of bigger brands that jumped on the bandwagon of this cult favourite,” says Joel.
However, while it’s wildly popular in certain parts of Europe, it hasn’t made it to Canadian shores. Joel and Fabian wanted to change that.
Plan A fizzles
Originally, the pair, now both based in Metro Vancouver, had wanted to import it as a side gig (Joel works in engineering, Fabian is studying physics at SFU).
“I don’t even know how it started; we just started thinking of things we hadn’t seen in the Canadian market that we could bring,” says Fabian.
Joel credits Fabian for the spark, calling it a “great opportunity, but terrible for Germans.”
“Fabian was flabbergasted; he was like, ‘This is too good to pass up,'” says Joel.
They got in touch with their cousin Timo Lerner in Germany to figure it out. They then realized it would be easier to make it themselves, due to German recycling regulations.
How to make pop
“There wasn’t anybody, and still isn’t, to our knowledge, brewing in North America,” says Joel. “We thought that was a cool opportunity to bring it here.”
In some ways, it felt like if they wanted a version of Spezi in Canada, they were being forced to make it themselves, but they’re enjoying the challenge.
“Now that we’re on that side of the fence, it’s a happy accident,” says Joel.
Alpine Mix has become a family affair, with Timo still involved, and the brothers’ dad, Joerg, joining in, too.
They started by trying to replicate the flavour of Spezi at home.
“We spent a couple of months of us basically cooking a couple days a week in our kitchen,” says Joel.
Eventually, they created their ideal version of Spezi.
“We were able to bottle that,” says Joel. “That’s what we gave to friends and family.”
They also brought it to a flavour development team in Vancouver, who helped them take that recipe and flavour and develop a version that could be brewed at a larger scale.
“In June, we finally nailed down that formulation, the finalized version,” says Joel.
Their version is lower in sugar than other pops (for example, Coca-Cola has 39 grams of sugar per can, while Alpine Mix will be around 29 grams). At the same time, they’re using cane sugar, in an effort to make it taste less syrupy than other pops.
The Lerners also think their pop is less sweet and more refreshing, lending itself to Vancouver’s outdoorsy and adventurous vibe.
They then had to get suppliers, line up a place to brew, and figure out production. That’s been sorted already; they have a plan with a Metro Vancouver brewery that can make the quantities they’ll need.
“It takes somebody willing to invest in an idea. That’s what they’re doing for us,” says Joel of the brewer. “These local brewers are a lot more open to small stuff like this.”
Coming to local shelves
Finalizing a production plan is still being sorted, but people should be able to try Alpine Mix this summer.
“We’re hoping sometime mid-August we’ll have the actual product,” says Fabian.
Right now, they’re doing some presales with free delivery once they have Alpine Mix canned. Glass bottles may come in the future.
Once it’s out, the plan is to hit local independent shelves first, before bigger chains.