Alte Beverages expanding its reach in the bay area

Alte Beverages, makers of hemp-derived drinks, is moving into the Florida market. Alte has started to sell its products in the St. Pete area through collaborations with Sea Dog Brewing Company and Great Bay Distributors.

The company’s local presence is the product of a partnership between Alte Beverages CEO and co-founder Michael Dunn and Sea Dog Brewing Company owner Fred Forsley. They met last year through a mutual connection.

Both have experience in the beverage market. Forsley founded and leads Shipyard Brewing Company, the largest brewery in Maine. Dunn co-founded Pennsylvania-based Logyard Brewing in 2017. “I think between myself and Fred, we’re very unique in that sense that we have a depth of understanding of the industry,” Dunn said.

Alte’s products, which includes various flavors, are intended to be an alcohol alternative that provides consumers with a controlled buzz that is consistent every time, Dunn explained. They consist of Delta-9 THC, but are legal in Florida because they contain less than 0.3% of the compound. Whether hemp-derived beverages are legal depends on the individual state. 

“When we started Alte Beverages, we wanted to look at how to create something that was different than everything else in the industry,” Dunn elaborated.

While hemp-derived drinks are becoming more popular in the market, there was an opportunity to create a beverage that is all natural and solvent free. Alte’s quality stood out to Forsley and piqued his interest.

The company currently sells 5 mg products and is planning to release a 10 mg beverage before  Memorial Day.

Since hemp-derived products are fairly new to the beverage industry, Dunn and his team have recognized that they need to educate consumers about the benefits of drinking an Alte in comparison to an alcoholic beverage.

Alte drinks are not only “vastly different from drinking alcohol [but] also different from smoking marijuana or ingesting it through edibles,” he said. It’s a more “uplifting” experience where consumers can enjoy a buzz while remaining alert. Additionally, there’s no hangover.

Forsley’s connection with Great Bay Distributing led to a local distribution deal. Alte Beverages’ products became available at Sea Dog Brewing Company’s Treasure Island restaurant May 14. “We’re very excited about supporting the locals, and local economy here, and supporting it in every way we can with Fred’s businesses,” Dunn said.

Since its recent launch in the area, Alte drinks are available in about 30 locations. The company is in talks with major liquor chains.

Dunn believes that Alte’s products will be in more stores within the next couple months. Six people are working on launching the Alte brand in the Tampa Bay area, he said.

“We have a lot of friends in the business in St. Pete and we’re talking to a lot of accounts right now,” Forsley said. The Shipyard Brewing Company founder plans to use his existing relationships with stores, bars and restaurants in legal states in hopes that they will sell Alte’s products.