Thriving Alcohol-Free with Mocktail Mom

EP 123 | From Alcohol to Entrepreneurship: Zane's Journey to Monday Morning

• Season 2 • Episode 123

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In this episode, Deb Podlogar speaks with Zane Curtis, the founder of Monday Morning Bottle Shop in San Diego. 

Zane shares his journey to sobriety, which began two years ago after a series of personal revelations and challenges. He discusses the rapid development of his bottle shop, which focuses on providing a unique non-alcoholic experience for customers. 

Zane emphasizes the importance of creating a welcoming environment that encourages exploration of non-alcoholic beverages, and he shares insights into the various products available at his shop. The conversation highlights the joy of sobriety and the community that can be built around alcohol-free living.


Zane opened his bottle shop in under five months.
His sobriety journey was influenced by personal family history.
He realized his wife was his motivation to stop drinking.
The shop aims to teach people how to enjoy non-alcoholic drinks.
Zane emphasizes the importance of flavor in non-alcoholic beverages.
He believes in creating a welcoming environment for all customers.
Zane shares his favorite non-alcoholic products and brands.
The conversation highlights the positive impact of sobriety on life. 


Follow Zane's bottle shop on Instagram 




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Deb Podlogar:

Okay, hey friends, it's Deb. Welcome back to Thriving Alcohol-Free with Mocktail Mom. I am so excited for today's episode. We're going to make a new friend today, zane Curtis of Monday Morning, a bottle shop out in San Diego. What are we doing? Talking to a bottle shop in San Diego, deb, in Kentucky, I cannot wait to hear your story about getting sober and how it's been a superpower for you and how you started this business in like what? Under five weeks you went from idea Five months, less than five months.

Zane Curtis:

Oh, five months, sorry, sorry, I'm making it even faster. Five weeks would be real fast yeah.

Deb Podlogar:

Sobriety, you can go really fast. Yeah, so under five months from idea to opening your bottle shop. So I can't wait to hear about it. We're going to make a drink today. We're going to make a Yuzu Meyer lemon drop. You're going to make the lemon drop, lemon drop. The kava we're using kava haven which is a fantastic ingredient.

Deb Podlogar:

This recipe comes from All the Bitter, which is one of our favorite brands. Husband and wife team out in Chico, california. But you guys, zane is Zane's a girl dad, I'm a girl mom and he is he's a big fan of what the A-team Is that what you told me Big fan of?

Zane Curtis:

the A-Team the 1980s.

Deb Podlogar:

Yep, the 80s. Yeah, what year did you graduate high school?

Zane Curtis:

I graduated high school in 99. Okay, oh, I'm 89. There you go, 45.

Deb Podlogar:

Okay, I'm a little bit older than you, but I'm really excited to just get to know you today and make this drink together. So we're going to make you want to make our drink together, and then we'll kind of get into hearing your story. Does that sound good? Sure, yes, okay, all right, we're making. Let's see. We've already measured it out. Should we give the ingredients or doing making it in a shaker cup? Okay, so you're using like an actual? Are you a bartender? Were you a bartender? Or you just know how to use it.

Zane Curtis:

And it has your logo on it.

Deb Podlogar:

Look how nice, that looks.

Zane Curtis:

Our friends over at Bar Above, custom made one for me.

Deb Podlogar:

They are the nicest people.

Zane Curtis:

They are fantastic. They're in San Diego also, so we do some collaborations with them, but for my grand opening, they sent me a little branded shaker, which I will confess before we start this, never being a bartender, sometimes it gets stuck and you might see me like freaking out a little bit Banging it yeah.

Deb Podlogar:

So that's, why never bartended in my life. That's why I use, that's why I use this kind of a shaker, that's why I use the cobbler, because I have no idea. Yes, I was never a bartender, never played one on TV. I was just a waitress at TGI Fridays. Once there you go. Okay, so we've got our shaker cups, whichever kind you're using. Guys, uh, put some ice in it, right, or you can add the ice later. You don't have to do it right now. And then what are we putting in here?

