Warmer weather is on the horizon, which means two things are true: Summer House is in full swing on Bravo, and we’re gearing up to find the drink of the season. Put those two things together and you’ve got Loverboy.
If you’ve watched even one minute of this season of Summer House, you know Loverboy is the brainchild of engaged couple and series regulars, Amanda Batula and Kyle Cooke. Originally a hard tea company, Loverboy has expanded its repertoire with a line of spritzes and, as of earlier this month, a canned espresso martini. After being absolutely floored with Loverboy’s hard teas (I will never not have Hibiscus Pom in my fridge), I knew I had to put this expansion to the test. So, I grabbed the only person who loves Bravo more than me, my coworker Olivia Harrison, and got to sipping.
The Loverboy spritzes — canned aromatic cocktails made with orange wine — have been so heavily featured on this season of Summer House it felt only right to start there. First up was their original spritz, Blueberry Lemon, a citrusy-fruity flavor “kissed with basil.” Before we even tasted it, Olivia commented on the Amanda-designed packaging: “The design is sexy and cool and great for Instagram.” After gawking for a minute at the pretty cans, we dove in. I’d had this one before, but it somehow tasted better than I remembered— like a Shirley Temple, but a bit lighter. The sweetness was perfectly balanced with the tartness of the lemon, though neither Olivia nor I could taste the basil — not that we really minded. By the end of the evening we had decided this was the best of the spritzes and my favorite drink of the night.
Next up was Mango Peach, which is “kissed with chili pepper” (all the Loverboy spritzes are “kissed” with something). It smelled super mango-y, but on first sip, it tasted, Olivia said, like “a peach ring” gummy candy. I personally don’t love mango, so I was stoked that it mostly tasted like peach. Olivia didn’t taste the chili, but I think I got a bit of it on the back of my tongue — unless it was just the spiciness of the bubbles? We both agreed that this would taste really good with tequila; I tried the combo later and it was, in fact, delicious.
The last spritz we tried was Passion Fruit Guava, kissed with honeysuckle, which was decidedly our least favorite of the bunch. “I can really taste the wine in this one,” Olivia told me. “It’s not bad, it just tastes like grocery store white wine and guava.” I agreed with her and added that while it smelled like passionfruit and guava, it just tasted like sweet, fruity wine, the kind that would definitely give me a hangover. I personally don’t love sweet white wine, so this one wasn’t for me, but those who do will definitely dig this baby.
Finally, it was time for the drink du jour, the drink of Summer House — the espresso martini kissed with vanilla. Olivia was nervous; she had never had an espresso martini before and didn’t like the idea of coffee and alcohol, but she quickly changed her tune. “Wait, this is good.” Olivia exclaimed, “This is like dessert! It’s dangerous, I want to chug this.” I too was shocked — the vanilla came through so well, it tasted like an iced vanilla latte on a summer evening. We decided this was perfect for that time between dinner and going out, and that giving it a full 24-hours in the fridge before consumption was the move. We also tried pouring them over ice, which was a good way to minimize the sweetness. The espresso martini was distinctly Olivia’s favorite, but its inherent heaviness kept it in my number two spot.
After sampling all the drinks, what stood out the most to us about the Loverboy line was the quality. They all taste great, the branding is beautiful, and the time and effort put into crafting the perfect product clearly shines through. Holding these cans made me feel trendy and cool and I would 100% stock them in my fridge and bring them to a party. Olivia, a true Bravo connoisseur, said of all the products coming out of Bravo-lebrities, Loverboy takes the cake. Final assessment? The spritzes are sexy (especially the Blueberry Lemon), the espresso martinis are dangerously good, and we’re pretty sure we’re entering into a committed relationship with Loverboy.
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