CALIFORNIA – Crafted from a desire to bring a taste of Greece to the U.S. in a modern and convenient way is the new cocktail-in-a-can concept ‘Dosi Dosi’ created by Alexandra and Demetra Karos.
After spending their summers in Greece for months-on-end, drinking cocktails by the water, the Karos sisters, Alexandra, and Demetra, wanted to bring their love for cocktails with Greek flavors to the U.S. – that is what inspired their journey to create the U.S.’s first Greek cocktail in a can.
In January of this year, they developed their own business titled ‘Dosi Dosi’, which is driven by their motive to bring a “dose of Greece” to America.
They currently sell a specialty Greek Mastiha Cocktail in a 200ml can, which blends refreshing notes of lemon and mint, and a deep herbal and floral mastic flavor – which is distilled and imported directly from Chios, Greece. It is described as being best served over ice.
These cocktails not only capture the essence of Greece, but they also contain 18% ABV, meaning they reflect the authentic experience of purchasing a cocktail at a bar…but this time, from the comfort of your own home.
In an interview with The National Herald, the Greek-American sisters, originally from Minneapolis, and with roots from the Peloponnese, revealed how their business came about, their inspirations, and hopes for growing their newly-founded business.
Dosi Dosi is sold in a 4-pack. Photo: Courtesy of Dosi Dosi
With Demetra’s background in business and consulting, and Alexandra’s background in graphic design, the pair shared that they also grew up in the hospitality industry, with their grandparents and later their parents in the restaurant business, where they learned many valuable skills that helped them launch their very own venture together earlier this year.
Demetra shared that as two women in their twenties, all their lives she and her sister have been involved in the Greek community, and as they got older, they wanted to create a product that brings a taste of Greece to the U.S.
“We grew up as typical Greek-Americans, where we were involved in GOYA and Greek dancing and everything, and we always wanted to find a way to bring pieces of our Greek-American experience to the U.S., and share it with our friends that are not Greek,” Demetra told TNH.
“We also just love cocktails and love the cocktail scene in Greece, and so we wanted to find a way to bring the ingredients and flavors of Greece to the U.S. in a way that like makes sense for modern drinkers today, because they drink quite differently than like our parents’ generation, and this is what led us to ‘Dosi Dosi’.”
Alexandra described Dosi Dosi as a ready-to-drink or canned cocktail company that began from a shared love for cocktails in Greece and a mission to share the flavors they know and love, such as mastiha, with people outside of Greece.
“So our goal is to bring Greek ingredients, whether that’s mastiha or other ingredients, to the U.S., to introduce them to non-Greek audiences or Greek audiences that are familiar with the ingredients that just want a more convenient, accessible way to drink them,” Alexandra shared.
Dosi Dosi is the U.S.’s first Greek cocktail in a can. Photo: Courtesy of Dosi Dosi
“Our first drink is our Greek Mastiha Cocktail, and we made it from our own proprietary Mastiha liqueur over the course of about two-and-a-half years, and we make it in California and we use imported mastic tears of Chios and we blend it with lemon and mint.”
“It’s like a cocktail that lots of Greeks are familiar with, but just in a can ready to drink, and pour it over ice – that’s kind of the whole idea.”
The 28-year-old sister, Demetra, shared what inspired her and her sister to focus on mastiha, and how when someone who’s not Greek thinks of Greek flavors in alcohol, often only ouzo and Metaxa come to mind, so they wanted to change that.
“We wanted to show that there’s more ingredients and flavors that they just haven’t heard of and experienced yet,” Demetra explained.
“And it [mastiha] just has such a long history and people love it so much in Greece, and I don’t think it’s gotten too much recognition in the United States beyond from Greeks, so we thought – what a perfect ingredient to start with.”
“It’s been really fun having people try it, and we love it when people are like, I’ve never had anything like this before.”
When asked where to find the Dosi Dosi mastiha cocktail, the Greek-American sisters revealed how they distribute and are available in selected liquor stores in California, and how some of the stores ship nationally, to other states in the U.S.
Dosi Dosi is best served over ice. Photo: Courtesy of Dosi Dosi
As a product that’s been very well received so far, especially with an ever-growing canned cocktail scene in California, they added how they hope to eventually expand to more places across the country with “huge Greek populations” including New York.
“The response has been really good so far, and it’s just been really nice having people try it,” Demetra expressed.
“Watching people try the drink, whether they’ve had mastiha or not, is a really cool experience, especially for the people that haven’t tried it before, because there’s not really anything like it.”
The 25-year-old sister, Alexandra, added how she and her sister felt a sense of pride and joy to release the product and provide a dose of Greece to the U.S.
“It’s been really exciting and I think it’s cool that Greek culture is such a hospitality-forward culture,” she said.
“So, to be able to bring a kind of a new element to that – it feels amazing, and we’ve been really excited to share it with people.”
To find out more about Alexandra and Demetra Karos’ latest venture, Dosi Dosi, visit www.drinkdosidosi.com.