Zane Curtis:

We're putting in is it an ounce?

Deb Podlogar:

One and a half ounces of, and I'm using Cava Haven. Is that what you're using? What are you using?

Zane Curtis:

It's the only Cava I use, yeah.

Deb Podlogar:

Is it? Yeah, it's such a nice company. How long have they been around? Like two years maybe.

Zane Curtis:

They just hit their one year, I think. Oh my gosh.

Deb Podlogar:

Okay, we love new young companies, right College kind of companies.

Zane Curtis:

Yep, the college companies.

Deb Podlogar:

The college companies yes.

Zane Curtis:

I love it, yep.

Deb Podlogar:

Okay, an ounce and a half, and then we're adding three quarters of an ounce. I'm doing Yuzu. I'm actually using the Yuzu super juice that all the bitter loves. They recommend this. This is their super juice, but you're using lemon juice, is that right?

Zane Curtis:

We just we fresh squeeze all of our juices here, so we're just doing our lemon.

Deb Podlogar:

You've got a lot of lemon trees there in San Diego. We don't have that in Kentucky.

Zane Curtis:

Probably not. You get all the buds, I get all the trees.

Deb Podlogar:

Yeah, sweet, we get a lot of cicadas, okay. And then we're use an ounce of simple syrup and typically, like in a lemon drop, it's made with vodka. We're not using vodka. We're going to use Cava Haven as our alternative. So, yeah, what do you like about Cava Haven? What do you like about drinking it?

Zane Curtis:

Because I know there's people who are like yes, no, don't love it. Yeah, I mean being the distributor in San Diego for Kava Haven, I've had to do a lot of research on what the brands are and Kava Haven not just is it superior quality, it's also trying to do the simple fact of taking the edge off where a lot of others want to make you feel, because you know like when you use the whole Kava plant the plant, not just the root it's toxic for your liver. So that's what makes you feel woozy and whatever the noble kava kava root is fine for you doesn't give you that feeling of like out of it. So I like their quality, I like their control that they do and their flavor is the best. I've tasted.

Zane Curtis:

Others that just you have to add a lot and I'll use this real quick that I think alcohol tastes bad. So we put a lot of flavor on alcohol to hide the fact of it. If I have a base non-alcoholic that tastes bad and I have to add a lot of flavor to it, I'm not learning the clarity and that simplicity of what non-alcoholic can be. Cava Haven delivers that. It's simple, it's easy. You can sip it on ice, add it to soda water or anything citrus, lemon, lime, pineapple, orange, like it just works really well.

Deb Podlogar:

So I'm just happy with the comes. Okay, okay, good, I love to hear that. Then we're going to add what? A couple of dashes of orange. All the bitters. Oh, I love it. You got the little ones. There's the cutest, aren't they?

Zane Curtis:

Little purse bitters you have there, they're just easy.

Deb Podlogar:

Yep, you're probably not carrying around a man purse, but you've got them I leave them in my wife's.

Zane Curtis:

I put them in my wife's perfect. And then little fun fact that my bartender came up with on this. If you ever want to add a little more body to it, a little seven sprays of fee foam on top will give you a nice little like body to it. So consider that in future.

Deb Podlogar:

Okay, seven sprays of what. What are we putting in? Fee foam I thought you said sea foam. You're out in the ocean. What is it?

Zane Curtis:

Fee foam's B foam. So, and then I'll show you kind of how it adds a little more viscosity. It just makes it a little bit of a more buoyant drink, for lack of a better word, okay, okay. We'll just do seven dashes of that, just to see how it works out.

Deb Podlogar:

Okay, sounds good. Great, we'll give a little shake here. Okay.

Zane Curtis:

See if I can't get it out.

Deb Podlogar:

Yeah, can you get it? Can you get it? I can open mine very easily.

Zane Curtis:

Look at you, you did it Very nice, and then your strains and everything huh.

Deb Podlogar:

Yes, and I've got. I rimmed my coupe glass with a little bit of sugar, lemon juice and sugar. Okay, I'm super excited to have this drink Day drinking. You can do all the day drinking. You want people.

