Ten Years of Yes!
Lauren Butler on Mocktails, Motherhood, and Making It Work
Ten Years of Yes!
Lauren Butler on Mocktails, Motherhood, and Making It Work
Adam Montiel welcomed Lauren Butler of Yes Cocktail Co. into the Timbre Lobro Studios for a one-of-a-kind convo celebrating their company’s 10-year anniversary, Lauren opened up about what it means to grow a business, raise a baby, and still say yes to it all.
"We're ready to party," she laughed, still reeling from the surreal milestone. "Feels like yesterday we were setting up our first booth at Farmers’ Market."
Starting with improv roots and a whole lot of hustle, Yes Cocktail Co. went from farmer's market kitsch to a nationally recognized boutique brand. Lauren and her husband Brandon still make every batch themselves. "We actually make the drinks that we put out there," she said. "We taste them and go, is this good? Would anyone else like this?"
But it hasn’t all been glitter and garnish. Lauren got real about the fear that comes with entrepreneurship: "Everything about owning a business and putting yourself out there is terrifying. But it's so worth it." She continued, "If you're not a little scared, you don't care about it enough."
That theme of courage showed up again when she opened up about becoming a new mom. "I'm only an hour away from a nap pretty much all the time," she said, laughing. But the wisdom hit hard: "Forgiveness is really huge. Just taking it easy on yourself."
The conversation turned to the buzz around zero-proof mixology, which Lauren was ahead of the curve on. "So many people scoffed at it. I thought, maybe this is dumb... I wish I leaned in harder, really sooner."
Some of the biggest hits at Yes? The Lavender Honey, Cucumber Jalapeño, and that show-stealing Charred Oak & Maple. And don’t even try to cancel their bitters-infused sugar cubes, people would riot.
From a viral video confronting a major brand who wasn’t paying up ("It was my last ditch effort"), to a dreamy collab with Brown Butter Cookie Co., Lauren’s journey proves you don’t need a big machine behind you to make big moves.
"Paso is a great place for dreamers," she said. "We've been so lucky that people said ‘yes’ back."
Lauren also teased a killer new holiday lineup, including an advent calendar of 12 Old Fashioneds and "naughty or nice" mystery cocktail cubes. "I figured out a way to make them look like little lumps of coal... but it's an Old Fashioned."
Want in on the party? Yes Cocktail Co.'s 10-Year Anniversary bash is Oct 4th at their Paso tasting room, and includes a mixology class, paired bites, cocktails and mocktails galore. Members of their Drink At Home Club get in free.
"We never throw parties, so this is a big deal," Lauren said. And in true Yes style, it's gonna be worth it.
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