If you’re a spirits drinker, you’ll know the importance of a good mixer.
A splash of something light, fruity, spiced or sweet - sometimes a combination of all four - can transform a measure of alcohol, coaxing out its subtle notes and flavours, and turning it into a sessionable serve to enjoy - always in moderation, kids - all evening long.
Not just spirits either; adding soda water to wine not only makes it light and more refreshing but it can snip the calories down too.
There are some tonics and mixers that pair better with certain spirits than others. We break it down for you here:
What are the best mixers for gin?
Indian tonic water has been the go-to partner for gin since the colonial era when British army officers downed the quinine-heavy liquid to help them fight off malaria. They found it tasted rather good with their alcohol rations. Derived from the bark of the Cinchona tree, modern tonic water is less quinine-heavy and sometimes has sweetener added to the mix. As well as plain, the market is flooded with infusions (think orange, grapefruit, lemon and cucumber), adding a welcome twist, especially if you add a matching garnish. If you’re not wild about tonic water, try rose or raspberry lemonade with a pink gin instead.
What are the best mixers for vodka?
Spuds are one of the main ingredients in the making of some vodkas (wheat is the other), all the more surprising because vodka is famously one of the lowest-calorie spirits out there. It’s also extremely versatile when it comes to mixers, tasty with everything from tonics and Coca-Cola to orange, tomato or cranberry juice, lemonade and ginger beer. Mix it with vermouth and you’ve got yourself a vodka martini.
What are the best mixers for tequila?
With fresh, artisan bottles, today’s tequila is about as far as you can get from dusty old bottles with worms trapped at the bottom. It’s as wildly popular in America as gin is here, and can be enjoyed in much the same way - with a splash of tonic to take the agave-centred spirit’s edge off. Squeeze in a wedge of lime if you fancy, but leave that salt shaker well alone. While aged tequila can be sipped neat, the younger blanco stuff is the bedrock of many cocktails, like a Paloma (mix with grapefruit soda), a Tequila Sunrise (splash in grenadine and orange juice), and of course, the Margarita (add triple sec and lime juice).
What are the best mixers for rum?
Purists believe it’s a sin to drink good dark rum with anything but a cube or two of ice. While that is true, mid-range bottles of both the dark and white variety shine when partnered with the likes of ginger ale (tastes like Christmas), tropical fruit juice, cola, and lemonade. This too, is a spirit made for cocktails, with rum forming the basis for concoctions like the Dark & Stormy, Cuba Libre and the Mojito.
Best tonic waters and mixers at a glance
- Best for pick and mix: Fever Tree Tonic Water Mixed Selection Pack - £39.99, Amazon
- Best for a rosé wine spritz with a twist: Schweppes Russchian Pink Soda 12 x 150ml - £16.99, Amazon
- Best for upgrading London Dry gin: Double Dutch Cucumber & Watermelon - £20.50, Amazon
- Best for raspberry vodka: Belvoir Raspberry Lemonade 750ml - £3.20, Amazon
- Best for botanical heavy gins: Fentimans Oriental Yuzu Tonic, 200ml x 4 Bottles - £4, Amazon
- Best for floral and citrus-heavy spirits: The London Essence Co. Pomelo & Pink Pepper Tonic - £22.20, Amazon
- Best for tonic on tap: SodaStream Flavours Classic Diet Tonic Mix - £28.77, Amazon
- Best for dark rum: Bundaberg Ginger Beer - £29.99, Amazon
Of course, there are many mixers that don’t need an alcoholic sidekick and can stand alone or be added with others to make virgin cocktails.
We’ve rounded up the best options below. Stock up for parties, or add a bottle or can into your next online shop to see just how much the right mixer can shake things up.
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Red Bull Winter Edition
The Red Bull Winter Edition tastes remarkably like an ice-cold blue ICEE slushie from the cinema. If that’s your cup of tea, or – well, a cup of slush – you’ll adore the latest flavour in the Red Bull range.
The Iced Vanilla Berry flavour has icy-fresh and sweet notes of blueberry, vanilla and eucalyptus which deliver an instantly cooling and refreshing boost of energy.
Buy now £23.00, Amazon
Fever Tree Tonic Water Mixed Selection Pack
Best for: pick and mix
Dominating the luxury tonic water market, Fever Tree has nailed the classic mixer and added new flavours for even more options when it comes to your next G&T. Alongside Premium Indian tonic water, there’s Light, Aromatic, Lemon, Mediterranean and Elderflower to wet your whistle. Try the lot in this variety pack, which delivers 24 x 200ml bottles right to your door. It’s a great bulk buy for parties and BBQs, as well as a decent stash for any gin collection.