Zane Curtis:

Nothing like COVID at 10 in the morning, so big time Cheers to you, zane, cheers, cheers, thank you that's really good, that's so good yeah, okay, thank you all the better. Thank you, ian, and carly blessing, for this delicious thank you for all the people that make those ingredients for us right seriously right?

Deb Podlogar:

I mean, yeah, it all comes together it does well.

Zane Curtis:

Thanks for having me that is so good.

Deb Podlogar:

Okay, thank you so much for being here. All right, I want, I want to hear about you Like you got sober. What two years ago did you tell me?

Zane Curtis:

June of 23. Yeah.

Deb Podlogar:

So two years and two months ago, and you just woke up one day and were like I'm done, I can't do this anymore. Or were you seeing a lot of stuff? Were you sober curious for a long time?

Zane Curtis:

I was never sober. Curious, I was alcoholic. Curious more than anything Is my drinking a problem? Do I have a drinking problem? Do I do it too often that sort of thing? So I had talked about it for many years prior. But in 23, there was a lot of things that led up to it. I think like my wife's dad passed from alcoholism. I got connected with my biological family and found out that alcoholism actually runs in my DNA. So a lot of things kind of led up to 21, 22, leading up to 23.

Zane Curtis:

In January of 23, I did a 60 day challenge, kind of like those whole 75 type things, and it was work out all the time read books, do all that stuff and I was like, well, if I'm going to do that. So I took out sugar, I took out alcohol, I took out all these things and 45 days into that challenge, all of my journaling, I realized, was writing about my relationship with alcohol. I was feeling better. Why was I drinking? What was? What was I doing with it? Anyways, 45 days in Valentine's Day hit and I thought my wife needed wine and got wine, and the last two weeks my workouts were bad. I was back into drinking and then it just kind of went downhill from there.

Zane Curtis:

So around June we were out with friends on a Sunday night talking and the wives were talking out the husbands about all of us drinking too much. And my wife said to me she's like your point is you need to find your why. Because you exercise, you're successful, you're married, you have kids like there's no reason for you to stop. And I woke up about 430 that morning and on a Monday morning, ironically enough, and realized that my wife was my why. Because when we got married I told her in my vows that I want to give her a better life than she had with an alcoholic father and by us spending 15 years talking about my relationship with alcohol and what it was I wasn't doing what I told her I was going to do. So I told her that morning I was going to stop drinking for her and went through the first year of absolute hell trying to get sober. And at the one year, one month mark July 5th 2024, I said I'm going to open a bottle shop for San Diego.

Deb Podlogar:

She's your why.

Zane Curtis:

Yep. She is my why.

Deb Podlogar:

Amazing, absolutely amazing. Okay, so you decided to open the bottle shop, yep, and what was the first thing you did? Were you like? Were you already drinking non-alcoholic options, like for that first year? Were you drinking?

Zane Curtis:

Yeah, so the first year where it kind of happened was San Diego has very limited options, as I think most states do. Right, non-alcoholic, and if it's not distributed by big alcohol, you don't know what they are. Yeah, so I was five months in, it was around November and I wanted to go back to drinking because I was tired of drinking and I won't pick on brands right now, but I was tired of drinking the same beers I can find at every grocery store. I was tired of the same spiritless options I could find it every like. I was just tired of it yeah, yeah.

Zane Curtis:

So I had a friend I was camping with them and a few other friends and he was a couple of years sober. He goes. Wait until you hit one year sober, something magical unlocks. He's like it's different for everybody, but at one year something cool happens and I was like I can't do another seven months with the same option. I can't do it. And he introduced me to Go and I had the story by Go and that was the first time I had a non-alcoholic beer that did what a beer is supposed to do. And I'll explain the things I look for. Because where I think non-alcoholic falls flat every time, it has to have a second palate, it has to change and be something that just the flavors unlock and it does something. And there's many non-alcoholic options that I had been drinking prior to that fall flat While you're drinking it. You're like, oh, it's beer, beer, beer and you just have to keep drinking it. So I ended up drinking 14 of them to try to keep the flavor of beer in my mouth.

