Fans of fruity summer cocktails now have a pair of canned drinks to sample from Cape May Spirits Co., the newly created sister company of Cape May Brewing Co.
The South Jersey company unveiled the new Beach Blends drinks on Tuesday, introducing two flavors of the vodka-based cocktails that are available at retailers throughout New Jersey.
Both the Tropical Vodka Punch and Orange Vodka Crush are 5% ABV. They’re being sold in four-packs.
“What started off as a love for craft beer has grown into something much greater; a passion for bringing refreshing and delicious beverages directly to our fans,” Cape May Brewing Co. said of the new venture. “That’s why we created Cape May Spirits Co. and our new Beach Blends – Cape May’s first ever spirits-based canned cocktails.”
Tropical Vodka Punch is described as a sweet and tart mixture of exotic flavors including mango, pineapple, passion fruit and guava. The drink contains real fruit juice blended with sparkling water. Orange Vodka Crush combines orange juice, cane sugar and vodka blended with sparkling water.
The new beverages will not be sold at the Cape May Brewing Co. tasting room, the company said. It’s unclear whether they’ll be made available in other states this summer.
Founded in 2011, Cape May Brewing Co. has grown steadily over the last decade to become one of the largest craft brewers in New Jersey. The company has expanded to bars and retailers across New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware.
The brewer’s other sister company, Cape Beverage, distributes beer and seltzer to retailers throughout all 21 counties in New Jersey. The new canned cocktails will be distributed by Cape Beverage, which also recently began bringing beers from Philly’s Dock Street Brewery to retailers in New Jersey.
Last month, Cape May Brewing announced a major development with the acquisition of Flying Fish, one of the state’s oldest breweries. The purchasing agreement allows beers from both breweries to be sold independently of one another while expanding Cape May Brewing’s distribution across New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware. All of Flying Fish’s assets, including its tasting room at 900 Kennedy Blvd. in Somerdale, were included in the transaction.
The brewer’s decision to branch out into canned cocktails follows last year’s collaboration with Wawa on “Shore Tea,” a peach-flavored iced tea that garnered extra attention due to a legal battle over the origin of the idea.
Jeff Plate, the co-founder and former owner of Asbury Park Brewery, claims he developed and unsuccessfully pitched the hard iced tea concept to Cape May Brewing and the company subsequently stole it. The brewery called Plate’s accusations “groundless,” but in a January a judge denied Cape May Brewing’s motion to dismiss the $10 million lawsuit.
Cape May Spirits Co. said updates about Beach Blends and future products from the new company will be shared on its social media channels.