The Dish: Counting calories in coolers
One drink packs the equivalent of 14 teaspoons of sugar
Alcoholic coolers are the adult version of gourmet jelly beans.
They come in an astonishing array of colours from azure blue to vivid pink. They have fanciful, flirty names that include mango passion, tropical orange smoothie and — my favourite of the whimsical monikers — coco melon paradise.
And, like candy, coolers are crammed with sugar and oh so easy to slurp down.
Since it’s summer, the peak of patio season, The Dish thought it wise to reveal the calories contained in coolers.
Not to turn you off the fun, fizzy beverages. Rather, to point out the potential for soaring sugar highs.
If you have looked, then you will know that it’s not easy to find calorie counts for coolers. Most brands require curious consumers to call a 1-800-number to collect the information. A pen, paper and a calculator are often needed to compute the final numbers.
To bypass the confusion, The Dish sent three popular coolers — as suggested by a helpful LCBO sales employee — to the lab for analysis. As suspected, the drinks are seriously sweet.
Smirnoff Ice — a vodka beverage with a cheektwisting zing of citrus — is the least sugary of the three coolers tested.
A 330 ml bottle has 221calories and 26 grams of carbohydrates, the equivalent to 6 1⁄ teaspoons of
2 sugar. (According to the laboratory, the carbohydrates in alcoholic coolers are all sugar).
The Bacardi Breezer — I tested the tropical orange smoothie version of the rum-based drink — is essentially a spiked soda pop. A 330 ml bottle has 267 calories and contains 9 1⁄ teaspoons of sugar. As a
2 comparison, a 355 ml can of Coke has about the same amount of sugar but 127 fewer calories.
Rockstar Vodka, the adult version of the hyperpopular caffeinated energy drink, is the sweetest of the trio.
A 473 ml can contains 440 calories and the equivalent of 14 teaspoons of sugar. (A 330 ml measure of Rockstar Vodka has 307 calories and 38 grams of carbohydrates).
Registered dietitian Shannon Crocker suggests people think of alcoholic coolers as boozy desserts.
“The Bacardi Breezer has roughly one more teaspoon of sugar,” she says. “It might be easy to drink back three of these coolers. But think about it in terms of dessert. How many chocolate sundaes would you eat?”
And though the LCBO stocks light beers, coolers and other reduced-calorie alcoholic drinks, Crocker suggests cooler fans try making their own, sugar-free version, at home.
Her favourite cooler-like drink is a minty take on a gin rickey. Crocker makes hers with a scant shot of gin, fresh lime juice, torn mint leaves and “lots of soda water.”
This refreshing bubbly drink has about 100 calories and no sugar.
“I’m not sure people are thinking about the sugar content of their cooler when they’re sipping one on a patio on a summer’s afternoon. But, really they probably should be.” Verdict: Think of alcoholic coolers as boozy desserts.