Deb Podlogar:

Yep.

Zane Curtis:

I can take a sip of the story, I can put it down, I can yell at my kids, I can go barbecue, I can shoot pool, I can go live my life and come back and take another sip, and I've tasted beer the whole time. Interesting.

Zane Curtis:

So, I blame Joe and Matt over at Go that they're the reasons I opened a business, because once I had that beer it gave me hope for that there's other options. So then I started scouring the world and I found Beagle Puss, and I found Mash Gang, and I found all these beers and I was like, okay, well, beers are easy, what about? And then it was spirits, and then it was wine, and then it was functional and all of a sudden, that's what? So I spent the next seven months realistically just scouring the world to try to get myself sober, and July of 24, I said I'm going to open a bottle shop for San Diego. So, as I joke with people when they come here, this is my drinking problem materialized for the benefit of San Diego.

Deb Podlogar:

So and how has it been received by the, by the city?

Zane Curtis:

Fantastic.

Deb Podlogar:

Really, really yeah.

Zane Curtis:

I will. I'm not one to publicly share numbers, but I will say from an entrepreneur from an entrepreneur. From the minute I've opened my doors, I have not had to put money into my business.

Deb Podlogar:

Amazing.

Zane Curtis:

And I'm nine months in and I find out today about opening a second location, so their response has been fantastic yeah.

Deb Podlogar:

Wow, wow.

Zane Curtis:

It's crazy.

Deb Podlogar:

There's like this little, because I definitely have that entrepreneurial spirit, and there's that little part of me because there's not a place like this in Louisville, kentucky, and I'm like oh, I would love to. I would love to, but I'm like I don't want to have to like be somewhere every morning, every day. It's terrible to say Like I work from home. I will tell you, yeah, tell me the secret starting a business is really fun.

Zane Curtis:

Running a business is very hard, and the thing that you just don't know about I didn't know about because I'd never done this before is my margin is what I run my business on, Because as a COGS business, I got to buy all the shit that I just sold.

Zane Curtis:

Exactly, so you can sell a million dollars in a year, but if it costs you $700,000 to get to a million, you're like, uh-oh, what do I do now? And so it's just a different journey. And so I started this thinking like I'll just run my own business and be this entrepreneur. And now I have a team of five people I'm yet to pay myself. And I'm like, well, this is different. So I'm a really good volunteer, deb. That's how I look at it. That's good.

Deb Podlogar:

Yes, yes, and you can drink for free now. Now you can.

Zane Curtis:

I'm not free, but yeah, now you can, yes, you can day drink.

Deb Podlogar:

You're not drinking for free because of COGS. Yeah, the cost of goods sold right is a COGS business. Yes, Love it. Okay, what's been your favorite part about having the store?

Zane Curtis:

Realistically, it's teaching San Diego how to drink differently. Because what I love. I call them the accidental converts. I call them the people that are just surprised by it, Because we don't mention alcohol-free anywhere. We're just Monday morning bottle shop. That's all that we say, and it's not until people come in they say what are you? Guys. And so if I said alcohol free, people wouldn't come in.

Zane Curtis:

If I said sober right, Cause part of my, I think, part of the thing that I'm trying to create not think I know for a fact is, I'm not not anything, I'm not not AA, I'm not not anything, I'm not not a, I'm not not church, I'm not not sobriety, I'm not not sober, curious, I'm just for everybody. And so if I label out there alcohol free, functional, whatever I miss the wide net of people that are like I don't want functional, I just want flavor, I don't want this, I want that. And so my favorite is we do a lot of sampling here. That's where I'm at right now. Is our lounge, like our bar side, cool, we sample people on everything and I know a lot of people do it.

