The mezcal mavericks of Cantina OK! have teamed up with the crew at inner-west brewery Grifter to create a sparkling Margarita seltzer called A-Ok!.

"The A-OK! seltzer vibrates with the flavour of real citrus zest backed up by earthy Oaxacan mezcal," Alex Dowd from Cantina OK! tells Broadsheet.

"[It's] perfect for the pool, park or plaza."

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Hard seltzer, or boozy sparkling water, is suddenly big business. It first took off in the US and now a stack of local operators have got involved. Its main features are it has the tiniest hint of natural flavour and is low on sugar.

"We felt a lot of seltzers taste artificial so we made sure that the A-OK! was all-natural. We wanted to make sure it was gluten-free so that people could enjoy an alternative option in the brewery and across our bars. There’s also no added sugar, which is huge for drinkers who are becoming increasingly conscious," says Dowd.

While most of the other hard seltzers on the market are flavoured by fruit, this one has hints of mezcal. "We added a really rich, earthy mezcal from Oaxaca that we sourced and bottled by hand on our last trip to Mexico. It started as a joke, but it added some real complexity that you won’t find in any other seltzer."

Matt King from Grifter says the project came about during the Covid-19 lockdown. The crews at the two venues started chatting and realised they had a similar ethos and, after a couple months of the idea simmering in their minds, they decided to go ahead.

"A lot of love went into this project from both sides and I hate to say it but it was a very organic collaboration. We've been friends for a long time so it was all very natural and not forced in any way. It was really great to see the energy that was brought into this to make it happen. It was a refreshing collaboration ~ and the end product is refreshing too," says King.

A-OK! is available to drink-in and take-away at Grifter, and drink in at Cantina Ok! and Tio's.