Vodka Ice is the latest PPS from GBL International TARGET CONSUMER Lisa Riley, 27, is a student who lives in Sussex The chrome and ice white all-over outer wrapping will attract women, but I think it would have been better with a screw cap for convenience. As recommended it is best enjoyed really chilled so is not ideal for taking to student parties or drinking on the go. The smell is very attractive and reminded me of home made lemonade. The taste is refreshing, but I did find it quite strong compared to other alcopops. The aftertaste was quite unpleasant and did not make me want to have another drink. There are so many alcopops on the market and Vodka Ice does not seem to bring anything new or outstanding. Rating out of 25 ­ 15 The expert: Sally Easton Master of Wine and wine buyer for Berry Brothers and Rudd This pre-mixed drink of vodka and lemon has the colour of a cloudy lemonade soft drink. The nose has a quite sickly sherbet aroma with notes of confected lemon bon bons. It has a slightly pétillant palate which quickly becomes flat and is very sweet with lemon flavours only at the front of the palate. This results in an unbalanced drink with no mid or back palate flavour which, however, cloys to the entire palate. It is simple, sweet and lacking full flavour. The packaging is smart and trendy, in the genre of spirit mixers, and is aimed at the youthful female drinker. Success rating out of 25 ­ 17 The designer: Graham Shearsby Board creative director, graphics, at Design Bridge I can't help feeling that this is another desperate concoction aimed at the high spending suburban teenagers who frequent nightclubs with names like Cinderellas or Room at the Top (but that's enough of my adolescent memories). This appears to be a bit of a hybrid copycat of Smirnoff Ice and Metz and is probably trying to trade off both. It will no doubt appeal to a certain market looking for this kind of thing, but lacks any brand values or substance. I predict that this has a very limited lifespan ahead of it, so until the next trend comes along, mine's a pint. Success rating out of 25 ­ 14 The buyer: Steve Mayes Category controller at Landmark Given my personal distaste for PPS products I talked to the "young people" about this. They were keen on the Christmas (?) design and thought the onpack snowflake would look daft in summer. The taste was sweeter than its mainstream branded counterparts and this could restrict volume consumption (unless completely hammered). Overall, the product was deemed to have potential as long as it was cheaper than its major league cousin. So here lies the key. With an rsp of £1.09 it is almost there, but surely 99p would be the magic price. I'd probably list it if the deal stacked up. Success rating out of 25 ­ 15 Total score out of 100 ­ 61 {{DRINKS }}

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