Doritos and Empirical Spirits joined forces, and together they’ve introduced a surprising collaboration, Nacho Cheese flavoured liquor. This unconventional beverage lacks the signature crunch but tastes like the beloved chips, which are created through vacuum distillation. “Unlike traditional distillation methods, vacuum distillation operates at lower temperatures, preserving the full spectrum of flavours derived from Doritos,” as per the press release. With 42% alcohol content, this unique liquor is priced at $65 (approximately Rs 5000) and is available for pre-orders in the US as limited-edition Empirical x Doritos Nacho Cheese Spirit bottles. Meanwhile, Empirical’s CEO, Lars Williams, highlighted how this partnership allowed them to explore innovative flavours beyond traditional spirit categories.
Talking about the origin, Lars said, “It was very early days of Empirical and one of the first members of our team, had gone out for lunch and come back with a sandwich and a bag of Doritos. So when he came back from his lunch, I took a look at the bag of Doritos and said, ‘sorry, buddy, I’m going to have to take part of your lunch and turn it into booze.’ We tried it and the result was amazing and made us start laughing hysterically. Typically, I was just giving it to friends who were coming by the distillery to say hi and particularly chefs, because we just give them a little glass of it without telling them what it was and people would smell it and immediately just start laughing.”
As per their website, Doritos offers their newly launched liquor with three cocktail recipes cleverly named, the Double Triangle Margarita, Bloody Mary and Red Bag Old Fashioned. For adventurous taste explorers, the company proposes enjoying the spirit neat or over ice and describes their creation as a “multi-sensorial, delicious beverage experience.”
Tina Mahal, Frito-Lay’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, highlighted Doritos’ commitment towards shaking culture and delivering unexpected, daring experiences to its fans. She further expressed their intention to revolutionize the spirits category by introducing Doritos’ nacho cheese in a bottle.
The concept of chip flavoured alcohol might seem unusual, but it’s not a new phenomenon. In 2021, the Georgia based food chain named Arby’s introduced two limited edition vodkas influenced by their famous fries. Surprisingly, both of their Vodkas reportedly sold out within two minutes. Looking at the success, Arby’s expanded its spirit experiments by launching smoked bourbon last year, inspired from their renowned brisket and ribs.