Discover Oklahoma: Can-do spirit has led to success for two local soda companies

I frequently write about a certain topic, especially around the holidays. It's a topic we discuss frequently on "Discover Oklahoma," too, and should continue to do so throughout the year. That is, shop and buy locally. To support locally owned or family-owned enterprises is so important and should be emphasized all the time. We should always look for Made-in-Oklahoma products, which leads me to two Oklahoma businesses that have found success because they carved out a distinct niche. They produce soda!

OKC Soda was founded by three dedicated business partners, Mike Noonan, Michael Crowder and Pat Krencicki, who previously worked together at Bricktown Brewery in downtown OKC. Everything started with a flavor discovery project initiated by their bosses. But that project was later dropped but Noonan, Crowder and Krencicki realized during the process they had built the foundation for what would become the birth of OKC Soda.

With a shared vision and determination, the three partners approached their bosses, seeking their approval and support. Encouragingly, they received the blessing they sought from the bosses and embarked on their own journey, propelling OKC Soda forward.

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To ensure its exceptional quality, the three partners dedicated themselves to conducting extensive test batches and inviting impartial individuals to try them. It was during this process they became acutely aware of as Crowder says “we had something special.” Right now, Noonan and Krencicki are the brewers while Crowder handles all the management duties.

“We are now in most grocery stores, Crest, Homeland, Uptown Grocery, Bricktown Brewery, Eischen's, a ton of restaurants and bars, and some family institutions around the city,” Crowder says. “We use only pure cane sugar, and we use absolutely no high fructose corn syrup or caffeine and a third less sugar than most sodas. We use natural flavors in every can. We also use all aluminum packaging making us the sustainable choice for craft soda.” Their unique flavors include Strawberry Shortcake and Blueberry Acai. Two other flavors include Root Beer and Lemon Lime.

For the next soda company, it all started on a family picnic the Occhipintis took in 2017. Their twin sons devoured Dr Pepper. Finally at one point, their father, John, quipped “As much as you drink Dr Pepper, as much soda as you drink, we need to go into that business just to save money. And by the way, we’ll do it and we’ll call it Okola-Homa Soda because we’re going to make this in Oklahoma.”

Today you can find bottles of Okola-Homa Soda in any independent grocery chain in Oklahoma from Reeser’s to Crest to Uptown Grocery, Pruitt’s, the Tourism Information Centers across the state, Peach Tree Farms in Ada, Costco, Homeland and Walmart. This has always been a family-owned and operated company, and that hasn't changed. Cynthia Occhipinti, the company's operations manager, explains, "These recipes are our personal recipes that we have put together as a family." She adds “many of our customers have told us how happy it has made them to finally locate a product created in Oklahoma by fellow Sooners, and especially by a family business. We run the company as a team.”

John Occhipinti, president and co-owner, insisted from the start that everything be manufactured in Oklahoma. Not only did he make sure the packaging reflected Oklahoma, but he also made it a point to emphasize the importance of repeat business. "High-quality products with high-quality ingredients are essential for retaining customers and encouraging repeat purchases. We opted early on to use just cane sugar, rather than high fructose corn syrup. Flavoring is something we created that is wholly original to us; it's a true craft flavor that's made to order,” John says.

At the moment, they offer seven distinct flavors, including some that are seasonal. Their best seller is root beer, while their second-best seller is cream soda, followed by “Mr. Twister” soda.

The Okola-Homa Soda Co. is an official licensee of Oklahoma State University, and its OSU Orange soda is sold on the Stillwater campus.

And for the University of Oklahoma, they make a “Crimson Cream” black cherry cream soda.

The Edmond-based Okola-Homa Soda Co. emphasizes faith, family and community in everything they do.

Having tested products from both the Okola-Homa Soda Co. and OKC Soda, I can say without a doubt every single one I sampled was refreshing, bursting with flavor and overall impressive. You can tell the great care in which both companies produce their products. It’s also obvious both companies are very proud to be Oklahoma-based companies. As you go out shopping, look around for their products and give them a try. You won’t be disappointed. Here are their websites, which have more information on where you can find their sodas: https://okcsodaco.com and https://okolasoda.com.

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Dino Lalli is the co-host and one of the feature reporters for the weekly television travel show "Discover Oklahoma."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Searching for local pop? Try OKC Soda, Okola-Homa Soda