I’m going to share with you a story you probably won’t believe, but it’s true. Long before Red Bull or Monster, a farmer in North Dakota may have stumbled on the first real “energy drink.”
It’s 1926, and the Ward County Independent runs a curious story out of Willis, North Dakota. Farmer A.L. Simpkins wakes to what he described as a “strange sight.”
When he walked outside, he saw that his pigs, who are normally grunting, snuffling, and four-legged were… walking upright. On their hind legs.
Simpkins thought he might be dreaming. But no, there they were. Curious, he traced the cause: a thick, syrupy juice was leaking from his silo. The pigs were drawn to it, returning every 30 minutes to slurp from the puddle.
Whether it was fermented corn, or some kind of farming accident turned miracle, Simpkins wasn’t taking any chances. He began to wonder: What happens if people eat this pork?
Simpkins decided there would be no pork for sale. Not from his farm. Not anytime soon.
And so, in a sleepy town in North Dakota, long before “Red Bull gives you wings,” A.L. Simpkins brewed something that didn’t quite give them wings… but did help them walk like they might.
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This Dakota Datebook was originally written by Tessa Sandstrom. Edited for radio by Tay Calloway