12 Best Canned Cocktails, Tested and Reviewed

All of the drinks that Tip Top sells in its signature small cans are worthy of having at your next party, but my favorites are the ones that would be harder to make yourself. That category includes the daiquiri, which has a lively blend of Caribbean rums, and Tip Top’s take on the Jungle Bird.

The espresso martini is back, and rightfully so. A sensation in the nineties, the delicious kick-in-the-pants cocktail is newly popular again. But it’s never been fun to make at home. This nitro version, made with Stumptown coffee, delivers the frothy silkiness of the real thing.

Yes, there are good Bloody Mary mixes out there that allow you to simply add vodka (or tequila or gin) to get a great drink. But if you want to fully embrace that hair-of-the-dog spirit and just pop the top and sip, this is the way to do it. It’s decadently spicy and vibrant.

Instead of dessert or an espresso martini, consider this mix. Rye whiskey, Intelligentsia coffee, demerara cane sugar, raw honey, bitters, and navel-orange peel amount to something that tastes a bit like breakfast, with a hefty 40 percent ABV kick.

A vodka soda with a splash of cranberry is one of the simplest drink orders, a gateway cocktail. And it does hit the spot, no? This canned version contains a touch of real honey for the right amount of complex sweetness.

A fizzy old-fashioned? Made with brandy, as is the custom in the Midwest? I was skeptical. But this can from Plain Spoke of Madison, Wisconsin, is spirit forward yet refreshing. It’s the kind of reward you want at the end of a long, hot day.

Empirical was founded by alums from temple of gastronomic experimentation Noma, and its products have a mad-scientist energy. This lightly carbonated cocktail—made from vacuum-distilled Pilsner malt and other ingredients—is beyond what most bars can pull off.

Brooklyn-based St. Agrestis makes a lovely bottled negroni, but the non-alcoholic version is even better. It has a bit of carbonation to it; they say that’s the trick to giving it the bite of alcohol. Whatever the secret is, you won’t feel as though you’re missing the real thing.

All right, there’s nothing innovative about spritzes. But this version solves an issue that’s always bugged me: They tend to be flat and stupid sweet. Neither of those problems applies here. Dry, bitter, with endless bubbles, it’s a superior spritz.

A long drink, as it’s known in Finland, is essentially a gin highball served with a carbonated fruit beverage, a close cousin to our Tom Collins. This version, from a company named after the drink, has grapefruit tartness, a touch of sweetness, just the right amount of juniper, ninety-nine calories, and zero grams of sugar. I’m not sure why anyone would touch a White Claw after drinking this.

Mezcal, a bit of citrus, and carbonated water: Put all those things together and you have a low-calorie, low-ABV sparkling beverage that you can drink all day.

Only ninety-six calories per drink. (Two come in the can.) By no means a traditional margarita, even though it uses triple sec and lime, this is more of a take on the cocktail that’s been given a nuanced, bitter taste from the bergamot orange. Delightful and interesting and refreshing all at once.