Hosts making individual mixed drinks
If you are planning gin, vodka or vermouth drinks, 150ml cans let you count out separate mixer portions without opening a larger container for every guest.
Who is choosing these mixers?
The useful pack depends on whether you are planning straightforward individual drinks, offering a choice of recipes or pairing tonic with a particular spirit.
Hosts offering different tonic recipes
If guests want a choice alongside standard tonic, look for a clearly labelled lighter or no-sugar pack and check its sweeteners and dietary notices.
Hosts planning specific flavour pairings
If you already know which spirits you will serve, a citrus, herbal or other flavoured tonic may be worth choosing for those drinks rather than for every guest.
What should you check before buying?
Start with the number and size of the portions you need, then compare recipes and flavour profiles for the drinks you intend to serve.
| Priority | What to check | My needs |
|---|---|---|
| Portions and pack size | Count cans against planned drinks, not just guests. Joybuy lists Fever-Tree Indian Tonic as 8 × 150ml and Schweppes Indian Tonic as 12 × 150ml; Britvic describes its 330ml can as two serves. | I want enough unopened portions for guests who may choose different drinks. If a larger can is meant to serve two people, will they use it at about the same time? |
| Standard or lighter recipe | Compare nutrition per 100ml and read the sweetener declaration on the exact pack. Joybuy lists 0g sugars and 2 kcal per 100ml for Schweppes Slimline, which contains aspartame and carries a phenylalanine notice. | Some guests may want a no-sugar tonic, while others may prefer the standard recipe. I need to know which is which before setting out the cans. |
| Flavour pairing | Check the stated flavour profile against the spirits and garnishes you plan to use. Fentimans describes its Premium Indian Tonic as citrus and herbal and recommends it with London Dry gin. | If tastes vary across the group, I would rather keep a classic tonic available than make one flavoured mixer the only choice. |
| Labels and storage | Read the exact can’s ingredients, dietary notices, storage instructions and best-before marking. Check these again when serving someone with an allergy or other ingredient restriction. | I need guests to be able to identify what is in each mixer, particularly when standard and slimline cans are served together. |
Common buying mistakes
-
Treating every multipack as the same number of serves
Four 200ml cans, eight 150ml cans and twelve 150ml cans cover different numbers of individual drinks, even before anyone has a second serving.
Write down the planned drinks and intended mixer portion, then check both can count and can size.
-
Assuming light and standard tonic have the same ingredients
Recipes differ. Joybuy’s Schweppes Slimline listing declares aspartame and a phenylalanine notice, so its label matters as well as its no-sugar description.
If recipe choice matters to guests, distinguish the cans clearly and check each pack’s current ingredient and nutrition information.
-
Choosing one flavoured tonic for every drink
A flavour selected to accompany a particular spirit may not suit the other drinks or preferences at the BBQ.
Plan flavoured tonic around drinks you know you will make, and keep a classic option if guests will choose different mixers.
-
Overlooking the label when serving
Sweeteners, dietary notices and storage directions are specific to the product, not to tonic water as a whole.
Keep the cans identifiable so guests can check ingredients, relevant notices and the best-before marking on the exact product.
Brand ranges to consider
These ranges illustrate different can sizes and tonic recipes; check the particular pack rather than assuming every product from a brand has the same format.
Fever-Tree
Its tonic range includes classic and flavoured choices for planned spirit pairings.
- Joybuy lists its Indian Tonic in 8 × 150ml cans, with a suggested serve of 150ml mixer to 50ml spirit.
- That Indian Tonic listing gives 36 kcal and 8.0g sugars per 100ml; do not treat it as the same recipe as a light variant.
Schweppes
Standard Indian and Slimline tonic are distinct options in 12 × 150ml can packs.
- Each listed pack contains twelve individual 150ml cans.
- The Slimline listing declares aspartame and a phenylalanine notice; check the exact recipe when serving guests with ingredient requirements.
Fentimans
Its tonic range includes citrus-and-herbal profiles and a Naturally Light variant.
- Fentimans recommends its Premium Indian Tonic with London Dry gin and lists Naturally Light in a 4 × 200ml format.
- A 200ml can is a different portion from the 150ml cans used in other packs here.
Britvic
Britvic has announced Indian Tonic in six-packs of 330ml cans.
- Britvic describes each 330ml can as providing two serves, a format to consider when drinks will be shared.
- One opened can is less suited to giving each guest a separate, unopened mixer.
Tesco
Tesco’s grocery listings provide own-label tonic and soda-water formats to compare with branded cans.
- Its listed Low Calorie Indian Tonic and Soda Water formats include 6 × 250ml packs.
- A 250ml can does not provide the same single 150ml mixer portion; check which drink you intend it for.
Mixer cans on Joybuy
These tonic multipacks cover individual 150ml portions in standard, Slimline and light recipes. Choose by planned can count and the ingredients and flavour you want to offer.
No image available
Schweppes Slimline Tonic Water 12 × 150ml
Twelve separate cans suit a BBQ where a no-sugar tonic choice is needed. Joybuy lists 2 kcal and 0g sugars per 100ml; the ingredients include aspartame, and the product carries a phenylalanine notice.
No image available
Fever-Tree Indian Tonic Water 8 × 150ml
Eight individual cans suit a plan for standard tonic drinks when that count covers the intended serves. Fever-Tree’s serving suggestion uses 150ml mixer with 50ml spirit; Joybuy lists 36 kcal and 8.0g sugars per 100ml.
No image available
Schweppes Indian Tonic Water 12 × 150ml
This standard Indian tonic pack provides twelve separate 150ml cans for planned mixed drinks. Joybuy lists quinine and sodium saccharin among its ingredients and gives 21 kcal per 100ml.
No image available
Fever-Tree Refreshingly Light Mediterranean Tonic Water 8 × 150ml
This pack offers eight individual cans when a Mediterranean tonic flavour suits the planned drinks. It is a light variant, but do not assume that means no sugar; check the exact can’s nutrition and ingredients.
No image available
Fever-Tree Naturally Light Tonic Water 8 × 150ml
Eight 150ml cans provide separate portions when you want this Naturally Light tonic alongside another recipe. Read the exact pack’s ingredient and nutrition label before comparing it with standard tonic or another light variant.
Questions about BBQ mixers
How many mixer cans should I buy for a BBQ?
Count the drinks you plan to serve, including any second drinks, rather than counting guests alone. Fever-Tree suggests 150ml of mixer with 50ml of spirit, so its 8 × 150ml pack provides eight such mixer portions; a 12 × 150ml pack provides twelve individual cans.
Are Slimline and standard tonic interchangeable?
They are different recipes, so check which one guests want. Joybuy lists 0g sugars and 2 kcal per 100ml for Schweppes Slimline, which contains aspartame and carries a phenylalanine notice; its Fever-Tree Indian Tonic listing gives 8.0g sugars and 36 kcal per 100ml.
How should I store mixer cans before the BBQ?
Follow the instructions on the exact pack and check its best-before marking. Joybuy’s Fever-Tree Indian Tonic listing says to store the cans in a cool, dry place; you can chill unopened cans before serving.
Does alcohol licensing matter if I serve drinks at an event?
It may matter if the event involves selling or supplying alcohol; mixer cans themselves are soft drinks. GOV.UK’s alcohol-licensing guidance states that businesses, organisations and individuals wishing to sell or supply alcohol in England and Wales need a licence or other authorisation from a licensing authority. Check the event circumstances with the relevant local council rather than applying that rule to every BBQ or elsewhere in the UK.