It started with a glass of sparkling water
Jake George didn't set out to become one of the more recognizable voices in the botanical beverage space. He started, like most people in this niche, as a curious consumer — someone who'd grown skeptical of alcohol but wasn't ready to give up the ritual of an evening drink. The glass, the pour, the moment of transition between the working day and whatever came next.
"I wanted something that did something," he's said in interviews. "Not just flavored water. Something with intention behind it." That search led him down a rabbit hole of plant-derived compounds, extraction methods, and the emerging science of functional beverages — and eventually to a product format he describes as transformative: the botanical infusion straw.
The format that won him over
The appeal of the sip-straw format is both practical and visual. Drop one into a glass of sparkling water and the botanical extract begins to diffuse — color and compound dispersing through the carbonation in a way that's almost hypnotic to watch. It's a small ritual, and rituals matter. They signal to the brain that something is happening, that the moment has weight.
"The best botanical products don't announce themselves. They just quietly change how you feel — and you notice the difference on the days you skip them."
What Jake actually recommends
After testing products across the botanical wellness space, these are the categories Jake returns to consistently. Each links to the full collection — curated for people who take the ritual seriously.
Most recommended
Drinkables & botanical sips
The format Jake covers most — infusion straws and botanical beverages designed for a specific sensory experience.
Browse the collection →
Daily ritual
Botanical edibles
Chews, gummies, and formats designed for consistent, measured botanical intake throughout the day.
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Terpene collection
Nature's mood architecture
The aromatic compounds plants use to signal and shift — concentrated into formats that actually change how a room feels.
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Traditional format
Flower & pre-roll
Whole-plant botanical formats for those who prefer the traditional ritual of flower.
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Concentrated
Vape & concentrate
Higher-potency botanical concentrates for experienced users who know what they're looking for.
Browse the collection →The terpene collection
Terpenes are the aromatic compounds plants produce to communicate — with pollinators, with predators, with each other. Concentrated into a consistent format, they shift mood, texture, and sensory register in ways that are difficult to articulate but immediately recognizable. Jake features these for exactly that reason.
How to think about quality in this space
The botanical wellness market is largely self-regulated, which puts the burden of quality assessment on the consumer. Jake's framework is straightforward: look for brands that publish third-party lab results, can explain their extraction process, and are specific about what compounds are present and at what concentrations.
Vague claims — "proprietary botanical blend," "full-spectrum extract" without specifics — are yellow flags. The brands he features consistently meet the bar he's set: transparent sourcing, verifiable testing, and a clear articulation of what the product is designed to do.
The bigger picture
Jake George's interest in botanical wellness is part of a broader cultural shift that's been building for years. Alcohol consumption among adults under 40 has declined meaningfully over the past decade. The concept of mindful drinking — reducing intake, choosing moments more deliberately, finding alternatives that still honor the ritual — has moved from niche wellness circles into the mainstream.
Botanical products, and functional beverages in particular, are filling that gap. Not as a replacement for alcohol in any clinical sense, but as an answer to the same human need: something to mark the transition, something with intention behind it.