All Hands "Cherry Limeade" Vodka Soda

This is the last of the three types of All Hands beverages that I got in this pack. It's a shame, as the novelty of these beverages has broadened my view of what they can be. The other two didn't score particularly well, but they weren't bad. I have saved the cherry limeade for the last, as I feel it has the best chance of success. The significant 10% ABV that these beverages all have has so far been only a footnote. The alcohol is there, and it can be tasted, but it isn't overpowering. That's kind of hard to do with a simple soda. Let's see how this one does.

As was predictable, this is red. As was not predictable, this is a very red. It reminds me of a red soda that I had as a kid named Cherokee Red. I see on the Internet that it is still sold somewhere. It isn't sold anywhere near me, and I wouldn't want to get it again for fear that I would be misremembering just how good it was. There's no way the real drink and live up to the nostalgic view I have of it. The aroma is quite cherry. I don't mean artificial cherry, as this smells more like maraschino cherries than any cherry-flavored drink I have previously encountered. I bet this is going to be pretty good.

First sip is quite good. The cherries are, much like the raspberries in one of the previous beverages, running the show. In a simple sip, I couldn't taste any lime, but the sweetness and the cherries are going together quite nicely. The resulting beverage is almost candy-like in it sweetness and the cherries give it depth. If I was just a sip this, and every subsequent sip taste the same, I would be more than satisfied.

Tip-in is rather more carbonation burn than the others, but it's still only moderate as it fires up the cherries and the now detectable lime. The middle lights up the carbonation even more as the two fruits and sweetness seem to get overshadowed by the burning across the whole of the mouth. The finish is an onset of alcohol that tries to be dry, but it's hard to do in these circumstances, so the finish becomes an argument that leaves a trail of cherries and alcohol in its wake.

Bottom Line: Good enough.

2.75/5