Hosts serving mixed and alcohol-free drinks
Keep a plain sparkling option that guests can drink on its own or combine with other ingredients. Add a flavoured mixer for a drink you already plan to make, rather than several similar bottles.
Who is choosing mixers for brunch?
The useful starting point is the drinks you plan to serve, including whether guests will want an alcohol-free option.
Hosts planning tonic-led drinks
Decide whether the serve calls for classic tonic bitterness or a floral or citrus variation. Check the chosen tonic’s ingredients if quinine or sweeteners matter to guests.
Shoppers comparing sugar and sweeteners
Compare the nutrition and ingredients panels on the exact packs. A slimline tonic may contain sweeteners, while a product described as light need not be sugar-free.
What should you check before choosing?
Choose the drink style first, then compare formulations and pack sizes for the serves you expect to make.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Versatility | Decide whether you need a plain sparkling base or a mixer that contributes bitterness, citrus or ginger flavour. Check whether it can also be served without alcohol. | I want something guests can drink on its own as well as use in a mixed drink, so plain sparkling water is my starting point. |
| Drink flavour | Match tonic to a planned bitter serve, lemonade to a sweeter citrus drink, or a ginger mixer to a ginger-led drink. Different tonic flavours are not interchangeable with plain soda water. | If I am making gin and tonics, bitterness belongs in the drink. For another serve, I would choose the flavour before choosing a brand. |
| Ingredients | Read the exact pack’s ingredients and nutrition per 100ml. Sainsbury’s lists 4.9g sugars per 100ml for Schweppes Tonic Water 1L; its listing for Schweppes Slimline Tonic Water 1L shows 0g sugars per 100ml but includes aspartame and a source of phenylalanine. Both listings include quinine. | I need to offer a tonic that fits guests’ stated ingredient preferences, rather than assuming that slimline means sweetener-free. |
| Pack size | Count the serves planned for each flavour. Compare smaller packs for an occasional choice with a larger bottle for a drink several guests are likely to share. | I would rather open a secondary flavour when someone asks for it than leave several large bottles partly used. |
Which mixer mistakes are easy to make?
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Treating every sparkling mixer as neutral
Tonic contributes quinine bitterness, while a ginger mixer brings its own flavour. Either changes a drink differently from plain sparkling water.
Decide on the serve before buying: use a plain base for flexibility and add tonic or ginger when that flavour is part of the plan.
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Assuming light and slimline mean the same thing
According to Sainsbury’s product listings, Schweppes Slimline Tonic contains aspartame despite listing 0g sugars per 100ml. Fentimans describes its Naturally Light Tonic as having 30% fewer calories than its Premium Indian Tonic, but lists sugar among its ingredients.
Compare ingredients and nutrition on the particular bottle or can, especially when choosing for a guest with an ingredient requirement.
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Opening large bottles of several flavours
If only one or two guests want each flavour, partly used sparkling drinks may lose their fizz before the gathering ends.
Match pack sizes to the serves you expect, reserving a larger bottle for a drink the group plans to share.
Opening several flavours at once can leave partly used drinks to store or discard.
Which brands and shops offer relevant options?
These ranges illustrate different mixer styles and pack choices; a brand reference does not mean every product appears in the Joybuy selection below.
Fever-Tree
Its tonic and soda ranges give hosts distinct routes for planned drinks.
- Fever-Tree lists several tonic styles, while describing its soda water as having no aroma.
- Choose a tonic for its intended flavour rather than assuming it will behave like neutral soda water.
Schweppes
Its cited standard and Slimline tonic products offer different sugar and sweetener formulations.
- Sainsbury’s lists 4.9g sugars per 100ml for Schweppes Tonic Water 1L and 0g for Schweppes Slimline Tonic Water 1L.
- Both cited products contain quinine; the Slimline listing also includes aspartame and a source of phenylalanine.
Fentimans
Its listed mixers include Indian and flavoured tonics, soda water, lemonade and ginger drinks.
- The Fentimans range includes elderflower and grapefruit tonic styles alongside its Indian tonic.
- Formulations differ: Fentimans lists 4.4g sugars per 100ml for its Premium Indian Tonic Water, while its Naturally Light Tonic also lists sugar among its ingredients.
Britvic
Britvic’s September 2023 launch information described multipack Indian tonic cans in classic and zero-sugar variants.
- Britvic described each can in that launch as providing two serves, a format to consider when planning tonic drinks.
- Check the selected product and pack when shopping rather than relying on a past launch description for the format you need.
Tesco
Its grocery listings include plain sparkling-water formats and different lemonade styles.
- Tesco lists sparkling water in 2L bottles and multipacks, giving hosts formats to compare for a shared plain base.
- Check the exact lemonade and sparkling-water packs separately; their flavours and formats serve different plans.
Sainsbury's
Its product listings provide ingredient and nutrition details for specific branded tonics.
- The cited Schweppes listings distinguish standard and Slimline tonic formulations per 100ml.
- Use the listing and packaging for the exact product and size you choose, rather than transferring one tonic’s details to another.
Sparkling options on Joybuy
These options span ginger ale, lemonade, tonic water and plain sparkling mineral water for different planned brunch drinks.
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Fever-Tree Refreshingly Light Ginger Ale, 8 × 150ml
Consider this when a ginger-flavoured drink is part of the brunch plan rather than when you need a neutral sparkling base. The pack contains eight 150ml servings; check the exact pack’s ingredients for guests’ preferences.
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Fever-Tree Premium Lemonade, 6 × 150ml
Lemonade provides a citrus-led alternative when tonic bitterness is not wanted. This pack has six 150ml servings; compare its ingredients and nutrition with the other drinks you plan to offer.
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Fever-Tree Naturally Light Tonic Water, 8 × 150ml
This is a tonic-led choice, not a substitute for plain sparkling water. The pack contains eight 150ml servings; check its nutrition and ingredients rather than assuming that “Naturally Light” means sugar-free.
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Fever-Tree Indian Tonic Water, 8 × 150ml
Choose Indian tonic water for a planned tonic-led drink rather than a neutral sparkling serve. The pack contains eight 150ml servings; read its ingredients and nutrition if guests have particular preferences.
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San Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water, 6 × 0.5L
Plain sparkling mineral water gives guests a drink without tonic, lemonade or ginger flavour. This pack contains six 0.5L portions; add a flavoured mixer separately if a planned drink calls for one.
Brunch mixer questions
What is a manageable mixer selection for a mixed brunch group?
Start with soda water or plain sparkling water for guests who want an unflavoured option, then choose tonic, lemonade or a ginger mixer according to the drinks you intend to make. You need not buy several tonic flavours to offer both a plain and a flavoured choice.
Is tonic water the same as soda water?
No. Fever-Tree describes its soda water as having no aroma, while the cited tonic products from Fentimans and Schweppes contain quinine and have a bitter flavour. Choose tonic when that flavour belongs in the drink; use a plain sparkling option when it does not.
Does slimline or light tonic always contain no sugar or sweeteners?
No. Sainsbury’s lists 0g sugars per 100ml for Schweppes Slimline Tonic Water 1L, but its ingredients include aspartame. Fentimans describes its Naturally Light Tonic as having 30% fewer calories than its Premium Indian Tonic and lists sugar among its ingredients, so check the exact pack.
How should I check ingredients for a guest with an allergy?
Check the ingredients and allergen information for the exact packaged mixer you will serve, including its chosen size and formulation. Do not assume that a regular and a slimline version have the same ingredients.