For Immediate Release

Contact:
Eric Schnell, MetaBrand, info@metabrandcorp.com, tel 888.611.5573
Steven Hoffman, Compass Natural, steve@compassnatural.com, tel 303.807.1042

Cold Soup is the Hottest Product Trend at BevNET Live Winter 2014 Conference

TÍo Gazpacho wins New Beverage Showdown, also voted as Audience Favorite and Best Smoothie/Meal Replacement beverage
in Santa Monica, Calif.


Santa Monica, CA (December 15, 2014) –MetaBrand, a leading Quadruple Bottom Line, full service firm providing product formulation, outsourced operations, and sales and marketing services to natural and organic food and beverage entrepreneurs, proudly announces its client partner, Miami-based Tío Gazpacho – a fresh, chilled, ready-to-drink high-pressure processed (HPP) version of the traditional Spanish Soup – won three prestigious titles atBevNET Live Winter 2014, December 8-9, in Santa Monica, CA.

After two days of inspirational presentations, judges and audience members voted to grant Tío Gazpacho Audience Favorite and overall Winner of New Beverage Showdown 8 (8th edition), BevNET’s signature beverage brand competition – and Best Smoothie/Meal Replacement beverage of 2014.

Sponsored by Venturing & Emerging Brands, an operating unit of Coca-Cola North America, BevNET's New Beverage Showdown is designed to identify the most innovative and scalable new beverage brand from a slate of beverage entrepreneurs. Austin Allan, founder of Tío Gazpacho, was awarded $10,000 in cash and prizes for winning the Showdown.

“Congratulations to Austin Allan and the entire Tío Gazpacho team for winning the hearts and taste buds of over 500 food and drink beverage professionals. That is no small feat and indicates that Tío is poised to be the next big trend to watch in the fresh, bottled, HPP beverage category,” said Eric Schnell, MetaBrand Founder and longtime natural and organic products entrepreneur.

“We are thrilled and deeply honored that our vision truly resonated with our peers at BevNET,” said Allan. “We have the support of amazing partners and vendors, including MetaBrand, in particular, for some remarkable visual design work, which helped to bring the Tío concept to life in a smart, meaningful and relevant way. While we’re currently retailed only in the Florida market, we have been diligently working to expand in the Northeast, and our BevNET successes will be an incredible asset as we launch in the NYC metro market next month.”

About Tío Gazpacho: Unapologetically cold. Deliciously bold.
The original savory gazpacho soup, blended with fresh, nutritious ingredients, boasts an exotic history with influences from Greece, Italy and Africa, and finally perfected in Spain. Tío Gazpacho takes this classic chilled mash-up and turns it on its head, with three bold, delicious variations - all organic and alive with flavor. Perfect for a healthy snack or lunch on the go. Ready to drink straight from the bottle. No bowl required™.

Tío is a new concept in refreshment and nutrition; it brings all the flavors and health benefits of Mediterranean eating to American consumers with a line of drinkable gazpachos. All crafted recipes are Certified USDA Organic, vegetarian and vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants - and they are free of preservatives, colors, artificial flavors and additives of any kind, and are never heat pasteurized.

The three fresh flavors include:
  • gazpacho clásico: Creamy and complex, with bright flavors from naturally-ripened tomatoes, cucumber, green pepper and olive oil.
  • gazpacho verde: A rich blend of kale, spinach and avocado with freshly picked mint, cucumber, jalapeno, cumin and black pepper.
  • gazpacho del sol: A sweet summer variety that owes its distinctive color to yellow tomatoes, fresh carrot juice and yellow bell peppers.

For more information visit, TioGazpacho.com and on Facebook.

About MetaBrand
Created by natural products industry veteran and Steaz Teas Co-founder Eric Schnell, MetaBrand, is a leading Quadruple Bottom Line, full service firm providing product formulation, outsourced operations, and sales and marketing services to natural, organic and nutritional food and beverage entrepreneurs. With a team of 35 advisers and long-standing industry relationships, MetaBrand, a Certified B Corp., helps companies quickly and efficiently develop winning formulations for natural and organic product concepts that are on-trend and efficacious, regulation compliant, and scalable. For more information, visitMetaBrandCorp.com, info@metabrandcorp.com, tel 888.611.5573.

Also, visit the MetaBrand News Room, and on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTubeand Twitter.

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