What happens when you mix sparkling water and olive oil?
Aura Bora, a San Francisco-based sparkling water team, has joined forces with the viral Extra Virgin Olive Oil brand, Graza, to create a non-alcoholic olive oil martini in the style of Aura Bora's craft water.
The idea came from Andrew Benin, CEO & co-founder of Graza, who met Paul Voge, CEO and co-founder of Aura Bora, at a trade show last year with several other craft artisans.
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"The origin story is rooted in an instant human connection," Benin told Fox News Digital in an interview.
"Andrew and I were at a trade show, and he is a very creative person. He said, ‘What if we made a lightly sparkling, non-alcoholic olive oil martini?’" Paul Voge told Fox News Digital.
"And I just kind of thought, 'That's crazy. We make sparkling water. Probably too crazy an idea. [It] sounds fun but [it's] not really our forte.'"
The idea may not have been as crazy as Voge thought — he reached out to Benin a few months later to discuss the original idea once again.
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Over the course of the summer, Voge and Benin worked together to create a beverage that combined both brands' distinct flavors.
This marks Aura Bora's first launch of a non-alcoholic sparkling water — "specifically designed for an evening beverage," Voge added.
Voge was excited to reach Graza's clientele as well as have Graza expand into Aura Bora's audience.
The collaboration did not feel like a risk but rather a "pretty casual" business endeavor, thanks to the engaging audience of both brands, Voge indicated.
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"I'm sure plenty of people saw the product and thought, ‘Oh, that’s too niche, I can't give that a whirl,'" said Voge.
He went on, "But I think those that give it a whirl will think, 'Even though I’m not a big martini fan, this is a really nice combination of juniper, and yuzu and olive oil, of course, in a sparkling water.'"
Benin, located in Spain, worked with Voge to create a flavor profile that highlighted both brands.
The product went through many iterations with a variety of flavor levels, the companies said — one even with double the amount of olive oil, Voge noted.
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With the help of a food scientist, Voge and Benin finalized a beverage that showcased the flavors of the two brands.
Voge said he and the team wanted to create something that wasn't "bitter or pungent" or a non-alcoholic beverage that needed to be sipped throughout the evening.
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"We wanted something that you could gulp," he said.
The olive oil martini is the first beverage from Aura Bora to have a caloric measurement; the non-alcoholic drink has zero sugar and uses less than 10 ingredients.
The only other challenge both brands faced was creating an image that is true to both Graza and Aura Bora, Voge said.
Maddie Voge, creative director of Aura Bora, along with the in-house design team created a visual that highlighted both brands.
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While the drink was created as a non-alcoholic beverage, Voge said he loves the versatility of the product and would be "thrilled" if people mix it with alcohol.
What started out as a quip at a tradeshow has apparently turned into a full-forced collaboration — and the brands have plans for the future.
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"The first time I saw an Aura Bora booth at a trade show, my first thought was, ‘We should make an olive oil martini together and get it on Royal Caribbean ... Wouldn’t that be a hoot?,"' Benin recalled.
"Eighteen months later, we made it happen, sans the cruise ship, but hopefully that comes next!" he added.
On its website, Aura Bora sells a case of 12 Olive Oil Martini cans made with Graza olive oil for $48.
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