Could functional beverages boost tonics and mixers?
Flavour has always been the way forward for traditional mixer and tonics brands, but breakthroughs in functional options could help the category to diversify.
*This feature was originally published in the April 2025 issue of The Spirits Business magazine.
Innovation is never far from the front of drinks industry discussion, the never-ending search to find the new thing, and that includes tonics and mixers.
One could say brands have played a game of Twister in recent years, climbing over each other to be the first to create new flavours and stay on top of cocktail trends, but with consumers (particularly the younger generation) becoming increasingly more health-conscious, functional beverages that aren’t outwardly marketed as mixers are crossing over into the category with their added benefits and enhancements, and perhaps giving the original players something to think about in terms of how to innovate.
Berlin’s Thomas Henry was created by bartenders for bartenders, and recently turned 15. However, senior international brand manager Marco Frizzarin says the company needs to consider how it can stay relevant, and adapt to trends as they arrive, such as the younger generation drinking less.
To reinvent itself, he says Thomas Henry is moving more towards daytime occasions, and more specifically drinking in the day in summer, which has seen the April release of a watermelon variant. He explains that the watermelon release “helps us to be younger and also refreshing, while putting out something towards the summer daytime and the low-ABV trend, as well as the no-ABV trends”. He notes: “It’s the first watermelon premium mixer that was ever launched by any kind of mixer brand, so it’s category innovation. Flavour is not just flavour anymore, and you can still try to launch different products, but it has to be something that wasn’t there before.”
On top of that, he’s also watching trends such as the emergence of combining espresso and tonic through Europe, and how Thomas Henry can innovate in terms of ready-to-drink (RTD) products. he says: “Coca-Cola has all kinds of big brand houses launching one RTD product after another”. Frizzarin mentions, though, that the company isn’t turning a blind eye to consumer demand for products that give an “added value”. He continues: “Another thing that we’re trying to work on is looking at what can enhance things that a product has. If you look at the functional benefits of drinks, there’s a lot happening already in the pure consumption space – electrolytes, drinks with micro bacteria for the gut, CBD put into drinks.” This added value offers something for people that is not only a mixer, but something functional, and that people can benefit from.
He uses coconut water as an example, which he’s seen people mix and drink with vodka and Tequila. “They’re basically taking this thing that was for a healthy lifestyle, and bringing it into the nightlife. Why not do it ourselves?” he queries. “Some consumers look at what they already have and think ‘what else can this bring me on top of that?’. People increasingly identify themselves with the products that they use, so they look at how a product is sustainable, and they’re also taking more care of what they put into their bodies.” This, he notes, is potentially increasing their expectations of what mixers they are considering to use.
One mixer that launched this year with an ‘added value’ is Clearer Twist, which claims to be the only mixer brand in the UK to use a high-alkaline water – with a pH of 9.4.
The use of alkaline water results in a naturally sweet taste with less sugar and fewer calories, the company says. Some of its other reported benefits include enhanced hydration, neutralising acidity and supporting pH balance, with research also suggesting that water with an alkaline level of 8.8 or above can help to combat acid reflux. The high-alkaline water, which the brand sources from Turkey, forms the base of its three expressions – French Pink, Tonic Water, and Ginger Ale – and is said to be ‘very dry’ water, which matches it up with alcohol.
Low and no
Co-founder Ross Lazaroo-Hood acknowledges the trend of growing health consciousness of consumers was in the thinking when launching the brand. “If you look at the research, while not proven yet, it suggests that high-alkaline water helps with your gut and your metabolism,” he told us in March, a month after the brand landed in the UK. The low-and-no movement was also of similar consideration, so it could work well with smaller alcohol measures, or as a good accompaniment to non-alcoholic ‘spirits’, he said.
