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Date: 7/8/2020
EASTHAMPTON – For the past two years, local couple Kristin Anthony and Michael Bennion have owned and operated their own Kombucha microbrewery, LifeBooch, right in Easthampton.
The couple met five years ago in Bountiful, Utah, where Bennion is from originally. “We met when I was riding cross country on my motorcycle and needed my tires changed at his shop, Adrenaline Moto,” Anthony said.
Anthony has been making the fermented tea since she was in college. When she met Bennion he had never even heard of it. As time went on he became such a fan of the drink that he began to buy so many bottles that she informed him that he can make it himself instead of buying it. When he moved back to Utah she taught him how to make it over Skype.
“Michael likes to perfect any project he gets into, so he didnt just make kombucha. He experimented with different ratios of black and green tea, different brewing temperatures, times, and different brands of teas, all in attempt to perfect his craft. As opposed to me, I’ll drink whatever vinegar comes out of the jar,” said Anthony.
As their friendship grew into a relationship, Bennion decided to move to Massachusetts. He closed his motorcycle business and planned to open one here, but instead he told Anthony that they should sell their own Kombucha. Their friends liked their product and wanted to buy it from them, they just did not have enough bottles to actually sell.
The two of them started to sell their product at the Holyoke Farmers Market and from there, they expanded to different markets. Their first retail locations were River Valley Co-op and Cornucopia.
When asked how they chose the name of their tea, they said, “We liked the idea of incorporating the word life into our product because the process of meeting each other, riding motorcycles together, starting a relationship, making kombucha, and starting a business together have felt like steps toward being more alive. Also, the kombucha is full of life.”
Fast forward to today and they are currently making six flavors, ginger, sangria, mango jalapeno, raspberry grapefruit, passionfruit, and strawberry basil. They offer online orders that can be picked up or delivered within a 20 mile radius. Their bottles can be found in 13 different locations:
For more information visit their website, lifebooch.com.