Butta
Audio By Carbonatix
Sitting in Uprooted Kitchen in Gilbert and enjoying buckwheat tacos and lemonades, all Janek and Ania Flik could think about was how the creamy fermented milk drink from their native Poland would pair well with their meal.
Yearning for a taste of home, the engineers — Ania worked in biotechnology and Janek in IT — set out to recreate the drink, zsiadłe mleko, for themselves. Now, they’re selling Butta at a Scottsdale farmers market, and the drink is up for a coveted food award.
Zsiadłe mleko is often made and shared at gatherings in Poland, the Fliks explained. This refreshing, cooling sip is popular to savor during the summer on its own or with seasonal fruits mixed in, Janek explains.
Often, Valley shoppers ask if Butta is kefir or yogurt.
“It’s the same family,” Ania says. “The taste is very different, because it’s not heavy, it’s creamy, it’s tangy and sour, it’s just light and crisp.”
They each have nostalgia for the drink and the laid-back time spent with friends and family. While reminiscing, the Fliks realized the drink would translate well to the Sonoran Desert.
“Life here felt, at least for us, very busy and fast. Everything here is about coffee and energy, productivity,” Ania says. “We just wanted to create something different, something completely opposite to that, something slower with intention.”
Butta
What is Butta?
The couple launched Butta at the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Market last summer. Ania set up a booth with a macrame sign, samples and a station where customers can smell the flavor combinations of hibiscus and honey, prickly pear and lime, date and rose or lavender and vanilla. Butta is a “mix of our Polish roots and also inspiration from Arizona,” Janek says.
Butta starts with organic milk, to which the Fliks add a culture and ferment for a day. Then, they add ingredients inspired by the desert surroundings, eschewing artificial and refined items, and package each drink into a glass milk bottle.
The different varieties focus on daily rituals, getting ready for the day or winding down at night. Butta’s signature sip, Canyon Gold, is infused with turmeric, black pepper and agave. That bright warmth “feels grounding” in the morning, Janek says, while flavors like Oasis Whisper, made with dates, cinnamon and rose, can stand in as a post-dinner treat.
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Janek and Ania Flik, a Valley couple with Polish roots sells a cultured milk drink inspired by their home. -
Farmers market patrons can smell the desert-inspired ingredients, like hibiscus and honey, that go into each bottle of Butta. -
Because most people aren’t familiar with the Polish cultured milk drink that inspired Butta, the Fliks have samples on hand.
The Fliks entered the Good Food Awards, hosted by the nonprofit trade group the Specialty Food Association, on a whim. A selling point of the awards, which recognize people whose products are made with responsible practices and have superior taste, is that entrants receive feedback from the judges. The Fliks were eager for feedback but expected little else for their Butta entry.
Earlier this year, they learned that Canyon Gold is a finalist for a 2026 Good Food Award in the Drinks category. Award winners will be named on June 28.
“It was mindblowing for us,” Janek says. “It also shows us that this is something that has big potential.”
The Fliks make small batches, and thanks to their loyal following, they often sell out. The couple suggests pre-ordering online to guarantee securing a specific flavor. In addition to the Old Town farmers market, the Fliks offer pickup on Fridays in downtown Phoenix.
“This is something that basically brings my memory back,” Janek says, “that keeps us connected with our roots.”