Zane Curtis:

But it's just so fun to watch people's reactions when they're like I've had certain brands before and I don't like them and I was like, oh, but have you tried Sobeys red wine? Have you tried, tomorrow, cellar's red wine? Have you tried amethyst instead of a vodka? That tastes watery and sugary, like there's just different things. And so when people see it and they'll look on their faces and like all of that stuff and I don't know. My other favorite thing, so it's the surprise for people.

Deb Podlogar:

I love that. I love that.

Zane Curtis:

Other people similar to you said I think you said five years for you Five years, almost five years, yep. Just like you said, you don't have a bottle shop like that in your city. I was the first in San Diego. There's nothing like this, and so for people to come in that are seven years sober, that start crying and just hug you and say I thought I could never have a sparkling wine again. Thank you, like that's the stuff I didn't expect of it. Was I expected to be? Like I'll open, yeah.

Zane Curtis:

It's the surprise and those accidental people like I like your old fashioned better, so I stopped drinking. I'm like sorry.

Deb Podlogar:

Yeah, yeah, the impact, yeah, and just the difference that's making. Actually, there's a gal in my membership. I do like a happy half hour once a week for just. We get online on Zoom and make a mocktail together. But there's a gal who lives up in the Indianapolis area and we met in person actually for the very first time. This past winter I went up to a bottle shop in.

Zane Curtis:

Orangeley.

Deb Podlogar:

Orangeley. Yes, we met in Orangeley. She lives near there, so I was there for a little book signing and um she's, she said like the first time she came. She cried when she was there the very first time because it was like, like the same thing, like I can't believe I can drink, I can't believe there's something I can drink that's delicious.

Zane Curtis:

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. What is your business background? What's your background that you were like, oh, let me, let me go for this. Nothing. Have you ever had a business before? No, never. So my, I've realized now all of my failed attempts in my life and I still work my day job. That's part of the reason why I don't feel like I need to pay myself. It's just like a hobby for me, more than anything Um but I but I did retail in my 20s. I did financial planning in my 20s.

Deb Podlogar:

Really, I did a lot of things.

Zane Curtis:

I was like, why am I doing this? And then 30s into now 45, it's more business intelligence, analytics, that sort of thing. So that's where my business acumen has come from. Very cool. But now as I was setting up a shop and doing these things, all of a sudden merchandising came out and all of a sudden these things are like and doing these things. It's like all of a sudden merchandising came out and all of a sudden like these things, and I was like, oh, I guess all those things add into what I'm doing now. So I was inadvertently trained by not knowing what I wanted to do until I was 40.

Deb Podlogar:

So- I love that. I love that it all builds, it all like, okay, this is all it all does finally come together right At the time you doing here yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, I'm having fun. I know, same, same, I'm 53.

Zane Curtis:

Yes, and still wondering what am I doing with my life? But I'm having a great time.

Deb Podlogar:

Yeah. Exactly Having fun along the way yeah. Did you ever imagine that sobriety could be so much fun and that you'd be having these kind of new adventures?

Zane Curtis:

No, not at all. If you would have told me two and a half years ago I'd be doing this, I would have literally taken a shot, gone and talked shit about you and then, like that person, thinks I'm gonna get sober and open a bottle shop of non alcoholic like I would have never imagined I'd be here. Yeah, and it's really funny to me. So the design in the shop is exactly that. Though is I didn't know, because, like you know, I don't know your journey of getting sober, but for me it's like the first. I think zero to three months. You don't know what you're doing. I think three to six months. You feel like you can do it for a while, but at that stage I was still trying to marry off my five year old like, but when she's married I can have wine again, right, Like it's not forever.

Deb Podlogar:

Exactly.

Zane Curtis:

I think six to nine, I tell people, is where you wrestle with your devil and you. It's dark like six to nine months. We get people that come in here now and we try really hard to just support them, because six to nine months is where most people fail. Six to nine months is where most people go back into recovery. Six to nine months is a really hard time and for me nine to 12 is where you feel kind of beat up and you don't know who you are because you had to purge that part of you and after one year all of a sudden it's like, I think I can do this.

