New year, new products. This week’s latest launches feature new sober-friendly alcohol alternative options as well as plant-based drinks for consumers embracing New Year’s resolutions, as well as nostalgic throwbacks and celebrity-backed launches from larger beverage producers.
AVEC
Brooklyn-based better-for-you mixer company AVEC has partnered with kitchenware brand Williams Sonoma for its first co-branded product offering with a line of sparkling, low-sugar canned mixers made from real juice and botanicals. The new line includes Grapefruit Pomelo, Yuzu Lime and Ginger Pineapple flavors and will be sold for $14.95 per 4-pack online and in-store at Williams Sonoma.
Bayou City Hemp Co.
Ranch Water is normally an alcoholic Texas treat, but Bayou City Hemp Co. is offering the sober and sober curious a new non-alcoholic, hemp-infused option under its Mixer Elixir brand. The Mixer Elixir Ranch Water seltzer contains 25 mg of CBD, zero calorie, zero sugar and is made with agave, lime and sparkling water. Available in 12 oz. cans, the drinks are recommended to be drunk straight or used as a mixer for a harder concoction.
Biosteel
Sports hydration drink BioSteel has launched its latest “flash flavor,” Cherry Lime, a limited time offering while supply lasts. Available in 16.7 oz. Tetra Pak cartons, the new SKU can be found online on the brand’s website.
MTN Dew
PepsiCo has rolled out a Zero Sugar variety of raspberry lemonade flavored MTN DEW SPARK. The new SKU accompanies a nationwide expansion for SPARK, which launched last year in convenience stores in limited quantities and quickly became a high demand product with frequent sell outs, according to the company. The wider distribution includes 20 oz. bottles, 12 oz. single cans and various multipack options.
Pepsi
Crystal Pepsi is back! Well, sort of. PepsiCo is reviving the iconic clear cola for its 30th anniversary with an exclusive batch of 300 bottles that will be given away as part of the online #ShowUsYour90s sweepstakes. Twitters users who tweet a photo of themselves from the 1990s will be entered for a chance to win a free bottle of the nostalgic concoction (and which promises to be tastier and safer to drink than that unopened bottle from 1992 you found on eBay).
Portfolio Beverages
Portfolio Beverages, Inc. has debuted its first new brand, Real Good Tea, a line of functional canned teas. The four flavors include Rise-Up (yerba mate, lemon and essential vitamins), Stay Well (green tea, elderberry, ginger, and turmeric), Destress (rooibos herbal tea, passion flower, ashwagandha and quercetin), and Wind Down (chamomile, rosehips, valerian root and GABA). Each 12 oz. can also features 50 mg of hemp extract and can purchased online in 4-packs and 12-packs of individual flavors and an 8-pack sampler.
Prime
YouTubers Logan Paul and KSI clashed in the boxing ring a few years ago but now they’re working together to launch Prime, a new hydration drink containing 10% coconut water and 825 mg of electrolytes developed by Alani Nu makers Congo Brands. The line is rolling out into retail now and comes in Lemon Lime, Blue Raspberry, Grape, Tropical Punch, and Orange flavors.
Recess
In the spirit (or lack thereof) of Dry January, functional seltzer brand Recess has released a Zero-Proof “Margarita” flavor infused with hemp and adaptogens as a limited time offering. Available in 12 oz. cans through the brand’s website and on ecommerce platforms such as Foxtrot for $5 per can, the sparkling mocktail contains 25 calories and features L-theanine, ginseng, lemon balm and 10 mg of hemp extract.
Silk
But it’s not just Dry January this month as some consumers embrace a plant-based diet for Veganuary. To meet the need, Silk has released its new Extra Creamy Almondmilk, available in 1 quart cartons. The Non-GMO Project certified product is designed to appeal to flexitarian consumers (or the “plant-curious”) as they try non-dairy milk drinks.
Wunder
Wunder, a sparkling cannabis-infused beverage brand available in the California market, has debuted its latest flavor, Blackberry Lemon. The new SKU is a part of the brand’s low-dose Sessions line, containing 2 mg of THC, 2 mg of Delta-8 THC and 4 mg of CBD, which aims to provide consumers with a “light, social buzz similar to alcohol, but without the hangover.” Sold in 8 oz. cans at select dispensaries, each serving only contains 25 calories.