Mixer Taste Test

With ever more nuanced flavours, exotic flavours, bolder flavours, and even some frankly bonkers flavours, now making their way on to the already-heaving shelves of the mixer aisle, we thought it was high time to put them to the test. Our mission? To find out, amidst the gold rush of new products, whose claims – from pairing with an ever-wider array of spirits, to being able to consumed on their own – checked out.

If you’ve been keeping up with Liquid Thinking, you’ll have seen that in a previous piece we delved into the perplexing matter of mixers. In recent years, a rapid growth in new flavours, alongside their now seeming challenge to the non-alc sector with liquids designed to be drank on their own, has led to a somewhat confusing positioning. Is their primary role still to enhance and pair perfectly with a spirit? Or are they now fully formed drinks in their own right?

Amidst this flurry of new brands and varietals, we’ve watched some intriguing trends emerge. As previously explored, soda has become a key challenger to tonic, as consumers look for lower calorie options. It’s become a key challenger to cola too, as brands launch flavours designed to pair with dark spirits such as rum.

On that note, dark spirits have always been a bit of a conundrum when it comes to mixers; is there a challenger that pairs as well with them as cola? And is there anything that is worthy of mixing with super premium dark spirits? Some new spirit-specific mixers think so. And for those that have ever accidentally sipped a tonic neat, and winced at its bitter taste, well, now there’s tonics that have been created to be drunk alone. Hurrah.

We gathered an array of the most intriguing or ‘on-trend’ mixers on the market – all were flavoured products – and had some key questions before tasing. Firstly, how far can drinks makers push the development of new flavours, while still letting the spirit shine through? Afterall, when you pay for a drink, the majority of your cash is being spent on the spirit. You want to taste it.

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