Deb Podlogar:

I think I can do this, so for me it's the freedom and it's the brightness.

Zane Curtis:

So like we don't have anything on the floor, all of our shelving is off the floor. We try really hard to just make it open and bright and feel freeing, because that's the whole point of non-alcoholic Like I now I can drink 12 beers at a friend's house and I can take one of my drive on the way home and all of a sudden, it's this freedom that I'm like. I can drink whenever I want to Right.

Deb Podlogar:

It is it's authentic freedom.

Zane Curtis:

If you're going to make this drink with alcohol. I'm drinking vodka at 10 in the morning, Like my day is gone.

Deb Podlogar:

It's true, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yep. So, whether you're doom scrolling from then on or whatever, right, we weren't I wasn't living my life. I'd be zoned out every evening, you know, just watching TV or shopping on Amazon, and then packages would show up the next day and I'd be like who ordered this? What is this?

Zane Curtis:

to pick. But I myself would wake up and I'd feel dusty every morning and I would try to work out by 11 o'clock just to sweat it out, and then by noon I'd have a beer at lunch and then I'd just go back down into the slope and you think about like how hard it was to wake up and how tired you felt and just all of that. Or now it's like my wife calls it, go mode. I'm into my first cup of coffee in the morning All of a sudden. I just like my posture changes and I look at me. She's like go time.

Deb Podlogar:

I'm like go time, like I gotta go Go time and you're holding your go brewing. You're holding your beer, yeah, your go beer.

Zane Curtis:

It's 30 in the morning, I'm like coffee's done, goes in, so, but I think that's the grind right. It's like we're all just like we can't. We work for that thing instead of just learning. Like, what is this rhythm of enjoying life? And I'm not again, we're not against alcohol. I'm just against that alcohol is the only way to have a good drink. I think if you don't have alcohol, your option shouldn't be lemonade with grenadine in it and you're like well, I feel like an adult, thank you.

Deb Podlogar:

Exactly, exactly, no, I totally, totally agree. Yeah, yeah, yeah, a hundred percent, okay. So your shop? Is it right in front of you, like if you turn the camera on, can we see the shop, or you're kind of in a different area there?

Zane Curtis:

Do you want to do a quick walk, or is it going to be like Blair Witch for people?

Deb Podlogar:

Can we do a quick? Can we just do a quick? I just would love to see.

Zane Curtis:

Okay, cause you said so. This isie machine, which is my personal favorite.

Deb Podlogar:

Oh, that's so cool.

Zane Curtis:

And then there might be a customer over here, but that's fine, so hello.

Deb Podlogar:

Hello.

Zane Curtis:

And then this is the bottle shop.

Deb Podlogar:

Oh, so nothing on the floor.

Zane Curtis:

You were saying everything's up.

Deb Podlogar:

Look at that, I love how those shelves are That'sane, that's gorgeous thank you.

Zane Curtis:

And then back here is our wine oh, I love it.

Zane Curtis:

Monday morning, our beer wall so good, yep so that was our point again teaching that what's not a liquor store? Because you think everybody knows the story of like bars. Right, they're dark, they're dim lit, they're whatever. Everybody knows what bars are. But if you think about even liquor stores shit on the floor everywhere it's hard. And if you walk around the corner and see somebody, you get startled because you're not expecting to see somebody so you're right, you're right and so I'm like how do you teach that non-alcoholic is free and fun?

Zane Curtis:

it's like it's bright, it bright, it's light. You can see clearly around the shop. There's not stuff. You're not startled when you go anywhere. So it was by design to have the shop kind of sit in that category and it's been received pretty well.

Deb Podlogar:

So I'm very happy, great. What part of San Diego are you in? What section?

Zane Curtis:

We're in Pacific Beach, so kind of like central part of it.

Deb Podlogar:

Okay, perfect, yeah, okay, all right, do you? I feel like I'm going to ask you right now, like who your favorite children are of your girls, but can we?

Zane Curtis:

talk a little bit about like your favorites?

Deb Podlogar:

Yeah, you can. They'll never see this recording.

