Gourmet News

Franzia Wines, BARK Deliver ‘Boos’ This Halloween

Published September 21, 2022

Franzia Wines and BARK have teamed up to create a limited-time Franzia Halloween costumes: “BARK Red Blend” dog costume — named after fan favorite Franzia wine, Dark Red Blend — and Franzia dog toy inspired by the iconic boxed wine. Humans also looking to get in on the boos-filled fun can opt for the adult-sized Franzia Chardonnay or Cabernet Sauvignon wine box costume to complement their pups. Each adult-sized costume comes with an internal bag that straps around your waist allowing a Franzia wine pouch (not included with the costume) to fit perfectly for easy pouring and a cupholder designed to hold a stack of cups for your Franz.

“Franzia is all about bonding with friends – whom we affectionately call ’Franz’ – over a box of wine,” said Katie Hoefs, brand manager, The Wine Group. “Our Halloween costumes have been a fan-favorite for years, so it only made sense to extend the fun to our favorite furry Franz with a four-legged costume and BarkBoxed Wine Toy.”

The “BARK Red Blend” dog costume, BarkBoxed Wine Toy, and Franzia adult-sized wine box costume will be available on the Franzia Wines and BARKShop for purchase now.

Franzia “BARK Red Blend” Dog Costume (MSRP: $20)
The perfect match for our Human Franzia Halloween Costume! This Franzia “BARK Red Blend” costume has plush, pillow-like sides and adjustable Velcro straps to ensure your furry Franz are comfortable while looking adorable in their favorite boxed wine costume. Sizing available in S, M, or L. Available on barkshop.com and shop.franzia.com.

Franzia “Cabernet Slobbernon” BarkBoxed Wine Dog Toy (MSRP: $15)
Treat your pup to this Franzia wine box toy for a strong pour of fun at the dog park. This multi-part toy includes an outer box, a grunt squeaker inside and a t-shirt rope. Available on barkshop.com and shop.franzia.com.

Franzia Wine Box Costume: (MSRP: $40)
Live your best life this Halloween when you dress up as a Franzia box! Featuring our Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay, these costumes are fully functional with an internal bag that straps around your waist and allows a Franzia wine pouch to fit perfectly for easy pouring. PLUS, this year there is an added cup holder that fits a stack of multiple cups for you to distribute and share Franzia with your Franz! (Cups not included.) Available at shop.franzia.com.

Franzia has over 100 years of winemaking history. The winery was founded by Teresa Franzia, who took out a loan to start Franzia Brothers Wine Company in 1930. In 1985, Franzia became the first wine brand in America to package its wine in a box. Today Franzia continues to strive to uphold Teresa’s legacy of quality, freshness, and value, winning over 150 awards from competitions and reviewers. The brand is celebrating its 26th year as the World’s Most Popular Wine by sales volume. For more information on Franzia, visit www.Franzia.com, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

BARK is the world’s most dog-centric company, devoted to making dogs happy with the best products, services and content. BARK’s dog-obsessed team applies its unique, data-driven understanding of what makes each dog special to design playstyle-specific toys, wildly satisfying treats, great food for your dog’s breed, effective and easy to use dental care, and dog-first experiences that foster the health and happiness of dogs everywhere. Founded in 2012, BARK loyally serves dogs nationwide with themed toys and treats subscriptions, BarkBox and BARK Super Chewer; custom product collections through its retail partner network, including Target and Amazon; its high-quality, nutritious meals made for your breed with BARK Food; and products that meet dogs’ dental needs with BARK Bright. At BARK, we want to make dogs as happy as they make us because dogs and humans are better together. Sniff around at bark.co for more information.

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Honest Tea Founders Return With Just Ice Tea

Published September 20, 2022

Seth Goldman and Barry Nalebuff, co-founders of Honest Tea, have returned to the bottled tea business alongside celebrity Chef Spike Mendelsohn with the launch of Just Ice Tea, a ready-to-drink organic iced tea brand focused on sourcing simple ingredients and Fair Trade Certified teas and sweeteners. The organic tea line will hit shelves nationwide beginning September 2022 and is the latest addition to Eat the Change, the planet-friendly snack (and now beverage) company founded by Goldman and Mendelsohn in 2020.

The news for Eat the Change’s expansion into the bottle tea space follows Coca-Cola’s May 2022 announcement that it would discontinue Honest Tea this fall. Goldman and Nalebuff founded Honest Tea in Bethesda, Md., in 1998.

“Just Ice Tea is picking up where Honest Tea left off, but we are tripling down on our commitments to our core values – Fair Trade Certified, organic and just sweet enough,” said Goldman “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to once again serve, and hopefully expand, the community of tea growers and retailers we assembled who were abandoned by the discontinuation of Honest Tea.”

The brand is named Just Ice Tea because “Just Ice” refers to the set of working standards and environmental principles the team aims to support through Fair Trade premiums and working standards. The brand is also committed to supporting our planet through organic certification, which uses a third-party verified approach to avoid the use of synthetic pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and fertilizers. Honest Tea was the first bottled tea brand to offer organic (1999) and Fair Trade certified varieties (2003).

