Aaron Nosbisch was 13 years old when he smoked his first joint in a friend’s backyard in their Western Illinois suburb. It was an exceptionally risky high for Nosbisch, who knew that when he returned home, he would be facing his father—an agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Over the next five years, if Nosbisch ever came home a little stoned—and he often did—his dad would pound on his smoking buddies’ doors and greet them with arrest threats.
“It scared the hell out of them, and lost me a few friends,” says Nosbisch. “Back then, the idea was that if you were involved in cannabis, you’re on a slippery slope down to demise.”
Now 31, Nosbisch runs one of the best-selling brands in the cannabis industry’s buzziest sector: the THC beverage market. Founded in 2023, Brēz is a low-dose cannabis drink infused with Lion’s Mane mushrooms, which many believe have health benefits including improved cognition and inflammation. The company brought in $28 million in revenue last year and $13 million in the first quarter of 2025. It’s outpacing nearly every other competitor, and at just the right time.
Subscribe to Forbes Life: https://www.youtube.com/c/ForbesLife?sub_confirmation=1
Stay Connected Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbesvideo Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbesvideo More From Forbes: http://forbes.com
Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.