Zane Curtis:

I know that everybody says they don't have a favorite, but I'm like we all know that there's a favorite.

Deb Podlogar:

I know my dad had a favorite, I know he did.

Zane Curtis:

I think there's favorites during seasons. Like my oldest is about to be 11. She's in batting practice for puberty, so like she's just starting that journey where I'm like, well, like the eight year old, super easy. Five year old, like five to nine, is kind of like my sweet spot of parenting where I'm like it's fun.

Deb Podlogar:

You guys need to have another baby, then Maybe yeah.

Zane Curtis:

We just got a puppy two weeks ago, so we're doing that journey now.

Deb Podlogar:

You are, yeah, yeah, yeah, you're going to find out.

Zane Curtis:

Oh, that's so funny I love that. Yeah, no, I'm curious, like your, I know everybody's tastes are different, but like what are your personal best non-alcoholic red wine? I think Sovi is good. I think there's a lot of like Tomorrow Cellars. I like what they did with all the bitter and that like there's good wines out there. I'm like just that bold punchy, I'm like I just want my bold red.

Deb Podlogar:

It hasn't happened yet for you, okay, so that's what I'm going to put there.

Zane Curtis:

I drink all of my wine, so Sovi, and Tomorrow Cellars Zeronimo. Those are kind of like our go-to For sparkling Bolle. Hands down takes the cake on that Really Fantastic. I can't even say how much of that stuff I sell. So from any other sparkling white or rosé Bolle out of the UK. If you have a chance to get Gary on your podcast, he's a stellar person, but his sparkling fantastic.

Deb Podlogar:

Okay, I'll invite him on Perfect, thank you.

Zane Curtis:

And my favorite white wine I have is I like Sobe's Chenin Blanc. That one's good Bollé makes a really good Chardonnay, but the Good Vines Sauvignon Blanc as you can get, it's fantastic.

Deb Podlogar:

I haven't had that Good Vine Good.

Zane Curtis:

Vines Yep.

Deb Podlogar:

I can send it to you. Okay, well, I can order it. Can you order on your shop? Can you order online? Do you ship?

Zane Curtis:

I don't. I will ship to people that I know I'm not a shipping store, because Jeff Bezos will kick my ass every time. And once people start buying online, they start price shopping and I can't keep up with.

Deb Podlogar:

You can't compete, yeah, no, you can't. Yep, yep, that makes sense.

Zane Curtis:

Everybody runs their promos. You know, buy three, get one free. So it's like I just can't keep up with all of the variables. So I'm in buy online in-store pickup For people I know I will shift to them, no problem.

Deb Podlogar:

That's smart, that's smart. Okay, perfect, I'll order a bottle that good binds from you, then, for sure um okay so white, red sparkling okay so, and then the beers go is top of your list go beagle puss and beagle puss beagle puss.

Zane Curtis:

It's the grouchos, the glasses with the mustache and whatever thing. It's called a beagle puss oh, okay okay, they're out on the East coast. They're fantastic. So they make a great beer and below brew out of the UK. Those three, I would say, are my top three favorite beers.

Deb Podlogar:

We love. We love good non-alcoholic products. Okay, Beagle puss.

Zane Curtis:

And force was your out of Germany. There's just so many good beers out there.

Deb Podlogar:

Yeah, and force majeure out of. Germany. There's just so many good beers out there.

Zane Curtis:

There are yeah, so yes Do you have anything on tap Force majeure, Eagle Puss. No, I'm going through the health department right now because in California everything.

Deb Podlogar:

But because of that, when I'm done, how did you even open this shop in California? How does anybody even open a business out there?

Zane Curtis:

I don't understand, because you don't ask questions and you just open.

Deb Podlogar:

You just do, and then you say oh, I'm so sorry.

Zane Curtis:

Sorry, we needed a certificate for that I was doing an event.

