Do you use your keep cup or re-usable water bottle as much as you can? Take secret pride in your recycle bin sorting? Ever wondered what it would be like to be a mixologist? Or, at the very least, do you (or anyone you know) get thirsty every now and then? If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, you’ll be glad to know that not only can you now be a walking, talking bartender with cocktails on tap – but a sustainable bartender at that.
Balgowlah Heights resident Vicki Lyon launched Sophisticated Cocktail Co in November 2020. Since then, as word got out about these portable pouches (with taps) containing ready-to-drink mixes of our favourite cocktails, the business experienced healthy growth, with the current 2021 lockdowns a catalyst for massive demand from the very thirsty among us. “People drink a lot more than we anticipated!” says Vicki. “Coming into July [2021], the business had doubled in size and then in August, it doubled in size again, so lockdown has definitely fuelled that in a big way. We’ve gone from producing 200 litres every four weeks to producing 200 litres every fortnight.”
With Australia being the birthplace of boxed wine (affectionately known as goon sacks/bags), it’s no surprise their chic cocktail cousin has been a massive hit among all adult age groups.
The idea for creating Sophisticated Cocktail Co occurred to Vicki when, like all of us, she experienced life’s routines shift as a result of the pandemic. “When we started to come out of the [first] lockdown, I noticed going out for dinner was quite rigid in that you had to take a 5:30pm or 8:30pm sitting and there was no real opportunity to go to a cocktail bar before or afterwards,” she says.
Knowing that people would be doing a lot more entertaining from home, Vicki wanted a way to bring the cocktail bar experience home without the fuss (or, let’s face it, skillset) of needing to make the drinks from scratch. And there the portable cocktail hour was born.
The idea behind the goon bag style came about with Vicki looking at packaging that was sustainable and after learning that glass bottles have a larger relative carbon footprint, Vicki opted to use recycled plastic. “Using plastic instead reduces the carbon footprint by about 80%,” she says. As eco-friendly they are made, they are to dispose of; you just lie them flat in the recycle bin and remove the plastic tap. To top it off, if you’re a bulk buyer or a slow sipper the cocktails last 6 whole months, before and after opening, due to the pressure-flow tap (and alcohol content of course).
On branding, Vicki says the brand is about being “a bit cheeky and fun”. The six cocktail varieties, which come in 700ml or 1.5L sized pouches and work out roughly $7 a serve, each carry their own persona such as ‘Tarti Margi Premium Margarita’ and ‘Vintage Vinny Old Fashioned’. However, no need to worry, Vicki assures me none of these were named after any anyone she knows except, of course, the popular ‘Tricki Vicki Gin Martini’ named after Vicki herself!
The premium ingredients used are sourced as locally as possible with the pouches produced at a distillery in Brookvale, alongside the gin and vodka used. The fruit, other alcohol and liqueur are sourced within NSW. “The only product we can’t locally source or make are the tequilas as this can only come from Tequila [in Mexico]” – and even this is sourced ethically through a “closed loop distribution channel” with a spirits distributor.
A warning – Christmas is their busiest time so if you’re thinking of gifting yourself (no judgement here) or enjoying a glass on your socially-distanced vaccinated picnic-of-five, best to get in soon.
Buy your sophisticated cocktail online at www.sophisticatedcocktailco.com.au or through a local stockist (listed onwebsite)
Tawny readers get 10% off – Use code ‘TAWNY’ at online checkout!