A Spindrift Q&A with Doug from our Manufacturing Team

At Spindrift, we believe the best tastes come from nature. So we go to great lengths to source the best-tasting fruit from the farms, orchards, groves, vineyards that grow and harvest them. But that’s just the beginning. Because we want every can of Spindrift to taste as delicious as that fruit, we’ve spent years honing our manufacturing process to honor the fruit.  

To learn more about all the hard work and care that goes into honoring the fruit and creating batches of Spindrift, we sat down with Doug, Director of Manufacturing & Quality. 

Hi Doug! What do you do at Spindrift?

Manufacturing and quality. I make sure the product is perfect when it makes it to the customer and to the consumer. 

What's the most interesting or most unexpected part of your job? 

The variability of the raw ingredients. That variability makes it very challenging for my team and our partners to get every batch right every time. There is lots of prework and communication that must happen during production to make great final product! 

In your role, who is the hero and who is the villain? 

Heroes are all the Spindrift employees that who work tirelessly to get the product right.  A villain is our inability to completely control everything at all times – but we do all we can to ensure the hero prevails! And we have an awesome quality team to ensure that only the best makes it out to the shelves. 

What weird acronym or lingo do you say and what does it mean? 

"TOA" - Taste/Odor/Appearance. This is what we look for when tasting and approving our raw ingredients and our finished product.

What's a challenging or "proudly made the hard way" part of your job? 

Analyzing every batch due to the constantly changing inputs: different juices, purées, recipes, etc. Every product has its own, varying range of TOA. Making Spindrift is like making a craft beer vs. making a mass-produced beer. Every batch is unique and requires its own unique analysis and attention. You can’t just set it and forget it, you have to really craft and analyze it as its being made. 

In your area of expertise, what does Spindrift do that's different than others? 

We have a dedicated group in the field that is 100% responsible for the quality of our products.

What's something you have to do “the hard way”? 

Spindrift plays in the grey. Due to the nature of our ingredients, nothing is black and white.  Manufacturing Spindrift is more like art than science.

What is your "proudly made the hard way" story?

The time we trialed 4 new flavors all at the same time.  It was crazy-fast innovation we’d never done before. We said, “You know what, let’s go for it & find out!” 

What 3 things are always in your fridge? 

Organic milk, organic eggs, and chili crisp

What flavor are you sipping on repeat right now? 

Grapefruit

What’s your favorite Spindrift pairing? 

Pineapple after a long run. 

Any fun facts you'd like to share with our community?

We use multiple tankers of juice to make Spindrift.  Huge tanks of real juice. Competitors use powders or tanks of high fructose corn syrup.  Our manufacturing is just completely different!

Thanks, Doug!

To learn more about how Spindrift is proudly made the hard way, check out our other interviews with teammates and watch our brand film to see what originally inspired Bill to start Spindrift and how that ethos keeps us going today.