Drinks on a train

When looking at the happy down can, see right, you might think that your in for a craft carbonated cocktail, as it says this in the side. It's obviously targeted at the hipster generation with the moustachioed figure on the front and the labels claiming it to be gluten free and vegetarian. Sadly the liquid inside does not live up to the promise of the packaging. When opening the can you get a hint of pomegranate on the nose. The taste is one of raspberry with a touch of pomegranate and there is a mild herbal note at the end, which I suppose is meant to be basil. But the whole flavour of the thing is completely overidden by its sweetness - it's SO sugary. This is soda with booze, closer to a Smirnoff ice than a premixed cocktail. Maybe this is to do with the fact they are taking fortified wine as their alcohol base, probably in order to cut costs, so no good flavours are actually coming from the booze. It evokes memories of raspberry aid or panda pop, not what you want to ...

Seeing this delightful peach tea got me really excited. I love iced tea, it's delicious and makes me feel very European. So the idea of a boozy one had a lot of promise, especially since the Lemon flavour has been awarded a great taste award (not a guarantee of great taste but at least an indication that it won't be terrible). Sadly I was a little disappointed.  On the nose this gifts off a strong smell of artificial peach and artificial sweetener. There is a small hint of something else, like watermelon or some other tropical fruit, but it is sadly lacking any tea notes. The peach flavour is relatively light and the tea is somewhat weak as well. The overiding flavor is that of the sweetner, which matches with the bitter tanins of the tea in a way that creates a very odd aftertaste. It reminds me of a sugar free hubba bubba, very much artificial. If I was being objective I might give this a 3, since it isn't a bad drink and if you're used to sweetner then maybe y...

My interest was peaked when I saw this low alcohol gin-in-a-tin, sometime you're looking for a refreshing beverage that doesn't get you completely sozzled and this might be it. I didn't realise at first that it's practically alcohol free, being below 0.5% - which could make it more of a tonic than a G&T really. But hey, with new alcohol free spirits like Seedlip appearing on the market maybe it would be a more adult and interesting drink than just a soda or mixer. The first thing you get when opening it is a strong juniper on the nose, making you realise straight off that this is more than just a tonic water. The taste is very refreshing, with a little citrus and a solid tonic bitterness at the end. The flavour continues to develop with some botanicals coming through at the end. This is certainly more interesting and adult than just a simple tonic water. That being said it doesn't get top marks because that tonic base that is used is still a standard ...

I love a margarita and was really hopeful when I looked at the ingredients of this drink, it had actual Cointreau and real lime juice, which was very promising.  On the nose you get a delicious lime zest hit, which got me excited as often you don't get real lime in these beverages (it doesn't stay fresh sadly). The taste is proper lime, with a refreshing sourness. Strangely enough it's a still drink, which most of these premixed cans aren't, which makes it feel more grown up. You also get a hint of orange, but sadly not much actual tequila.  This was going pretty good until the aftertaste, which is an incredible punch of artificial sweetener. It's overpowering and lingers on the tongue. I suppose this is what makes it skinny, but it's also what takes a pretty good drink and makes it average. Score: 3/5 Price: £

It had been a long time, I’d missed my flight due to snow and what do you want when you’re stressed and tired making your way back by train to home? You don’t want to experiment with crazy drinks or gamble with the unknown, no you want what’s secure and safe. Good old Gin in a Tin. Light and refreshing the M&S version still has enough booze to make you know that you’re definitely not drinking just tonic. It won’t blow your socks of but it is decent and you know what you’re getting. Score: 3.5 Price: £2.25

Gordons G&T I’ve been avoiding buying Gordons gin in a tin for a while.  Why?!? I hear you ask. Well when this pre-mixed drink thing started off I wasn’t really into it and the first G-inna-T I tried was cordons, I was somewhat dissapointed as it wasn’t as delicious as I remembered, but things have changed. I don’t know whether it’s my tastes or the recipe they are using but Gordons and Schweppes have teamed up to create a very decent gin and tonic. Crisp and fresh, sweet and satisfying, this is really the industry standard of Gin & Tonic. Sure cordons isn’t an amazing Gin, sure Schweppes have been left in the dust by the likes of fever tree. But there Gin in a Tin is solid, not amazing, but decent and better than the M&S version I’ve got to say. Until a premium beverage maker like fever tree teams up with a quality gin maker this will be what we measure other G&Ts against. It’s gin and tonic, it does what it says on the tin, what more is there to say? Sc...

I’ve sung the praises of Long Flint before so I won’t go into it again, see my Paloma post to read a little more. The first thing that strikes you about this Negroni ASDFASDs is the depth of colour, it looks purple in a lively an evocative way that still evokes nature. This branding and vivid colour give you a feeling that this is a drink of class and you’re not dissapointed on opening it. On opening I got floral note on the nose with a smell of hibiscus and hints of cranberries. The taste starts with a light fruity sourness and ends with a nice balanced bitterness that lingers on the tongue. The length of the bitterness is what makes this a really interesting beverage: not the sudden and short punch of tonic, it evokes the negroni of it’s name, but as the bottle says a much lighter version, which is helped by the delicate carbonation. The bitterness lingers making this drink a more serious beverage - I can imagine myself drinking this as an aperatif, sitting in a sun soaked p...

