Pontoon's Fresh Cocktails; Like Capri Sun for Adults!

Pontoon's Fresh Gotham Cocktail

It's back to school week, and whilst I don't have children, I can only imagine it's a stressful time.

Mums are one of two things; a blubbery mess as their eldest begins school for the first time or whooping and skipping round the house because they get their lives back after six weeks of constant entertainment.

It would only be fair to offer these Mums - both types - a saving grace, a little something they can enjoy in their downtime, after the kids have gone to bed or on the weekend with friends.

Introducing Fresh Cocktails by Pontoon Cocktails.

A far cry from many pre-mixed cocktails on supermarket shelves, Pontoon's Fresh Cocktails are carefully crafted from fresh ingredients - hand-pressed juices, infusions and syrups - in small batches, then frozen to maintain maximum quality and freshness.

Packaged in a free standing flexible plastic pack - okay, yes, it does look a bit like a Capri Sun, but for adults only! - makes these lightweight and easy to store. Plus, you can simply snip off the corner and pop in a straw for super simplicity.

Though picnic season has probably (sadly) come to an end, these party pouches are a welcome addition to dinner parties, girls' nights in and a sure fire way to impress friends - pop them in a glass a they'll never know you didn't concoct it yourself.

These neat cocktails come to you already frozen and packed on ice, so pop them straight in the freezer and simply take them out 10-20 minutes before you want to serve - or rest them in the fridge overnight. Just be sure that the contents are completely melted before you open them but serve as you please - shaken or stirred and in a glass or straight from the pack. I'll admit, I didn't bother with a glass...

The range currently offers four different flavours, each as delicious as eachother but with completely different personalities. I tried the range when I met the Pontoon team at the Feast festival in London a few weeks ago - their aviation themed stand certainly caught my attention.

The Pontoon range

Cosmopolitan: Cranberry infused Ketel One vodka, Cointreau, lime juice and Fee Bros peach bitters. Hot pink with the vibrancy of canberries bursting with acidity and sweetness. It's got a kick so sip slowly.

Dusk: Ketel One vodka, white peach, jasmine green tea, lemon, Fee Bros peach bitters.
Sweet and soft this is the easy drinker - very peachy and incredibly moresih.

Gotham: Heaven Hill bourbon, Red Crane rye, Campari, Noilly Rouge vermouth, blood orange, Fee Bros peach and whiskey barrel aged bitters. If you love a Manhattan, this is the one for you. Dark, intense and lingering this has some serious cocktail power and is my favourite of the range.

Tommy's: Arette Blanco tequila, agave nectar, fresh pressed pink grapefruit and lime juice. The modern Margarita, this has a citrus kick and the linger of tequila.

Currently these Fresh Cocktails come in two sizes;

• A single serve where one pack equals one cocktail - perfect for after dark when the kids are in bed! You can purchase these from the Pontoon website for £7.49 BUT there are delivery charges unless you order 20 or more. If you're a Londoner, you can collect from their London Kitchen (SW6) for free!
• A 500ml pack which holds five cocktail serves - the girls are coming round, or it's been a really, really stressful day! (Though, of course, we encourage you to drink responsibly and suggest that this size might be best shared). You can also purchase these from the Pontoon website for £29.99 each (again, delivery charges do apply) or for £39.99 from Not On The High Street, including delivery - perhaps a perfect gift for a cocktail-loving friend?

Granted, these might seem to err on the expensive side, but what I do love is that Pontoon's Fresh Cocktails are never pasteurised which means they are never heated or treated and remain fresh and pure. Sometimes with quality comes price!

To add to that, the Fresh Cocktails are only made when an order is placed - that way you truly do get the freshest tipple...


The Pontoon Cocktails duo at Feast festival in Lodnon

Once you've decided which flavour, what size, and how many you want, the small production team cranks into gear buying in fruit and hand-pressing juices to combine with various syrups and infusions (also made on site).
 
As they're not treated, it does mean that they have a limited shelf life of around seven days when refrigerated, but will stay fresh for up to six months frozen - even more excuse to keep a few stashed in the freezer!

As Pontoon advise..."take flight and embrace the adventure of the cocktail!"