A Founder's Story: Negroni, the Drink that Started It All

If it weren’t for Negronis, Little Saints may not exist. 

It was December of 2020, and I was living along with my dog in Detroit, where I had just moved and knew no one. Isolated and lonely, I chose the Covid comfort zone – the Zoom happy hour– for connection. I’d always loved Negronis, and since they’re relatively easy to make, I started drinking them at home. One to two Negronis on an occasional Zoom hang quickly turned into two-three Negronis in front of Netflix. I found that while the Negronis were giving me a little serotonin and dopamine boost at night, they were creating a fog of anxiety and depression during the daytime that I could not lift. Plus, my skin looked terrible, I was cranky from poor sleep, and I felt stuck emotionally.

While the alcoholic Negronis were giving me a little serotonin and dopamine boost at night, they were creating a fog of anxiety and depression during the daytime that I could not lift.

Knowing how badly my body and brain needed a detox, I decided to do Dry January 2021. I bought every single non-alcoholic drink out there – my dining table looked like a non-alcoholic bottle shop storeroom. After sampling the majority of my stash, I quickly noticed three things: (1) none of the options really tasted like a cocktail, (2) nothing gave me that “take the edge off” feeling I associated with the first sip of alcohol, (3) everything that wasn’t a sparkling water had a ton of sugar. In fact, because I never stop at one drink, alcoholic or not, I realized I was consuming at least 20 additional grams of sugar per night from my new non-alcoholic drink habit, which was really defeating the purpose of Dry January – I still felt brain fog, low-grade anxiety and headaches.

Aside from my drinking habits, I’d always taken good care of my body – eating a lot of vegetables, minimizing empty carbs and moving around a lot. As part of my morning wellness routine, I’d regularly incorporated functional mushroom and CBD supplements to help me feel relaxed and present while working. (I was inspired by the book, The Rebel’s Apothecary by Jenni Sancouci, which shows how mushrooms and CBD can be effective in our wellness routines). A lightbulb went off when I realized that I could incorporate these super ingredients into a cocktail alternative to make me feel just as good at night as I did during the day, and I could do it without sugar.

A lightbulb went off when I realized that I could incorporate these super ingredients into a cocktail alternative to make me feel just as good at night as I did during the day, and I could do it without sugar.

Now back to the Negronis, my first love. Even though Negronis were the inspiration for Little Saints, we didn’t launch initially with them because the flavor was really hard to match. When we finally nailed that great balance of bitter and sweet after a year of trials, I shrieked with happiness. And then I finally stopped drinking alcohol for good -- we did our first pilot run of Negroni Spritz mocktails in mid-September 2022, and I haven’t had one alcoholic drink since. I feel more grounded, present, productive and happy than I ever have, and surprisingly I don’t feel like I’m missing anything. My wish is that Little Saints helps you feel the same.

I feel more grounded, present, productive and happy than I ever have, and surprisingly I don’t feel like I’m missing anything. My wish is that Little Saints helps you feel the same.