“We didn’t want to leave our loyal customers high and dry, either,” Nalebuff said. “Challenging the line from F. Scott Fitzgerald, he predicted ‘We think act two will be even better’.”

Honest Tea fans will recognize new renditions of crowd favorites with Just Ice Tea. While similar, some key differentiators to note are: no cane sugar (Fair Trade Certified Organic agave and/or honey are used for sweeteners), glass bottles only, a bit less sweet and chef-crafted by Mendelsohn, who leads innovation at Eat the Change.

“Teaming up with mission-driven leaders and innovators, like Seth and Barry, to launch the next generation of bottled tea is truly a milestone moment for me,” Mendelsohn said. “Innovation is my favorite part of being a chef, and we’re excited to introduce this new line of chef-crafted teas made with responsibly sourced ingredients from our trusted partners.”

Just Ice Tea will launch with six SKUs with a SRP of $2.69-$2.89. Flavor names and varieties include:
● Berry Hibiscus Herbal Tea: Organic herbal hibiscus and blackberry leaves are brewed and blended with blackberry juice for a fruity caffeine-free blend.
● Honey Green Tea: Real-brewed green tea leaves and a “just sweet enough” taste of agave and honey offers a classic taste of this popular blend.
● Moroccan Mint Tea: Blend of real brewed green tea and mint makes for a refreshing taste with a hint of honey at only 35 calories for the whole bottle.
● Original Green Tea: Smooth, unsweetened green tea is as simple as it
gets. No flavoring (except from real-brewed tea leaves) and no sweetener – just the clean taste of real brewed green tea.
● Peach Oolong Tea: Real-brewed oolong and black tea leaves blend with the flavor of fragrant sweet peaches at just 60 calories per bottle.
● ½ Tea ½ Lemonade: Real-brewed black tea leaves blend with the sweet, citrus taste of classic lemonade. Two favorites, one bottle.

Just Ice Tea will be distributed nationwide and begins to hit shelves September 2022. Just Ice Tea is available first at Sprouts Farmers Market nationally and PLNT Burger locations in New York City. Other retailers set to carry Just Ice Tea include, but are not limited to: Whole Foods Markets, Hy-vee, Town & Country, Central Market, New Seasons Market, Erewhon, MOM’s, Roots, Yes! Natural Markets, Giant Foods, PCC, Dawson’s, Market of Choice, ION Group, Oliver’s, Rainbow Grocery, The Food Bin, Ellwood Thompson’s and The Common Market.

Gourmet News featured news about Just Ice Tea in our August issue. Subscribe now so you don’t miss anything!

Publix Vice Presidents to Retire; New Vice President Announced

Published September 20, 2022

Publix Super Markets CEO Todd Jones announced the retirement of two officers and promotion of a new officer.

After 30 years of dedicated service, Vice President of Finance Gino DiGrazia will retire at the end of this year.

DiGrazia, 60, began his Publix career in 1992 as manager of business analysis and reporting in Lakeland, Fla. In 1997, he was promoted to director and to vice president & controller in 2002. In 2012, he was named vice president of finance.

“Gino’s dedication to helping our retail and support business units understand their operations has made us a better company,” said Jones. “He’s helped our managers make more informed decisions for three decades while sharing his knowledge and passion for finance with those around him. We are grateful for his years of dedicated service and wish him well in his retirement.”

DiGrazia and his wife, Kim, will remain in Apollo Beach, Fla., and are looking forward to spending more time with family and friends, and traveling.

With DiGrazia’s retirement, his areas of responsibility will be divided between Chris Mesa and Doug Stalbaum, both promoted earlier this year and currently serving as vice president & controller.

Additionally, after 28 years of dedicated service, Vice President of Benefits Administration and Assistant Secretary Linda Kane has announced her decision to retire Feb. 28, 2023.

Kane, 57, began her Publix career in 1994 as a treasury analyst in Lakeland. She was promoted to manager of business analysis in 1997 and director of benefits administration in 1998. In 2000, she was promoted to assistant secretary and to her current role in 2002.

“Linda’s passion for providing premier service and benefits to our associates for almost three decades has continued to help make Publix a great place to work,” said Jones. “She’s committed her career to providing a comprehensive and affordable benefits package for our associates and their families. We are grateful for her years of dedicated service and wish her well in her retirement.”

Kane and her husband, Patrick, will remain in Plant City, Fla., and are looking forward to spending more time with family and friends, while enjoying the beach and boating.

With Kane’s retirement, Publix is pleased to announce the promotion of Monica Allman to vice president of benefits administration.

Allman, 49, began her Publix career in 2001 as a project manager in benefits administration in Lakeland. After working in various capacities within that department, in 2004, she was promoted to manager of stock programs and to her current role of director of stock programs in 2012.

“Monica is a seasoned leader with extensive experience in stockholder services and associate benefit plans,” said Jones. “Her ability to collaborate across teams, along with her passion for modernizing and improving systems, will be instrumental as she continues to enhance the experience for our associates and stockholders. We are excited to see the contributions she’ll continue to make in her new role.”

Allman will continue to reside in Lithia, Fla.

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