Why We Started ERTH (and Why We’re Still Here)

It started with a mission—not just for something cold and refreshing, but for something real, and something that connected us to our community.  Something made by hand. Something that made you feel good not just after you drank it, but because of what you were drinking, why you were drinking it, and for what it supported.

When we started ERTH we weren’t trying to start a company. We were just trying to find our way out of a rut and into something that we could build with our hands and our hearts.

Eric was working long, exhausting hours at a brewery. I had just left a job at Whole Foods after a back injury and a growing sense that the grocery world was shifting in ways that didn’t feel like “home” anymore. Amazon had just bought Whole Foods, and the culture felt different. We were both a little stuck, a little burned out, and craving a creative project we could do together.

An idea that we could “Captain Planet” came bubbling to the surface.

From Side Hustle to Something More

Eric and I each bring an array of seemingly random sets of skills and experiences to the table. Eric had gone to culinary school at Johnson & Wales, studied biology, worked as a fish biologist, made a lot of moonshine in college, brewed a lot of beer in his backyard, and had an obsession with microbes. I had studied functional medicine, Western and Chinese herbalism, and worked in a natural grocery for years. I’d been a lead production facilitator for a small body care company, and I’d worked for so many little upstart brands that I knew a dangerous amount about the natural products industry.

But more than anything, we both loved to bring ideas into the world, to flex our culinary creativity, and wanted to feel a part of something bigger than ourselves.

At first, I wanted to create herbal syrups—simple, approachable ways to introduce people to powerful herbs like schisandra, ashwagandha, and rhodiola. Herbs that weren’t well known at the time, unless you were deep into the world of naturopaths and health food stores. I thought, “What if we made it easy? Just pour a little syrup into sparkling water, and boom—you’ve got a functional tonic that tastes great.”

Eric, being the fermentation guy, said: "That's a terrible idea. Why don’t we just make it a ready-to-drink beverage? Something you can crack open, fully carbonated and shelf-stable, but still rooted in whole ingredients.”

So we bought a bunch of small homebrewing equipment from SS Brewtech, set up in our tiny space, and started brewing.

And damnit it was fun, and hard.

The Joy of Making Something Real

Those early days were so fun. We’d experiment with herbs, fruits, spices, and honeys. I loved to give them names with string alliteration. A strange thing that brings me so much joy. We only used ingredients you could pronounce—things that came from the earth. If it wasn’t whole, it wasn’t going in the batch.

We started sampling at small events. And something magical happened: people got it. They loved it. They’d take a sip and light up, saying things like, “This tastes amazing,” or “I actually feel good when I drink this.”

It was the best feeling in the world—watching an idea that had been bouncing around in our kitchen take root in real people’s lives.

Enter: The Switchel

At some point, the concept of Switchel came into our world. We were brewing out of a shared space that also made barbecue sauce, and one day Eric was inspired by a massive drum of local organic apple cider vinegar. In true Eric fashion he went digging and came across an old farmer’s almanac recipe for switchel—a historic hydration tonic made from vinegar, ginger, water, and a sweetener. Originally used by farmers working in the fields all day.

We tried it. We loved it.

The first one we made was Raspberry Ginger Switchel. Simple, clean, and nostalgic in the best way. And it flew off the table. It was easy for people to understand, and even easier to love.

Apple cider vinegar brought even more to the table: natural enzymes, electrolytes, gentle detox support, and that zingy wake-you-up energy. With that, our mission sharpened even more.

We weren’t just here to make drinks. We were here to help people feel amazing and get curious about what they chose to put in their bodies.

Real Humans, Real Ingredients, Real Mission

From day one, we’ve believed that people deserve better. Better options. Better ingredients. Better stories behind the things they put in their bodies.

We built ERTH around a simple mission: Hydrate and inspire the people.

The “hydrate” part is easy to understand. But the “inspire” part is just as important to us. We want people to wonder why we sweeten with raw honey. We want them to ask what apple cider vinegar is doing in a can. We want to spark curiosity about ingredients, labels, and the relationship we all have with what we consume.

We want to make beverages that taste so good you don’t even notice how good they are for you—until you do. And then you can't stop thinking about them.

So, Why Did We Start ERTH?

We started ERTH because we wanted something of our own. Something that brought together everything we knew and loved—fermentation, herbalism, food, function, community. We wanted to make products that are real, unpretentious, and genuinely useful.

But more than that, we started ERTH because we believe in people.

We believe that when you offer someone something thoughtfully made—something built from scratch with real ingredients—they notice. They feel the difference. And they keep coming back, not just for the product, but for the story.

We’re still here, still brewing, still creating, and still having fun. And we’re so glad you’re part of this journey with us.