Welcome back to FTW’s Beverage of the Week series. Here, we mostly chronicle and review beers, but happily expand that scope to any beverage that pairs well with sports. Yes, even cookie dough whiskey.
There’s a natural progression from brunch drinks to hard seltzers. Fizzy, fruity and boozy are the through-lines.
Thus, it was only a matter of time before Vizzy grabbed the orange juice-champagne buddy cop feature capable of making $16 eggs benedict dishes palatable and enlisted it in its own seltzer army. The venerable brand, last seen in this column rolling out a just-OK creamsicle flavor, has jumped into the fray with more than just orange flavors to offer.
We’ve got a solid lineup of classic seltzer flavors with which to pair that mimosa base, from pineapple to pomegranate. The question now is whether they’re any good — and, at 100 calories and five percent ABV, a worthy replacement for a more-filling, mixed-at-your-table mimosa.
Pineapple Orange: B
Cracking the can unleashes a wave of citrus. It’s mostly orange, but you can make out a little pineapple in there. That’s great; pineapple is an alcoholic cheat code capable of taking the edge off some of the harshest boozes out there. I’m surprised we don’t use it more.
The first sip is loaded with flavor and, true to Vizzy form, light on alcohol despite the five percent ABV. It’s easy to drink with enough orange to remind you it’s a mimosa but enough pineapple to remind you it’s a seltzer.
There’s a little bit of stale citrus toward the end that’s noticeable, but not a dealbreaker. It’s a completely drinkable seltzer that pushes toward the upper echelon of the spirit, albeit in a fairly routine way.
Strawberry Orange: A-
You can smell a lot more strawberry off the top than the pineapple that preceded it in this taste test. The first sip backs this up. Pineapple orange was mostly orange; Strawberry orange is mostly strawberry.
But that’s a good thing. That sweetness is well balanced with the citric tartness to create a nicely balanced drink. The carbonation snaps off each sip like you’d expect. It’s easy to drink and a flavor you’d be eager to come back to.
Peach Orange: B+
The peach is definitely apparent right off the pour; mixing it with orange presents a definite fuzzy navel vibe. The first sip bears that out; it’s a slightly less sweet, thinner version of your sister’s first three-step cocktail.
This is not a complaint. It tastes sweet and just a little sour, making it easy to come back to swig after swig. True to form, there’s very little booze apparent from the taste itself, making it a crushable brunch or morning tailgate pounder.
Pomegranate Orange: B-
This is the sweetest of the bunch, edging out strawberry. It’s also the most overpowering, leaving behind a sugary aftertaste that’s juusssst a little too much for me. It leans into that aspartame, too-artificial taste after an initial, enjoyable start, which makes this the least enjoyable of the bunch.
That said, it’s not bad. A little dry and fake tasting, sure, but it’s drinkable and has more enjoyable flavor than most of your White Claw offerings.
Would I drink it instead of a Hamm's?
Depends on the day, but sure. It’s a solid tasting low calorie seltzer that isn’t going to fill me up. And I could probably get through a few and feel pretty good on a summer Sunday afternoon. Or hours before the Super Bowl if you’re into the endurance side of the sport.
