Best Of CLE: Ready-To-Serve Cocktails

Pam Davis really loves tequila, but the 42-year-old admits that she can’t throw back shots as she used to in college.

To make the alcohol go down smoother, she started mixing her favorite liquor with homemade lemonade and the concoction quickly became a hit with friends and family. Thus, Hidden Spirits Cocktails was born with Davis transforming her kitchen into a manufacturing facility, albeit a slightly less-than-legal one.

“I was a total bootlegger, but I turned myself in and the state of Ohio was really nice about it,” she says.

With license in hand, Davis officially launched Hidden Spirits in 2015, one of only a handful of Black-owned spirit brands in the U.S. Today, the company features three flavors: the original lemonade, a tequila-infused strawberry blend and a rum-based apple spice offering.

Though customers can only purchase 750ml bottles ($19.99) in a few retail stores such as Acme and Discount Drug Mart, the plan is to offer direct-to-customer purchases on its website. While the beverage eschews the typical bite of alcohol, Davis likes to remind her customers that it still has a kick with 19% to 20% alcohol.

“They may go down nice and easy,” she says, “but I promise they will sneak up on you.” hiddenspiritscocktails.com

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