It is not often that one has to reassess how one looks at and scores a category, but every once in a while you’ll have a coffee or beer, watch a new film or tv show, and think, oh shit, what I was consuming before wasn’t that great. This was the experience I recently had at Craft Beer Rising when I encountered Long Flint, who make premixed drinks with craft spirits. I was blown away by the depth, complexity and balance of these drinks, they’ve redefined the category for me, setting a new bar. I was thinking of changing the rating system just because of them, and whilst I haven’t done that they do deserve extra credit for raising the bar in the premixed drink sector. I know I originally said I’d only review what you can get at a supermarket or in a train station, but since you can buy these on Amazon I feel it’s within my remit. Anyways enough chat, let’s get onto the drink. What struck me first about the Paloma is the freshness, I have no idea how they’ve done it but it really does...

Walking into m&s I was a little cautious, last time having had a very sad Pina Colada experience. Luckily they've redeemed themselves with this delightful little number. Tasty and fresh, but certainly an grown up drink.  What drew me to the Caipirinha was the short list of ingredients, no xanthum gum or mint flavourings here. Mostly just water, sugar, concentrated lime juice and Rum. The smell is strangly savour , like they've thrown in just a touch of cumin or some other spice, but it's not unpleasant - I suppose it's meant to remind you of the oils you might get from a lime skin, and it's pretty close. What you get for taste is lightly sparkling and mature rum and lime flavour.  Light and balanced, this drink goes down very easily without being too sweet and has enough interesting flavours on the finish to keep you coming back for more. Well done M&S, I really would buy this again.  Score : 4/5 Price: £2.25

Oh Mojito, I had such high hopes. I love a mojito! Who doesn't? The freshness of the lime and mint, the kick from the rum, all brought to life with sparkling water, it all marries together so well. I think that probably it was one of the first proper cocktails I remember enjoying, it's simple and delicious. Sadly the canned version from M&S does not live up to the name. Whilst the front of the drink is sweet and sparkling with a little citric acid to wake it up the aftertaste is strangely bitter - leaving you feeling great for the start of the first sip and then disappointed after every other one. I'm assuming that this is because of the artificial mint flavor used, now I understand that it's tricky to get fresh mint into a drink, because it's perishable, but this just really doesn't work. Maybe they could have used natural mint oils, but I suppose it would be too pricey. Who knows the mind of and M&S drinks designer? If you want something fresh ...

Finally our first Gin in a Tin, this style of beverage is the most consistent in our category, where my love affair with premixed drinks started and this version by M&S doesn't disappoint. Supposedly this pink drink has cranberries, but to be honest I couldn't really tell apart from the slight pink hue of the liquid. Ok, there might be a slight hint of the fruit, but if you'd served me this without telling me I would have struggled to point it out to you. It is however a solid drink and it is pink. So if it's valentines day or you just want to drink something pink, then go for it! Fizzy and light, refreshing and delicious, it's up there with other solid gins in tins. Score: 4/5 Price: £2.09

I was really excited to see a Whisky & Ginger offered by M&S, this is one of my go to drinks if I'm at a wedding or a pub when I want a mixed drink but I know they won't do a good cocktail. And whilst I had high hopes I was a little disappointed when I read 'ginger ale' on the back when I sat down - serves me right for not looking at the ingredients to start with. The smell that you get when you first open the can is one of whisky, the ginger is completely dominated, and that is true of the taste as well. Using ginger beer would have enabled the drink to stand up to the whiskey taste, which is pretty strong though not unpleasant. Maybe they thought ginger beer would be too strong a flavour for most people, but it's ended up as a somewhat insipid beverage. To match that they've gone with scotch whisky instead of bourbon, which I think is again a mistake, the spiciness of a bourbon would go much better with the ginger, but oh well. If you like you ...

Usually I wouldn't go for a pina colada in a tin. I'm not snobbish (ok, maybe I am a little bit), I just usually go for something fizzy and light, but this time I decided to go for something a little different. I was in store for a surpise, because yes, you guessed it, the pina colada from M&S is carbonated... Slightly syrupy (due to Xanthum gum) and with an odd aftertaste (that's the banana puree) this pre mixed cocktail is not entirely unpleasant, but I certainly wouldn't buy it again. When I think Pina Colada I imagine sipping coconut and rum out of a pineapple on a beach, maybe with a hint of line. I want something fresh and bright, sadly this doesnt hit the mark and comes off as more sweet and syrupy. If you don't usually drink pina coladas and you're looking for something thick, sweet and sparkling that doesnt taste much of rum at all then this might be for you - if you're a seasoned cocktail drinker forget about it and get some gin...

I like drinks. I travel on trains. I'll write about these experiences for your, so that you know what the best drinks are to have on trains. Simple, right? Why? Because nobody is reviewing these drinks, so I felt I had to. Not only for the good of train drinkers everywhere but to catalogue this unique expression of British culture. A few simple rules. These drinks must be bought in the train station or supermarket.  The trains must be in the UK. I will rate drinks out of 5, for simplicity. Trains will not be reviewed, I don't really care about the trains. (other modes of transport might also be used - sorry train fanatics) Note: To begin with we will not be reviewing beers or bottles of wine. Why? Because those are reviewed elsewhere. Beer drinking is best left to the pub whilst bringing your own glasses and a bottle of wine on a train is far too much faff - and you can stop reading this right now if you're planning to chug wine from the bottle - this is a tra...