7 Long Drink Flavors, Ranked

Calling all fans of hard seltzers: There's a relatively new kid on the block that's still somewhat under the radar but gaining popularity fast. Let us introduce you to The Finnish Long Drink. Although made in the U.S. — and backed by celebrity investors, including actor Miles Teller, DJ and music producer Kygo, and professional golfer Ricky Fowler — it takes inspiration from the popular Finnish cocktail. The long drink, or "lonkero," was created in 1952 ahead of the Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland. It was the first time the city would host the Olympics, and it would be the first major event held in the city since World War II, so the country wanted to impress its visitors. As such, the government commissioned the creation of the beverage.

The Finnish Long Drink's carbonated alcoholic beverages use a base of gin (as opposed to malt liquor in White Claws or vodka in High Noons), blended with fruit juices and other fruit-forward flavors to create a canned, ready-to-drink cocktail. I wanted to sample all of the Long Drink offerings, including its two newest flavors (zero-sugar peach and zero-sugar pineapple) to see which tasted the best.

Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.

As the name implies, the zero-sugar pineapple Long Drink is a sugar-free take on the brand's pineapple flavor. Like its other two sugar-free flavors, this one has 99 calories and 5% ABV. The company describes it as having a "fresh pineapple aroma and flavor," and says that it's "slightly sweet, bubbly, and very refreshing." It includes natural pineapple and other flavors, and is sweetened with sucralose and acesulfame potassium.

To be honest, that flavor description holds up pretty well. I liked that it's made with natural pineapple flavor, which I found evident in its taste and even more in its aroma. It definitely smells like fresh pineapple when you crack open the can. It comes in last, however, because of its strong artificial sweetener flavor, which isn't present in other hard seltzers I've had in the past (and definitely isn't as noticeable in the other zero-sugar Finnish Long Drink flavors). Something about the pineapple and artificial sweetener combination didn't work well, in my opinion.

Long Drink's strong citrus beverage has the same genuine citrus flavor found in the traditional citrus variety, but with 8.5% ABV — making it the strongest beverage the company offers and the only one to top 5.5% ABV. 

I gotta say, it was hard to notice any difference in flavor when I tried the traditional citrus and strong citrus beverages back-to-back. The predominant notes were grapefruit and juniper, the latter of which is a botanical component in gin. It's a flavor combo I don't think I've had before, but I quite enjoyed it in both beverages. The reason this beverage ranked at the bottom is because the strong liquor kick is very noticeable in the aftertaste. I'm certainly not opposed to strong drinks (I consider myself a fan of IPAs, which are often over 7% ABV), but I am not always in favor of more alcohol for the sake of more alcohol; it has to make sense.

If you want the most bang for your buck on the alcohol front, strong citrus is no doubt the right pick for you. For me, it's nothing special. It edges out the zero-sugar pineapple in that there's nothing explicitly wrong with its flavor other than the added alcohol presence. 

The zero-sugar citrus tastes nearly identical to the traditional citrus. The blend of grapefruit, juniper, and gin is prominent. However, the zero-sugar version contains 99 calories and 5% ABV (half a percent lower than the traditional citrus). Like the zero-sugar pineapple, it too is sweetened with sucralose and acesulfame potassium. 

For some reason, the artificial sweeteners were not as noticeable in the zero-sugar citrus, earning it a higher spot than the pineapple variety. I also put it above the strong citrus because it didn't have as strong of an aftertaste. The citrus flavor, I found, was lacking just a bit compared to the beverage ranked one spot above this one. But if the lower calorie count is worth having a slightly less punchy flavor (and I mean very slightly less), then I would absolutely go with zero-sugar citrus.

All three citrus varieties are ranked in a row — and it feels somewhat sacrilege to place The Long Drink's signature flavor at number four. The truth is, its traditional citrus is really good. There just happen to be some flavors I like more.

I'm not a big gin drinker, so I haven't had grapefruit and gin together before. However, I found out I really liked these flavors together. The juniper flavor brings out those botanicals in the gin, making the traditional citrus quite refreshing. If you're looking for "the drink that started it all," traditional citrus is the way to go, and it won't let you down. It's also important to note that traditional citrus has a slightly higher ABV of 5.5%, making it stronger than some of the others on this list. 

I will say, soda companies should look to the Long Drink when trying to replicate flavors in zero-sugar and diet products. The zero-sugar peach (like the zero-sugar citrus) tastes nearly identical to its sugar-containing alternative. It's described as "less sweet [than the Peach flavor], but packed with bold peach flavor," and is made with natural peach and juniper berry flavors, as well as the same artificial sweeteners as the other zero-sugar flavors. It too comes in at 99 calories and 5% ABV. The zero-sugar peach flavor is also colored with carrot juice.

Zero-sugar peach, like the zero-sugar citrus and unlike zero-sugar pineapple, has only a very subtle difference in flavor compared to its non-sugar-free version. It's not overly sweet, and the peach flavoring works better with the gin than I expected. If you're after a lower-calorie option, don't hesitate to reach for the zero-sugar peach. It's easily the best of the zero-sugar flavors, but the following two cans don't have the slight artificial sweetener taste, instead letting the fruit juices stand out for themselves.

Cranberry is a flavor that works perfectly with gin. It's not overly sweet and is just a bit bitter (like grapefruit and gin). Like the other Long Drink flavors, this one uses natural cranberry flavor — and that's ultimately what makes it stand out.

What pleased me most about the Long Drink's cranberry flavor was that its combination of cranberries and juniper gave off a Christmas-y vibe. I wasn't sure how it would play as a hard seltzer, especially with warm weather fast approaching. The brand does tout it as "a delicious departure from our Traditional Citrus flavor," good for enjoying at any time of year. I can't disagree here; this cranberry definitely feels like it would hit the spot year-round. If it were winter at the time of writing, cranberry might be my top pick, but that was not the case. It falls to spot two for that reason. But have no doubt that it's absolutely light and refreshing enough to work just as well in the summer.

I definitely like the flavor of peach more than grapefruit or cranberry, so it's not too surprising that the peach Long Drink came out on top. I wasn't expecting it to work so nicely with the gin. It provided just the right amount of natural sweetness to balance the strong herbal and botanical flavors of the spirit. Without the hindrance of any artificial sweeteners, The Long Drink's peach flavor stands above the rest and just edges out cranberry. 

I also found that the peach cans, whether on purpose or not, had a better level of carbonation than the traditional citrus and other flavors. Or, maybe it's just that the peach flavor just worked better with bubbles. Whatever the reason, this one was all-around the best variety of the cans I tried. The peach flavor will, without a doubt, be a go-to of mine this summer.

There's really only one way to definitively rank the best Long Drink flavors — and that's to grab yourself one of each flavor, get them nice and cold in the fridge, and get cracking. I tested all the varieties back-to-back and considered the flavor, aroma, and any other notes before I looked at the tasting notes on the website. Following an initial tasting, I performed a blind taste test to see if my opinion of any flavors had changed, and to see if I could notice the difference between the zero-sugar and strong varieties and their traditional counterparts. 

The flavors were ranked first and foremost on their taste. In other words, I questioned whether the flavor profiles worked and if I could have more than one. I also considered alcohol content and zero-sugar status in relation to their flavor. To do this, I gauged whether the strength of the strong citrus or of the artificial sweeteners in the zero-sugar options helped or hindered the flavor of the beverage. Then, I assembled my ranking based on my observations.