Office manager. Hobbies are travelling, reading, and good food and drink!
Office manager. Hobbies are travelling, reading, and good food and drink!
Member since:27.09.2002
Reviews:14
Members who trust:2
I work part-time in a pub, and we've been stocking Black Ice, as it's commonly known, for some time now, and I have to say that we still sell far more Smirnoff Red Ice than Black Ice - despite the marketing campaign.
OK. Hard facts. 275ml bottle. "Citrus" (undefined) and vodka mix. Bottle is identical in shape to Smirnoff Red Ice. Writing is in black and silver (somehow, the bottles don't look friendly enough.....). Liquid is clear, unlike Smirnoff Red. In other words it looks like a bottle of soda water or lemonade. Has the same alcohol content as Smirnoff Red - so does the trick.
Prices: Pub: £2.75-£3.10 (Central London pub). Supermarket: £0.90-£1.50 (London).
Taste: To my mind the reality goes against the bottle's "refreshing citrus blend....... for a crisp clean bite". I've given this a few tries, and to me it resembles a very cheap and nasty lemonade - the sort you get when the manufacturers have put lots of artificial sweeteners in the stuff because they're too tight to fork out for sugar! Black Ice improves if it is served very cold, in a glass (preferably a pint glass) with lots and lots of ice, and several wedges of lemon, together with the obligatory straw to mash up the wedges to take away the sickliness. To drink straight out of the bottle, even from a very cold fridge, gives the sickly taste.
Personal Comparison: I've drunk Smirnoff Red for ages now, and have even drunk it slightly warm (for anyone who's thinking "how could she?", it was one of those rare, hot, days in summer and lots of us went to the park for a few hours with a picnic and some bottles and cans, but forgot the ice-bag). However, Black Ice tastes sickly even when it's VERY cold, and I hate to think what it would be like warm (actually, don't want to think about it!).
Overall: All in all, definitely for (younger) alocopop fans, and anyone with a sweet tooth. It will do the trick and eventually give you a "buzz", but you'll probably end up with a mouth tasting like the bottom of a budgie's bird cage the next morning. As I say, my pub's been stocking it for ages, every Smirnoff Red drinker in the pub has given it a go, and 95% have reverted to Red Ice!
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Good op, but I'm afraid I have to disagree, this is actually my preferred drink and I find that I get a dodgy taste when I drink too many Smirnoff Originals, but not with the black. I'm a Black Ice fan I'm afraid.
coolcam7 03.10.2003 20:36
I love this drink its not as sweet as Smirnoff Ice.xxx
mattwood 17.07.2003 01:15
I have to confess I'm one of the younger fans! Matt
Apr 8th, 2003
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