Buy now £39.99, Amazon
Schweppes Russchian Pink Soda 12 x 150ml
Best for: a rosé wine spritz with a twist
Spanning a roster of mixers from tonic water to ginger ale, lemonade to soda water, Schweppes is one of industry’s market leaders with a sprawling portfolio to umm and ahh over. You’ll probably have tried its tonic waters and ginger ales, but have you given the Russchian Pink Soda a go? The aromatic pour sparkles with citrus notes that make it particularly appealing for warm-weather drinking. Best served with ice and a slice to bring out the fresh flavours.
Buy now £16.99, Amazon
Double Dutch Cucumber & Watermelon
Best for: upgrading London Dry gin
Founded by twin sisters Joyce and Raissa de Haas, Double Dutch put a spin on plain old tonics from the first launch when infusions like Cucumber & Watermelon and Pomegranate & Basil touched down on the UK’s drinks scene.
From the label to the liquid, the tonic is a hit for those with a sophisticated palate and can be found behind the bar of the biggest parties and events at any time of year.
Nothing screams summer more than a chilled bottle of Double Dutch Cucumber & Watermelon to pair with a London Dry gin like Tanqueray for a twist on a stone-cold classic.
Buy now £20.52, Amazon
Belvoir Raspberry Lemonade 750ml
Best for: pink and fruit-laden gin or raspberry vodka
The country-fresh company behind posh presses, cordials and organic sodas, Belvoir is what to pick when you’re feeling fancy. The wholesome company uses the freshest fruit and flowers like elderflower to bottle its drinks, and you can taste the difference in every slurp. We’ve served the raspberry lemonade with everything from Caorunn Gin, made with Scottish raspberries, to Grey Goose vodka with crowd-pleasing results each time.
Buy now £3.20, Amazon
Fentimans Oriental Yuzu Tonic, 200ml x 4 Bottles
Best for: botanical heavy gins like Roku or UKIYO as well as good ol’ London Dry.
The love of gin is a global phenomenon with varieties coming from aall four corners of the world. Choose the right mixer, and you’ll experience the flavours as they were designed.
Fentimans is not a new launch - its Curiosity Cola, Rose Lemonade and Victorian Lemonade, all in kitsch vintage-look bottles, are among our favourites - but the line-up is so huge you may have missed some hidden gems.
Take this tonic, which has Japanese yuzu added alongside traditional quinine to enhance fresh, Far Eastern-inspired flavours.
Find more varieties in Fentimans Amazon shop.
Buy now £4.00, Amazon
The London Essence Co. Pomelo & Pink Pepper Tonic
Best for: floral and citrus-heavy spirits
With impeccable presentation, The London Essence Company brings out the purest flavours from botanicals for our drinking pleasure. The company began as an essence distiller for London’s perfumiers back in 1896 but only diversified into mixers in 2016; its nose for a great bouquet has paid off. It’s now a bartender favourite, taking home top gongs in the Drinks International Awards 2023.
The collection of ridged bottles houses mixers galore, from tonics to sodas and lemonade, and some fiery gingers (beer and ale). The White Peach & Jasmine is a sublime way to transform a glass of vino blanco into a refreshing spritz, while a good old fashioned Tonic Water is available here.
Up the ante in your next G&T with this fruity tonic with hints of pepper to give it an edge.
Buy now £22.29, Amazon
SodaStream Flavours Classic Diet Tonic Mix
Best for: tonic on tap
What’s fresher than making your own tonic water to order? You can do it with SodaStream’s flavours which allow you to do so much more than simply carbonate your own water.
You can make everything from tonic water and ginger ale to fruity cordials and kombucha in the machine. And thanks to a collab with PepsiCo, you can make the likes of Pepsi Max, Pepsi Max Cherry, Pepsi and 7UP right in your kitchen with a SodaStream machine. It simply does not get fresher than this.
Buy now £23.94, Amazon
Bundaberg Ginger Beer 12 X 375ml
Best for: dark rum
All the way from Down Under, this ginger beer is practically an Aussie national treasure, and for good reason. Housed in 375ml glass bottles, it’s a refreshingly sweet-spicy drink that hits the spot on a sweltering day. Expect big flavour from locally picked ginger and sugarcane that’s been brewed for three days, in line with the family-run company’s handed-down recipes. It’s an excellent partner to dark rum, though make no mistake - Bundaberg can more than hold its own.
Buy now £29.99, Amazon
