Here, two emergent trends in tonic collide: first, the trend towards tonic syrups: concentrated, sweet, herbal concoctions designed to be diluted with soda water before drinking. The second trend is that of “companion” tonics: that is tonics made by distillers, crafted in such a way that it perfectly compliments the spirit. Pinckney Bend has designed … Read more
Freeway Tonic Water is the store brand for the Lidl chain of supermarkets. I found this one while I was staying in Helsinki. Technically, the first thing that surprises me is that the sweetener is sugar. You rarely see that stateside, especially with some of the more inexpensive tonics. Secondly, this is incredibly inexpensive. I … Read more
Fentiman’s Light Tonic is their lower calorie variation on their Fentiman’s Tonic. But it’s not just a direct variation. True, it sticks to sugar as the sweetener, but the herbal infusion includes juniper, makrut lime leaves and the botanically brewed part features the former two plus lemongrass as well. Fentiman’s Light tonic is a paltry … Read more
Bootblack Brand Classic Citrus Tonic hails from Rhode Island and the brand name refers to an “ideal from generations’ past but firmly rooted in today’s’ culture.” Although tonic syrup is a relatively modern creation, the methods for adding quinine flavor to the average gin and tonic with a syrup have more in common with the … Read more
Sprouts Tonic Water is the store brand tonic from Phoenix, Arizona based Sprouts Farmer’s Markets. It’s a highly sweetened store brand tonic; however it notably uses sugar rather than high fructose corn syrup. Tasting Notes Poured, Sprouts Tonic Water has a rapid effervescence and nice head. Medium sized bubbles remain in the glass. To the … Read more
With a name like Regatta, it should be no surprise that Regatta Mixers is now the official craft mixers of U.S. Sailing. Affinity Beverages out of New York re-launched the Regatta brand in 2019 with sharp, clean labels and a strong lifestyle associated brand. But more importantly— rather than competing within a crowded standard tonic … Read more
Again, the cocktail show hit the road for the weekend. My friend happened to pick up a new Tonic Syrup that I had not yet had the pleasure of tasting. There’s a great story about who Jack Rudy was. I won’t ruin it for you, but suffice to say that you can’t help but smile … Read more
Occasionally, it takes me a while to get around to getting a review up. I’ve had this wonderful bottle of tonic syrup chronicled in my notes for some time. I unexpectedly received another bottle very recently which prompted me to look in my notes and realize [to my chagrin] that I have not written about … Read more
Before I tried a Finnish Long Drink, I was baffled by the grape tonic I saw on the shelves in Helsinki. After having the Finnish Long Drink, I got it. Contrary to the name, the flavor is grapefruit and not grape. The color and opacity is similar to grapefruit sodas like Squirt. Tasting Notes Slight … Read more
Elderflower is a popular flavor in gin and tonics. Take note that we’ve reviewed Fever Tree’s Elderflower Tonic Water before. And we’ve reviewed Jack Rudy’s Elderflower Tonic Syrup before. Elderflower has been referred to (sometime pejoratively) as the “ketchup of the cocktail world.*” Bottle Green Elderflower Tonic Water is squarely within that space. But let’s … Read more