Sip City Switchel (Discontinued)

Sip City Switchel has changed since our first review: originally a non-carbonated drink packaged in a glass bottle, it has now made the jump to a sparkling formulation in a 12 oz. can. The line, now called Sip City Sparkling Switchel, features the same three flavors as their original lineup, including The Nashville, The District, and The Boston.

So let’s talk about the move to carbonation, a change we’ve seen most switchel brands adopt. We’ve said this before, but we’ll say it again: we think that this is ultimately where the category will realize its full potential. That said, we are instant fans of Sip City making this switch.

Tasting the liquid inside these cans only strengthens this feeling. All three flavors are very flavorful, crisp, modest in calories (60 per can), and contain a clean and simple list of ingredients that is built around a base of carbonated water, apple cider vinegar (ACV), and ginger.

However, the differences between the three flavors is still pretty subtle; the flavor of the ACV is, despite being pretty mild as far as ACV-based beverages go, clearly front and center. Beyond that, they’ve created a lemon flavor (The District), an orange and pomegranate flavor (The Nashville), and one with turmeric and dialed up spice (The Boston). For The District and The Boston, we’d love to see these accent flavors dialed up a bit. But we were still very pleased with these formulations, and the addition of carbonation makes them feel more sophisticated and enjoyable.

Finally, there’s branding and packaging. This is an area that we noted needed work  in the review of Sip City’s still lineup, and that’s still the case here.. This starts with the names of the flavors, which feel like something that will hurt rather than help the sale because it requires consumers to stop and think. Eliminating the city name and focusing on the flavor that’s currently on the top ring of the can would be a wise business decision, in our opinion.

Beyond that, the design of the can needs refinement and polishing. The current design feels like a somewhat sterile collection of different elements that don’t go together. Instead, we’d like to see something that feels approachable and, at least to some extent, fun. There’s definitely potential to do this with the name Sip City and the logo that they’ve created.

If Sip City can evolve its brand forward, we think there’s a great opportunity for this product to position itself as a flavorful, low calorie carbonated offering for adults.

Sip City Switchel is a startup beverage company that is, as the name suggests, focused on creating switchel beverages. The company, which hails from Washington, D.C., is positioning the product as “nature’s sports drink & cocktail mixer” and has launched with three flavors.

The three flavors, which include The Nashville, The Boston, and The District (more on the names later), all start with a base of apple cider vinegar (ACV), ginger, and citrus (either lemon, orange, or both).

From there, each flavor gets its own twist: The Boston gets a hefty note of turmeric along with pepper, cinnamon, and cayenne, The Nashville gets some some tartness from pomegranate and extra sweetness from honey, and The District doubles down on lemon and drinks almost like a lemonade. The products are all relatively mild in their vinegar flavor and sweetness, with the end result being 60-70 calories and 14-15g of sugar per bottle. Ultimately, these products are pretty solid as far as switchel and ACV based beverages go.

On the outside, we think refinement is needed. While we like the use of a one color design and simple illustrated elements, the approach to the flavor names is definitely not a good one. It’s the first and most obvious place where the consumer really has to stop and think. From there, we think the “Nature’s Sports Drink & Cocktail Mixer” tagline is confusing (are there two things that are bigger opposites?) and shows a lack of focus.

Finally, there seems to be a little too much kitsch to the bottle and the marketing in general. Examples: “WTF is switchel?,” “[email protected],” “shake me like a Polaroid picture!” It feels like an effort that’s forced or trying too hard rather than cool and authentic (which is probably what they are going for). And, more importantly, it seems like something that is a distraction -- for both the consumer and the folks who made this -- from making the product intuitive and appealing to the senses.

But don’t take that the wrong way: we definitely see some potential for this product. First and foremost, the liquid is quite enjoyable and it seems to have found a nice balance between being authentic and having the potential for mass appeal. And we like the brand name; it sounds good when it rolls off your tongue. This leaves Sip City in a spot that’s not atypical for a startup brand: the liquid is good but the packaging, messaging, and overall branding need to be tightened up.