From nostalgic lemonades to spiked iced teas and freezie-inspired vodka sodas, these are the RTDs I’ve been sipping all summer – and fully intend to keep drinking well into fall.
I’m not ready to say goodbye to summer just yet.
Yes, the days are getting shorter and there’s a little chill creeping into the evenings, but I refuse to pack away the patio furniture and call it a season. There are still sunny afternoons, backyard BBQs and cool nights around the fire – just add a sweatshirt or a hoodie, maybe a blanket, and we’re good.
Ready-to-drink beverages (RTDs) have basically lived in my cooler all summer. They’re easy, refreshing and require absolutely no bartending skills. And while I’ve tried quite a few, these are the ones I keep coming back to. Some are classic, some are nostalgic and one has very clearly earned the title of my favourite.
Even better? You can find them all at the LCBO.
3 Lakes Spirits Co. Blue Raspberry Vodka Lemonade
5% ABV | 355 mL | $3.40
Let’s start with my favourite.
Listen, all of the RTDs on this list are good, but this one? I LOVE lemonade. It’s my go-to summer drink and just tastes like summer to me. Throw in blue raspberry, which also happens to match my blue hair, and really, was I ever going to choose anything else?
Made with real lemon juice and nostalgic blue raspberry flavour, it’s crisp, refreshing and incredibly easy to sip. It doesn’t taste overly strong, and that tart lemon and sweet berry combination is pretty perfect on a hot day.
3 Lakes also makes a Pink Gin Lemonade with grapefruit and hints of rosemary, plus 0% alcohol versions of both flavours. Blue or pink? Honestly, those are very on-brand colour choices for me.
Snapple Spiked Original Tea
7% ABV | 458 mL | $3.25
Iced tea is another one of those drinks that just belongs in summer.
Snapple Spiked Original Tea takes those familiar Snapple flavours and gives them a grown-up upgrade with 7% ABV. Made with real tea leaves, lemon and natural flavours, it’s bold, refreshing and proudly made in Ontario.
Original gives you that classic iced-tea-and-lemon combo, but there’s also Peach Tea and Strawberry Tea. Chill it, crack it and enjoy. No cocktail shaker required; we love a low-maintenance summer drink.
Stock & Row Slow & Low + Cold Tea Black Raspberry
Slow & Low: 5% ABV | 355 mL | $3.55 per can
Cold Tea Black Raspberry: 4% ABV | 355 mL | $3.55 per can
I have my friend Ricky (@yourpalrick) to thank for introducing me to Stock & Row. He knows his drinks, so I listened.
Slow & Low is a 5% dry cider made with 100 per cent Ontario apples. It’s crisp, light and not overly sweet, with just 4-5 grams of sugar per can.
Then there’s Cold Tea Black Raspberry, a cider-meets-iced-tea situation made with Ontario apples and black raspberry tea. It has 4% ABV, zero grams of sugar and around 99 calories per can.
And if you’re in Toronto, you can swing by Everyside – Social Eatery & Taphouse (120 Adelaide St. W.) for Slow & Low on tap. Maybe you’ll even run into Ricky. Tell him I sent you.
Simply Spiked BOLD Cherry Limeade + Signature Lemonade
7% ABV | 473 mL | $3.20 per can or $16.50 for a variety pack of 8
Remember when I said I love lemonade? I wasn’t kidding.
Simply Lemonade is already one of my favourites, homemade will always get top billing, so obviously I needed to try the spiked version.
Simply Spiked BOLD Cherry Limeade brings together tangy cherry and zesty lime for a juicy, tart-meets-sweet sip, while BOLD Signature Lemonade takes that classic bright lemonade flavour and gives it a little more attitude. Both come in at 7% ABV and are made with 5% real fruit juice.
There’s also a BOLD mixer pack with both flavours, which saves me from having to choose. Perfect, because I wasn’t going to.
Cottage Springs Vodka Soda Freezie Mixed Pack
5% ABV | 355 mL | 0g sugar | 0g carbs | $21.95 per 8-pack
And finally, this one takes me straight back to childhood, with one very grown-up adjustment.
The Cottage Springs Vodka Soda Freezie Mixed Pack comes with Blue, White, Red and Orange freezie-inspired flavours, and the nostalgia hits the second you crack the can. You can actually smell the freezies.
Each colour tastes exactly like it should, only now it’s a crisp, lightly carbonated vodka soda with 5% ABV, zero grams of sugar and zero grams of carbs.
Basically, someone took childhood summer and added vodka. I’m not mad about it.
Summer Isn’t Over Yet
So there you have it. Lemonade, spiked iced tea, crisp cider or a vodka soda that tastes like the freezies we grew up with – pick your own adventure.
I’ll be over here soaking up every last sunny afternoon, gorgeous evening and cool night around the fire that I can get.
And if summer wants to stick around a little longer, my cooler is ready.
