The best pre-mixed supermarket tinnies, ranked by a professional mixologist

British summertime; it’s either too hot, too cold, or wont stop raining. There is no in between and we are never happy, but we do love to talk about the weather. Social events like Henley, Wimbledon and the festival season are well underway. The common denominator? Every attendant loves getting pissed, especially with a big bag of cans with the lads.

For those of us who can’t afford a bottle of Belvedere or Verve, there is one thing that can get us fucked at a fraction of the price. Something that is easily to travel with. The iconic, yet humble, pre-mixed tinny. Great to take with you on a train, to a picnic, or anywhere you want.

There’s a lot of choice on the market, so to help you all make wise decisions, we headed down to K West Hotel & Spa in Shepherds Bush, to ask for an experts opinion. Mike Golecki, the head bar tender at The Studio Bar within the hotel is an expert mixologist.

We got him to rate three Gin and Tonics, and four other pre-mixed drinks.

According to Mike, here in the UK we love a “really fancy cocktail” and a Porn Star Martini, with it being one of the most popular drinks he is asked to make. He himself, prefers old school cocktails, a whiskey drinker and loves a G&T in the summer – don’t we all.

So let’s see what we got:

Tesco

Tesco own brand Gin and Tonic, £1.25 5%

“It’s not very botanic, it’s fresh, but the tonic is not good. You can taste the quinine (what tonic is made from) and you can have good brands of tonic, for example Schweppes or Fever Tree, but this one isn’t going to be the best and the bubbles, it’s not good.

“It says on the front that it’s a dry gin, so you know, overall it’s good for the price it is and it’s only five per cent…average I’d say.”

Where would you drink it?

“I would take it on the train, it’s a fresh drink and it’s not that alcoholic.”

Rating out of 5?

3/5

 

Jameson & Cola, Tesco, £1.60 5%

Initial thoughts

“This is for the whiskey drinkers, Jameson is a good Irish Whisky

“Jameson, of course is the one for me, one of the best, thank you to Jameson for making this, you make the world better. I like this for three reasons: one because I like the whisky, second because you can’t taste the alcohol and third…it is good quality and price. I would buy this one out of them all, but that is because I like whiskey the best.”

Where would you drink it?

“At a BBQ..but not on a train, as everyone will want some.”

Rating out of 5?

5/5

 

Sainsbury’s

Gordon’s Gin and Tonic, £1.75 5%

“Really lovely, you can taste the quality of the gin, it’s a big difference when you are mixing a bad quality alcohol with bad condiments and bad mixers…you can taste the Schweppes tonic, it’s not that strong but it tastes alcoholic…it’s five per cent, and you can taste more of the gin in your mouth.”

Rating out of 5?

4/5

 

Malibu, £1.68 5%

“This would be good for ladies, and good for people who don’t really like alcohol. It’s very sweet, you can taste the coconut, and pineapple also…it’s very good. As soon as you open it you can smell the Malibu and the coconut flavour and also the pineapple…you have the perfect flavour of coconut, but at the same time you get the taste of pineapple, even in my mouth after the flavour is still going in my mouth.

“I would rate it because you can get all the flavours the Malibu, coconut and pineapple. It’s good quality for the price, as it’s Malibu.”

Where would you drink this?

“I would go to a lake just to feel this kind of carribean atmosphere, I wouldn’t go to camdem town or somewhere dark, you should be in a sunny place, a lake or a park. I wouldn’t drink it on the train because I don’t want people seeing me drinking Malibu.”

Rating out of 5?

3/5

 

M&S

Mojito,  £2.25 8%

According to Mike, when you have a mojito you want to feel the rum first which is sweet, then the fresh mint, and then the lime. But will this tinny live up to expectations?

Initial comments

“That’s disgusting…I get the mint, I get the rum, I’m not a big fan of the rum…the mint tastes bitter. With the lime, when it’s fresh you can’t really taste the lime, like not bitter and sour, really fresh and really sweet, but this one you can feel in your mouth that it’s not fresh mint, or fresh lime.

“It’s not great for a first drink…maybe when you’re five or seven drinks in, it would be ok.”

Where would you drink it?

“Nowhere…This one I would send to my worst enemy, I don’t like this, i’ll give it one because they make the can”

Rating out of 5?

1/5

 

Gin and Tonic,  £2.25 8%

Initial Thoughts:

“I’m scared because it is the same brand as the mojito…

“Actually it’s not that bad, you can feel the alcohol inside, you can feel the juniper (what gin is made from) without the ice, the tonic is very strong, normally it has to be quite smooth, just drinking it in the tin, it’s just a bit strong.

“I like this one, I would buy it and maybe because if would like to get drunk faster, i’d buy three or four instead of a bottle and mixer, it’s cheaper and would work.”

Where would you drink it?

“In my garden in the summer time in the shade

Rating out of 5?

4/5

 

Waitrose

Pimm’s, £1.95 5.4%

“It is very very weak, in the way that you cannot taste the alcohol, but it’s very fresh, you can feel the lemonade there, but you can also taste that there are some fruit inside. I’m not sure maybe there is some extract there, that they’ve added to the tin.

“You can feel the lemonade flavour, you have the sweetness, and also the herbs and botanics inside. When its mixed with lemonade you don’t know exactly how much you have – it’s 5 per cent and 250ml, so you can expect roughly one shot.”

Where would you drink it?

“It’s perfect for picnics when you don’t want to get really drunk, but you want something not too strong and want something with your sandwich. If you like something fresh, sweet drink, just for picnics, it even says on the can “portable for picnics”. I would also drink it on the train.”

Rating out of 5?

3/5 “Because it’s weak”

 

Best: Jameson & Cola, Tesco, £1.60

Worst: Mojito, M&S, £2.25