Agua de Madre is an artisanal water kefir fermented in large ceramic eggs in Hackney, London. The process takes time – two to three weeks – and is much less acidic and vinegary than kombucha, making it suitable for cocktails. The product is growing in popularity with spirits – after partnering with Tico Tequila and Black Cow Vodka – which wasn’t intentional, founder Nicola Hart says. “Our raison d’être is not to be a mixer, but people have picked up on that. We’re a really good, gut-loving, healthy soda. We are at the National Gallery in a Paloma, we’re now at Dishoom and Granger & Co in London, and we’ve worked with non-alc brands like Botivo with our Blood Orange flavour. Bartenders are noticing that our Pomegranate Hibiscus works well in cocktails, as does our Pink Grapefruit and Lime – there’s a point of difference.”
The brand’s managing director, Leon Pullin, mentions though that it’s not just about the attached health benefits, it’s more about “elevating the taste”. In comparison with some other health-touting sodas, which act more as flavoured waters, Agua de Madre is a brewed product that undergoes fermentation. Pullin says: “If you compare a loaf of bread from the supermarket aisle with one from Gail’s [a UK bakery chain], the complexity that you’re getting from a sourdough that goes through that fermentation is far more complex. And that’s kind of how we view ourselves.”
He adds that when Agua de Madre is used in a cocktail, “you add that extra level of complexity to the mixer, for that category as well. The spirits innovating in grapefruit soda have got the flavour, but perhaps not the health benefits. We’ve got both. People are looking at how they can have a healthier lifestyle through what they’re consuming, and obviously, fermented soft drinks are the answer. You can have a healthier product that tastes better, it’s kind of a no-brainer.”
Hart adds that the fact that Agua has functional benefits “means you are adding value to a cocktail, the guilt level goes down if you’re drinking alcohol and you’re doing something good for your gut as well”.
Another brand that didn’t start life as a mixer but has organically begun to cross over into the category is Intune, a CBD-infused soft drink. The brand’s co-founder, Hannah Glasson, says Intune was created to be versatile, so that it can act both as a grown-up soft drink, but also as one that can be mixed into a variety of serves. She says it’s gaining steam in the on-trade with bartenders who enjoy it for being a “very quick and simple serve, but complex enough for the consumer to feel like they’re having an elevated and premium experience. One serve that works particularly well is a CBD Paloma with our grapefruit and mint and Tequila,” she says.
Intune’s credentials as a functional mixer option have been put to the test at festivals and live events, where the business was built up, Glasson says. “Often at live events, we will create a slushy Intune serve, so rum with our ginger and lime, then jalapeño and pineapple syrup to go with that – and we can’t make the drinks fast enough. The queues go round the festival sites when those are on offer, so it goes to show that these kinds of mixers, with a difference, capture the imagination of consumers.”
Something different
Intune’s CBD element also makes it an attractive proposition as an alcohol-free offering, especially for those that desire something different to the standard non-alc serve, but with an interesting component. With mindful drinking in, well… mind, Glasson says she’s noticed that at festivals and events people take cans of Intune to the stage, without the intention of alcohol mixing.
“We’re seeing in practice the versatility of the drink,” she says. “It’s also a great way for consumers to space out drinks at events like these, by zebra striping (alternating alcoholic drinks with alcohol-free ones) or other methods of moderation, and it’s great to see that in action.” Can CBD make a proper dent as a mixer innovation? Glasson says she expects that “we’ll see a lot more mixed CBD serves on menus in the year ahead”, but it’s still fairly early days for the category in bars.
Rapper Snoop Dogg’s line of functional beverages, Iconic Tonics, have also flirted with cocktail mixability – featuring cannabis, hemp, and adaptogenics. The brand’s CEO and co-founder, Evan Eneman, says there are no mixers in the portfolio like a Fever-Tree, but that’s “certainly something where we’re going, because one of our brand founders, Warren Bobrow, is a master mixologist, and everything related to that is around mixology, how to combine ingredients in the same way you would think about craft cocktails and the on-trade”.
The brand doesn’t recommend mixing their products with alcohol, but Eneman says “many people do it”, even though it’s not a talking point the brand addresses in the market. He says some Iconic Tonics “definitely lend themselves well as mixers”, but many consumers don’t know how they will react to the products.
