Tequila Tromba Sparkling Craft Lime Margarita (5%)

Welcome to Day 4 of RTD Week, when I turn my attention to that quintessential spirit of summer, tequila. As with all the reviews this week, in addition to the regular scoring system I will be offering my opinion on three separate elements of the drink: Sweetness, from very dry to liquid sugar; Booziness, from “does this have any alcohol” to fresh off the still; and Balance, the relationship of the former to the latter. 

Tromba is a stellar tequila brand with a Canadian connection – Torontonian Eric Brass is the company founder and ceo – about which I have waxed poetic in the past, albeit not yet on this site. Several years ago, I recommended it for use in a ‘tequini’ in the Globe and Mail, and I know that I have lauded it elsewhere, as well. Here, however, I’m facing down not the tequila in pure form, but for Day 4 of #RTDWeek, a canned cocktail featuring Tromba Blanco as its alcohol element.   

While in retrospect I should perhaps not have been surprised, given the size of the can and low alcohol content, I wasn’t expecting this to be a sparkling beverage. As evident in the picture to the left, the words “sparkling craft” appear only in small print above Tequila Tromba on the lime-green can, and unless you’re looking for them, they are easy to overlook. More prominent below the brand name is the description “Lime Margarita,” which is more along the lines of what I anticipated in my glass.

Expectations now managed, I tried the refrigerated cocktail two ways: neat in a short glass for nosing and over ice in a tall glass with a salted rim for savouring. The latter was, perhaps not shockingly, by a good margin the better option.

The nose is a soft mix of agave with lime, faint sugar, and a light whiff of salt. While all the elements of a Margarita are present, they are sufficiently mellow that it takes patience to connect with them from the short glass and they all but vanish when the can is poured over ice. Given the cocktail’s low strength and apparent focus on refreshment, I suppose that might be expected.

The flavour is similarly soft-spoken, with gently sweet lime notes up front followed by a slightly spicy, cooked agave note that is buoyed by a bit of vaguely vegetal sugar – agave nectar, according to the can’s ingredients list – and just a touch of saline character. The finish brings drying lime zest and a modicum of peppery spice.

As a long drink, I’d have to deem this a success: off-dry to dry, light in alcohol, and quite quenching. As a Margarita-inspired drink, on the other hand, I am less convinced, as I find only minimal resemblance to tequila’s most famous cocktail, and precious little in the way of proper tequila character, as well.

Sweetness (out of 10): 2

Booziness (out of 10): 3

Balance (out of 10): 7

Overall (out of 100): 76 as a Margarita; 84 as a tequila highball  ($3.25/355 ml)