Celebrity Name or Not, Kylie Jenner's Spiked Seltzer Is Worth Buying

Kylie Jenner is joining the ranks of celebrities with alcohol lines, which, yes, includes her own sister, Kendall Jenner. But after trying the new drink range, I mean it when I say this seltzer was worth developing, whether there's a celebrity name attached to it or not.

Sprinter, Jenner's entry into the spirits space, is a canned vodka soda that comes in four flavors: black cherry, peach, grapefruit, and lime. Each drink has 100 calories and 4.5 percent ABV, and is made with fruit juice and no added sugar.

Jenner already owns and operates Kylie Cosmetics, Kylie Baby, and her new clothing brand, Khy, among a few other businesses. For this first venture into alcohol, Jenner partnered with Chandra Richter, a woman beverage development expert with a PhD in molecular biology and more than 20 years of experience in the beverage alcohol industry. Jenner and Richter taste-tested for a year before finally settling on the Sprinter formula.

Spiked seltzer is my drink of choice when I'm headed to the beach or a pregame, or just need something packable, so I jumped at the chance to try these. I'll admit I had my suspicions: celebrity liquor lines can often feel like a money grab, but these seltzers caught me by surprise. In a press release, Jenner said Sprinter is the "best tasting vodka soda I've ever tried — and I've tried a lot." After trying it for myself, I believe her.

Canned cocktails may be convenient, but you can sacrifice a lot in terms of flavor, choice, and customization. For me, a canned cocktail should be as close to the real thing as possible, made with exactly what you'd pour into a cocktail glass and little else. While there's plenty of variety out there, a good canned cocktail should use quality spirits, have limited artificial ingredients, and, most importantly, taste good.

For seltzer, the criteria comes down to real fruit flavor, a non-painful amount of fizz, and enough spirit to do its job, but not be too strong: you want to get your money's worth, but you don't want to enjoy one or two and then be on the floor. And, of course, portability and ease of opening are both key: no fancy shapes or bottles, thank you!

I'll admit that I was skeptical about these seltzers, as I am with celebrity-owned brands generally, but I'm pleased to report that Sprinter won me over at the first sip. This seltzer is lightly sweet, boldly flavored, and effervescent without being too bubbly.

My favorite thing about this seltzer is that it gets the level of sweetness exactly right. The fruit flavors lead and are sweet enough to be refreshing but don't feel too sugary or syrupy, like many other canned seltzers. I also really liked the level of carbonation: Sprinter is gently fizzy, but the bubbles aren't strong, so they're incredibly drinkable.

Another thing Sprinter does right? The flavor really feels like it's fresh-squeezed from fruit. The black cherry and peach seltzers are definitely the sweeter ones in the range, whereas lime and grapefruit carry more of a citrus tang. The fruit flavors taste natural, like real fruit, and not artificial.

Lime and grapefruit are typically the last flavors left in a pack of seltzer in my fridge, but I found I really enjoyed the Sprinter flavors. The grapefruit seltzer leans into the flavor — rather than bitterness — of grapefruit. The lime especially was more flavorful than most lime seltzers and tasted like several fresh limes were squeezed right into it.

If given the choice, I would drink this over any vodka soda with lime ordered at a bar. Ultimately, black cherry and peach were my favorite, but I would happily drink all four — an experience I don't always have with multiflavor seltzer packs.

In sum? Jenner's Sprinter has completely won me over. These seltzers are lightly sweet, lightly carbonated, and full of flavor. I guess these just earned a spot in my beach bag.

At 4.5 percent ABV, they're slightly lower than other seltzers you'll find on the market. This may be a drawback if you prefer to get more bang for your canned cocktail buck, or, on the flip side, a perk if you prefer canned cocktails that are lower in alcohol.

If you love fruit-forward vodka sodas, you're going to love Sprinter. Additionally, if you prefer real spirits to malt liquor in your canned seltzers, Sprinter is an excellent choice for you. The vodka is high-quality but doesn't have a harshness to it, and despite sampling a few of these in one evening (hey, I was on a deadline!), I had zero hangover the next day.

Sprinter is also a great choice for those who are ingredient-conscious, as the brand has zero added sugar ("obviously," the cans cheekily say) and minimal ingredients. They're also surprisingly affordable for a celebrity-owned brand, and comparable to the costs of White Claw and High Noon vodka sodas.

If you prefer strongly carbonated seltzer, however, these might not be for you, as the bubbles are pretty light. And if you're not a big fan of peach, black cherry, grapefruit, or lime, you might want to wait, as Sprinter currently only has four flavors available.

When it drops on March 21, Sprinter will be sold at Total Wine & More, BevMo, Albertsons, Safeway, CVS, and Kroger. Sprinter will also be available to order online at retailers like GoPuff and Instacart.

★★★★★

Kaley Rohlinger is a freelance writer for POPSUGAR who focuses on health, fitness, food, and lifestyle content. She has a background in the marketing and communications industry and has written for POPSUGAR for over four years.