Prairie Organic Sparkling Craft Cocktails in Cans

Crack open “Minnesota grown, globally known” distillers’ refreshing new organic craft cocktails in convenient cans
Prairie Organic Sparkling Cocktails come in Grapefruit, Minnesota Bootleg and Cucumber Lemonade flavors

Courtesy Prairie Organic Spirits

If you like the convenience of a ready-to-drink adult beverage in a can but are looking for something more flavorful than hard seltzer, check out Prairie Organic Sparkling Craft Cocktails. The line from Minnesota’s own Prairie Organic Spirits, which comes in three flavors—Grapefruit, Minnesota Bootleg and Cucumber Lemonade—hit stores this spring, but I recently had the opportunity to taste-test samples from the company, and enlisted the help of my husband Jeff to also give them a try.

Grapefruit: Made with Prairie Organic Vodka and infused with organic grapefruit for a tasty refreshing citrus flavor, this was my favorite of the three and Jeff’s second in the trio. It had a nice grapefruit flavor while still feeling light.

Minnesota Bootleg: This cocktail hailing from the days of Prohibition, was created at a golf club in Minnesota and is similar to a Mojito. Prairie Organic Spirits’ version is made with their organic gin, organic lemon lime and mint flavors for a fresh balanced combination and slight sweetness. This one ranked first for Jeff and second on my list.

Cucumber Lemonade: Made with award-winning Prairie Organic Cucumber Vodka combined with the organic elements of lemon, this has a fresh unique taste that fans of cucumber-infused drinks will enjoy. Jeff and I both thought this flavor was refreshing. I must note that while I like cucumbers on their own or in salads and such the flavor is not my preference in a cocktail, but if you do like cucumber in a cocktail, it gives this a well-balanced taste with the lemon. One of my friends recently brought some of these to a gals’ backyard happy hour as it is a new favorite, so it all depends on your preference.

Each flavor has 120 calories per 12-ounce can with 5 percent ABV (alcohol by volume). If you’re curious how these compare to some popular brands of hard seltzer, White Claw and Truly have 100 calories per 12-ounce can and also 5 percent ABV—so pretty close in the calorie count.

If you prefer your cocktails a little on the sweeter side, Jeff and I found we liked to pour these sparkling cocktails over ice and stir in a splash of simple syrup. This doesn’t add many calories, if that is a concern. Simple syrup has 25 calories per ½ ounce, which is 3 teaspoons—so if you do like it a little sweeter, you’re not adding many calories.

Prairie Organic Sustainable Seasons

Photo: Prairie Organic Spirits

“Minnesota grown, globally known”

It’s nice to have this convenient new option from a local company and support organic farming at the same time. The company that began as Ed Phillips & Sons, a small distributor of candy and newspapers in 1912, has grown into a distilled spirits company that spans the globe, five generations and hundreds of products. Phillips Distilling created peppermint schnapps in 1935, which became successful as America’s first schnapps brand. A highly successful line of flavored vodkas was introduced in 1957, and with its 2008 release of Prairie farm-crafted and certified organic vodka, the company had another winner on its hands. The company is on a mission to positively impact the environment and our community and recently launched its One Team G.R.E.E.N. initiative—Growing Responsibility, Ethically, and Environmentally Now.

More to Come

Another new product from Phillips, Prairie Organic Sustainable Seasons, will roll out nationwide this September. Each of the three varieties—Grapefruit, Hibiscus & Chamomile; Watermelon, Cucumber & Lime; and Apple, Pear & Ginger—is sustainably-crafted with their Prairie Organic vodka. I will be checking out samples and mixing up cocktails, so more to come on these soon.

 

Mary Subialka is the editor of Real Food and Drinks magazines, covering the flavorful world of food, wine, and spirits. She rarely meets a chicken she doesn’t like, and hopes that her son, who used to eat beets and Indian food as a preschooler, will one day again think of real food as more than something you need to eat before dessert and be inspired by his younger brother, who is now into trying new foods.