Best Craft Mixer Brand Readers' Choice ranks Erie company No. 1

A company born of COVID in Erie has hit the national big time, winning the USA Today 10Best Readers' Choice Awards' Best Craft Mixer Brand, meaning supporters in Erie and all over the country voted for it in droves.

"A lot of people who just stop me on the street tell me 'I'm voting for you every day,'" said Rebecca Styn, founder of Blind Tiger Spirit-Free Cocktails. "This is really because of them.

"I'm just so appreciative," she said. "You never really know. People can tell you they're rooting for you, but this really shows it.

"That's what I want, to have the backing of the community," Styn added. "To have the roots here. It's nice to be showcased nationally, but I want people to know that it came from here."

The former owner of Room 33 Speakeasy at 1033 State St. said the spirit-free-cocktails got its start during the COVID pandemic. They weren't allowed to serve alcohol to go, and it was a major part of their business, so they started selling the cocktails without the alcohol so people could add it at their home.

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"We were just bottling nonalcoholic cocktails," Styn said. "And then I took the insane leap into this."

The cocktails are now available in 1,000 retailers nationwide, including all Wegmans stores nationwide, as well as online at totalwine.com. Now Styn is pushing for interest from the tourism industry, meaning planes, trains, cruise ships and the like.

"It's exciting to have the top spot for a national organization like this," she said.

The USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards highlight the best in travel, food and drink and lifestyle.

Contact Jennie Geisler [email protected]. Find her weekly newsletter athttps://profile.goerie.com/newsletters/erielicious/.