Functional support
However, after working with Bobrow and finding out how THC and spirits can merge in the future, Eneman believes that “a mixer as a functional support for a spirit takes it to another level of innovation”. Eneman cites the bartender experience of asking guests what they’re in the mood for and their favourite ingredients, explaining that by “adding functional ingredients on top of that, it becomes really complex and also really fun. You can tailor the experience, and have social engagement from it. It’s cool to have that dialogue, and we’ll see if we can get there anytime soon.”
Obviously, he backs up that “regulations preclude anyone from doing this live, which is the hard thing, but there’s definitely mixology and innovation happening in that space.”
If these non-traditional brands that were not created specifically as mixers, but are dabbling, are paving a new path with their functionality, the brands that are openly mixers seem to be still focused on flavours. For Franklin & Sons, the overarching tagline is ‘the pioneers of flavour’ and this won’t change. When asked if there is any interest in functional beverages, senior brand manager Peter Thornton states for Franklin & Sons, “it’s all about flavour. It’s not [on] our agenda at the moment and we’re not going down that sort of route, no.”
Of the thought process behind the brand’s new product development, he explains: “We look at what consumer demand is and what the trends are looking like through various reports and feedback and forums throughout the world.”
Leading flavour
The brand’s most recent flavour, apple and pear, celebrates British orchard fruits, which have risen in popularity with carbonated drinks. Pear in particular has been named a leading flavour by independent social and market research agency IFF.
It’s not just about being comfortable with the regular range, though. Thornton says the brand is always looking for new and wonderful flavour profiles, but the point isn’t to be disruptive, but rather to be creative.
“That’s a big part of what we did and what we’ve been doing for years,” he says. “The last big one was a few years ago when we launched Rosemary and Black Olive to a lot of raised eyebrows, and also Pineapple and Almond. So we’re always searching for new flavours and ideas, but not necessarily from the usual places.”
Greek brand Three Cents, which makes artisanal tonic and soda, is also happy to carry on as it started, with George Bagos, the brand’s general manager and co-founder, saying that instead of having an eye on functional mixers, it has its sights set on expansion. “For now, this is focused on expanding our existing range, and equipping bartenders with authentic high-quality mixers. We’re committed to leading the charge on new industry trends, and creating expressions with complex flavour profiles that bartenders are getting behind, but that also work well with carbonation.”
The keys to the brand’s innovation are in its carbonation approach and use of unique ingredients, as shown by its latest launch: Fig Leaf Soda. Bagos calls it a “completely unique offering in the flavoured soda and tonic category in the UK”. He considers that bartenders are “calling out” for mixers of this mould to complement premium spirits and as consumers become “much more experimental with their drink choices, instead of being led by the spirit, looking at the full breakdown of a cocktail”.
Natural produce
The brand’s ability to call on natural produce from its homeland in Greece also lets it “take advantage of and make real strides in flavour innovation”, he says. “For example, with the Fig Leaf Soda launch we collaborated with a micro-community to harvest leaves of the Royal Fig variety from a protected designation of origin.”
So all things considered, if there is any thought that innovation is drying up in the category, both the traditional and non-traditional brands don’t appear to agree. It’s just pulling in different directions and getting more competitive.
As Thomas Henry’s Frizzarin simply puts it: “Innovation just needs to make sense and it needs to fit the brand.”
Industry insights
Has innovation dried up in mixers and tonics?
Raissa De Haas – co-founder, Double Dutch Drinks
“I think mixers are evolving, not slowing down. We’re seeing a shift from gimmicky flavours to less trend-chasing but to mixers that champion better ingredients, more diverse pairings, and serve-led creativity-elevated drinking moments that celebrate both spirit and serve.”
George Bagos – general manager and co-founder, Three Cents
“No, in our eyes the tonic and mixer categories are very competitive, and continually growing at pace, which is helping to drive a lot of innovation and new product development. Just last year, to mark our 10-year anniversary, we launched Fig Leaf Soda to meet consumer thirst for the unique and trending flavour profile, as well as the on-trade’s demand for authentic and high-quality mixers.”
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