FEATURED RTD

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RANCH RIDER RTDs, CONCEIVED IN THE BACK OF A TRUCK IN TEXAS

Without a doubt, the breakout star of the recent slate of popular readyto-drink canned cocktails is the Texas-born “Ranch Water,” a refreshing (and yet so simple) combination of tequila, sparkling water, and lime.

One of the first companies to can a Ranch Water RTD cocktail was Austinbased Ranch Rider Spirits Co., founded by two grad school friends, Quintin Cantu and Brian Murphy, in 2019. The duo started first by operating a food truck near the University of Texas campus, and soon began offering handmade cocktails on the truck’s menu. Those drinks proved so popular and successful that they eventually decided to focus solely on that – and so was born what’s now become the fastest moving RTD brand in the U.S. last year, according to Nielsen.

In addition to the Ranch Water (a “Texas Legend,” as they call it, made with reposado tequila, sparkling water, and real lime), the company also offers a Tequila Paloma (made with reposado tequila, sparkling water, sea salt, real grapefruit, lime, and orange); The Chilton (made with vodka, sparkling water, sea salt, and real lemon); and The Buck (combining vodka, sparkling water, real ginger, and real lime.) A new 129-calorie Margarita RTD is launching this spring, made with reposado tequila, freshsqueezed lime and orange.

Each of the Ranch Rider RTDs are made from real ingredients (no sweeteners or preservatives), and are gluten free, and 5.99% ABV. The tequila in the Ranch Water and Paloma (and soon-tolaunch Margarita) is sourced from Jalisco, Mexico, and the vodka in the Chilton and Buck is six-times distilled in Texas.

“Our mission is to disrupt the readyto-drink alcohol category with a badass brand that is emblematic of the Southwest,” commented Murphy when the brand first launched. “Our recipes all have roots in Texas or Mexico. We support producers and wildlife initiatives in the region. We source our tequila from Mexico and our citrus from the valley right between Texas and Mexico. We felt that the majority of the beer alternative brands on the market spoke primarily to coastal elites: soirees in the Hamptons or house parties in San Francisco. We started a food truck in Austin, Texas. That is not us.”

Ranch Rider is proudly an employee-owned and operated company (every employee owns equity in the brand), and their products are now distributed at bars, restaurants, and retail stores across the U.S., and also available for purchase online.