We’re going to be drinking a lot of canned boozy drinks in the near future.
A few years back, Grand View Research, Inc. predicted the global canned alcoholic beverages market would reach $13.4 billion by 2028, with an annual growth rate of 13.3%. “Canned alcoholic beverages are gaining popularity among consumers since cans are more convenient, portable and travel-friendly,” the report notes. “Moreover, these metal cans are less expensive as compared to glass bottles and have a considerably higher recycling rate than glass.”
While hard seltzers have gone through some hard times, spirits-based ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails have, in fact, kept the booze industry growing — RTDs have recently overtaken vodka in global value. So we’ve spotlighted 12 canned drinks we’ve liked over the past few years.
Note: While the industry is growing, there are some growing pains. When updating this article from three years ago, nearly a third of the brands we initially chose were no longer in business or too limited in nationwide availability, and another third had changed or discontinued flavors. So this list is almost 70% new. We’ll update it annually, but based on market trends, expect frequent upheaval. And we’re only talking cans here, not other forms of ready-to-drink.
Want more choices? We have primers on canned whiskey cocktails, a non-alcoholic choice, a THC option, a sake spritz, canned wine and even straight Irish whiskey in a can. And there are bottled cocktails that are pretty great, too. I’ve also included a choice from my drinks co-editor Amanda, below.
The Original Southside
I have to admit, I’m not much of a canned cocktail fan. Sure, I’ll drink them if they’re around, but I’d rather sip wine or a neat pour if there aren’t fresh cocktails being made. The Original Southside, however, has changed my mind. The sparkling gin drink is made with a touch of lemon and mint, and at 10% ABV, it definitely doesn’t belong at the kids’ table. Plus, I’m a sucker for gorgeous branding, and this checks all the boxes. — Amanda Gabriele, Senior Editor
MOTH Espresso Martini
A hit in the UK, the B-Corp-accredited MOTH (Mix of Total Happiness) just arrived stateside with several high-ABV (14.9%) expressions, all in 200ml cans. Their canned Margarita is quite good, but I lean toward the Espresso Martini, made with vodka, coffee liqueur and cold brew. It’s a nicely balanced mix of sweet, bitter, coffee and chocolate and pretty damn close to a freshly made espresso cocktail.
Tip Top Tequila and Mezcal Variety Pack
Launched in 2018, this Atlanta-based drinks brand has already earned accolades and awards for its high-proof, 100ml canned takes on classic cocktails (including Best Ready-to-Drink honors from InsideHook in 2025 for their Mai Tai, which is highly recommended). Tip Top’s new variety pack includes a just-launched Oaxaca Old Fashioned, which received creative input from the cocktail’s creator, Phil Ward, as well as the company’s take on a Naked & Famous. All really good, but it’s actually the Margarita I recommend the most. While Tip Top often utilizes a twist on the classics, this take is simply tequila, lime juice and orange liqueur and the closest I’ve tasted to a well-made, fresh Margarita available in a can.
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Dogfish Head Vodka Cocktail Mix Pack
Dogfish Head may be best known as a craft beer pioneer, but the Delaware-based drinks makers actually produce some of the most crushable canned cocktails around (including an actual “Vodka Crush”). These cocktails are made with real fruit juice, giving them a punchy and refreshing flavor, and now come in at a more modest 7% ABV. I also recommend their Tropical Pack, which offers their take on a Margarita and Rum Punch.
Lunar
Described as the “first and only Asian American craft hard seltzer made with real, premium fruits and ingredients from Asia,” these refreshing tipples feature plum, lychee and yuzu at their center. It’s hard to find something different in canned drinks, and this is a refreshing alternative to hard seltzer.
Jack & Coca-Cola Zero Sugar Flavor Pack
Truth: I drink more Coke Zero than water at this point (and booze, which is probably a good thing). So while I do enjoy the regular canned Jack & Cokes, this new six-pack offers 100-calorie takes on the classic soda cocktail, including Cherry and Vanilla in Zero Sugar formats for the first time. Caffeine, whiskey, familiar flavors, low calorie — it’s a formula that works for sessionable afternoons.
Lake Hour
“We wanted to be more of a beer replacement that’s also easy to drink,” says actor Wyatt Russell, who founded Lake Hour with friend and movie producer Richard Peete a few years ago. The conceit is sessionable drinks that lack the heaviness of IPAs or the artificial nature of most hard seltzers while aesthetically evoking a timeless, decidedly North American pastime of hanging out by the lake (or, as they cheekily put it on the Lake Hour website, “like Alan Jackson water skiing in jeans”). All the flavors — Watermelon Cucumber, Rosemary Yuzu, Peach Jasmine and Honeysuckle Ginger — hooked me. You can read our profile of the brand here.
Black Infusions Dirty Shirley
It was only a few years ago that The New York Times called the Dirty Shirley the “drink of the summer,” and this is basically a canned, adult update on a Shirley Temple with a shot of dark cherry vodka. If you like any of the black cherry hard seltzers, this is a sweet step up in quality.
Taylor Fladgate Chip Dry & Tonic
Taylor Fladgate has been crafting Port since 1692. And as a drink, white Port and tonic has been around since the 1970s. Utilizing a drier and lighter tonic, this one is a delectably sweet (but not too sweet) aperitif with beautiful citrus notes. You can read our full review here.
Surfside Half & Half Variety 8-Pack
Surfside is a recent success story, with sales starting under 1,000 cases in 2021 to more than 10 million last year. Each can is made with vodka, real tea and real lemonade and comes in at a sessionable 4.5% ABV with just 100 calories, two grams of sugar and, interestingly, zero bubbles. The latest variety pack features the already-released Surfside Iced Tea Half & Half + Vodka, alongside the brand-new Surfside Raspberry Half & Half + Vodka, Surfside Mango Tea Half & Half + Vodka and Surfside Blackberry Half & Half + Vodka. If you want a low-cal, non-carbonated option, this is a great summer sipper.
Cutwater Tequila Canned Cocktails
To be honest, my favorite Cutwater flavor is the White Russian, but that’s not really a drink I enjoy in the summer. That said, the California-based brand not only has its own tequila, but they also make probably the widest range of tequila-based canned cocktails on the market, including a very good Paloma and several higher-ABV flavored Margaritas. (That said, I do miss their Tequila and Soda.)
UNDONE No. 14 Smoky Paloma
Undone is an NA spirits brand made with real distilled spirits that are dealcoholized using a patented process. Their RTD is made with the brand’s Not Mezcal, natural grapefruit juice, fresh lime juice and sea salt, and it’s a pretty solid representation of the classic Paloma, being a bit smoky, citrusy, bitter and sweet.
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