Zane Curtis:

This is just a fun fact, I don't care. I was doing an event outside that I paid money to sponsor and the health department rolled up on somebody else and came to my booth and then it unlocked this whole thing. But I was like that's fine, like you know, and they're, so it's a good thing, because I operated pretty low brow. So I was like I don't know what I can and can't do. I'm the first in San Diego. There's no benchmark. I can say what do you do?

Zane Curtis:

And Orangely went through it, dre went through it, but they're in different states, yeah, and so even if I talked to Ocean Beach Cafe Josh, he has a cock like they serve food, they serve coffee, like it's a different model. I'm like I'm a brick and mortar retail shop that does samples what am I? So, anyways, but once I'm done I'll be serving. Then I'll be a restaurant, according to the health department. So now I'm going to do wine flights with charcuterie boxes, we're going to. I'm going to get a tap. I mean, I already got a Kava slushing machine. So a Kava slushing machine, so a tap really isn't that far off.

Deb Podlogar:

We won't tell about that. That's back in the corner, Nobody can see it Exactly. They don't need to know what's happening. What about the functional drinks? Obviously Kava Haven.

Zane Curtis:

Kava Haven. I'm a big fan of Drome. Yeah, it's so good. So, good. And Dave, just to get that solid person like just good rounded people.

Deb Podlogar:

He's coming on the podcast. I have him. We're booked already. Yep Excited to meet him. Yeah, yeah.

Zane Curtis:

So Drome, we just recently came across Tweedle, the CBD, out of Colorado Sidebar. It has lemon and ginger and it's bitter. Equal parts with kava, lemon ginger bitter. It turns out this beautiful thing. Top with soda water if you want to, it slays. So really good drink on that. And then we just stumbled across Centia.

Deb Podlogar:

Oh, yeah, okay yeah.

Zane Curtis:

So we just stumbled across them, we've started carrying them and we've learned how to use their product to make red wine feel more full-bodied. So there's a secret recipe we're working on where you can make a functional red wine that doesn't taste bad. So last night we did. We do trivia and bingo on Thursdays and I have a guest bartender that comes in and she made a sangria with centia red wine and fruit and we. It was great. So, yeah, those are the functional ones we're really big on right now.

Deb Podlogar:

Love it. Okay, I know for the non-alcoholic spirits. You mentioned amethyst, which we're both.

Zane Curtis:

Actually.

Deb Podlogar:

Jane. Shout out to Jane of Amethyst. She's the one who said you need to have Zane on the podcast. You guys need to meet.

Zane Curtis:

She's fantastic. Yeah, she's a great person. Yeah, um, I like that one, I like. What else do I have? We use a lot of um sober out of spirit of virtues. I think spirit of virtue as a whole is fantastic because their glendosius line for scotch out of scotland and their sober rye and bourbon whiskeys work really well. Um, so I think the sober line fantastic. And what else do we do? I'd say those two really.

Deb Podlogar:

Yeah, yeah.

Zane Curtis:

Yeah, those two.

Deb Podlogar:

Delicious. There's so many good options. Okay, I want to make sure what's the address where you are.

Zane Curtis:

Let's put that 1-854-1854 Garnett Avenue in San Diego, California.

Deb Podlogar:

Garnett Avenue. Okay, Anybody. If you're traveling out to San Diego or you live in the area, please swing by Monday morning Bottle Shop. I would love to make a little field trip out there, you should.

Zane Curtis:

And by the time you get out here, we're in talks of a second location I won't say where yet.

Deb Podlogar:

It's awesome, zane, but we're trying to take over, so we're having fun.

Zane Curtis:

So when you come out, maybe you'll have a few different options.

Deb Podlogar:

Having fun. That's the most important thing, right? It's just having fun staying sober, enjoying great things to drink. There's so many options when we're not drinking.

Zane Curtis:

So yeah, zane, thank you so much for your time, thank you for the little look around of the shop and everything.

Deb Podlogar:

Love, love, love, seeing everything. Thank you for all your recommendations.

Zane Curtis:

Thanks for day drinking with us.

Deb Podlogar:

Yes, day drinking, big time. Cheers to you and to Monday morning, no regrets.