Melleau named The Guardian's Best Light Seltzer

Melleau, the 3.4% sparkling vodka soda from Cardrona Drinks Company, has been named Best Light Seltzer in The Guardian's latest tasting of alcoholic and non-alcoholic seltzers.

Reviewing the range, drinks writer Joanne Gould singled out the brand's deliberately lower ABV, its use of natural juices and botanicals, and its four flavour combinations, describing the drinks as gently effervescent with "great-tasting elevated ingredients". It is the kind of third-party nod that can carry weight for a small brand trying to move beyond its local base.

Melleau is built on the idea that a lower-strength drink need not be a watered-down one, positioning its 3.4% ABV as a way to keep sessions going rather than a compromise. The line spans Tahiti Lime & Yuzu with elderflower, Passionfruit & Pomelo with cardamom, Blood Orange with aromatic bitters, and Raspberry & Calamansi with tarragon. Each 330ml can has no added sugar and up to 95 calories.

"We didn't want to make a weaker drink. We wanted to make a drink people could enjoy for longer that genuinely tastes great," said the brand.

Currently sold online and through independents in Essex and Suffolk at £4.50 a can, Melleau says it is now targeting premium retail and hospitality partners.