BY TIFFANY CANDELARIA

An Arizona artist turned from painting with beeswax to brewing with honey to create a delicious drink that was previously largely unknown and unavailable locally to the general public. WILD TONIC is much more than a bubbly beverage — it is a 100% organic, green tea-based, probiotic elixir known as jun (pronunciations vary from rhyming with noon or nun, depending on who you ask). 

A cousin of kombucha, jun is made with green tea and honey instead of black tea and sugar, which creates a smoother, more palatable taste. This uniquely delicious beverage was brought to the Arizona masses by artist Holly Skaggs, who worked with bees and was passionate about making the world a better place. One day her love of painting with beeswax transformed into working with honey. “Another labor of love created by the bees,” Skaggs says. “And as with many creative endeavors that spill into other forms of expression, I found myself fascinated with the art of fermentation, specifically a rare ferment known as jun.” She experimented brewing with this living culture for several years until 2015, when WILD TONIC Sparkling Jun was officially launched!

The origins of jun are largely unknown. Some believe the beverage dates back to ancient Chinese or Tibetan origins, while others believe it to be a more modern spin on kombucha. In either case, jun is a relatively new beverage category that has recently started to become recognized by consumers. “We have a lot of educating to do so that people try this amazingly delicious ferment that is great for gut health and energy,” Skaggs explains. “Green tea and honey are both superfoods and when they are fermented, it makes the nutrients even more bioavailable to the body.”

Today there are nearly 15 flavors of WILD TONIC — including two seasonal varieties — that include creative combinations like Rosemary Lemon and Chai Pear, along with more common flavors like Blackberry Mint and Blueberry Basil. Available in bold cobalt blue glass bottles — the same color that attracts bees to flowers — or convenient aluminum cans, these drinks provide delicious refreshment plus probiotics, prebiotics, amino acids, and antioxidants that support immunity and digestion in each serving.

Brewed with organic honey from Brazil, a big part of the mission at WILD TONIC is to help the bee populations by supporting organic farmers and partnering with local beekeeping organizations that focus on bee conservation. As Skaggs and her team only use organic honey, the team hasn’t been able to source the quantity needed to produce the jun within the U.S. She notes that it is hard to source large quantities of organic honey due to the amount of pesticides and GMOs present in our crops.

“By identifying and encouraging the wild characteristics in bees, we can help them adapt and thrive once again in an increasingly developed world,” says Skaggs. The company also follows a handful of sustainable practices to minimize its impact on the environment. Practices include composting leftover teas, herbs, flowers, and fruit used in making the jun, recycling of all appropriate materials, and using biodegradable and non-toxic cleaning products. Additionally, the 36,000-square-foot state-of-the-art brewery in Cottonwood is energy efficient. “There is a common thread of health, joy, and vitality that unites us and our mission,” says Skaggs. WILD TONIC is proud to have won a handful of awards, including Beverage Industry’s “Innovation of the Year” when the company first launched, in addition to a gold medal at the U.S. Open Beverage Championship for its Mango Ginger flavor of hard jun — an alcoholic line designed for customers to get their buzz on without the toxins found in many traditional alcoholic beverages. The company also recently received an MLB Sports Certification and will soon be stocked into clubhouses across the country.

Today, WILD TONIC is sold in all 50 states and can be found locally at Sprouts, Whole Foods, and AJ’s Fine Food stores. For more, visit www.wildtonic.com.