Entertaining

5 Cocktails With as Few Calories as a Vodka Soda

With only about 10 more calories than a Vodka Soda, the Whisky Skin is a perfect way to stave off dessert cravings. Essentially the Gaelic version of a Hot Toddy, the Whisky Skin is an amalgam of scotch, a teaspoon of demerara sugar and piping hot water, with an expressed lemon peel for added zest. It’s as warming as a cup of cocoa, but won’t inspire any of the calorie-induced guilt.

Vodka has marginally less calories than other spirits, so swapping it out for scotch will amount to essentially no caloric difference. The same goes for gin, tequila and other whiskies, but flavorful, smoky scotch is our favorite way to give a basic Highball a little more oomph. Just don’t be tempted to use tonic water instead of soda water—tonic packs an additional 10 calories per ounce, plus added sugar, compared to its neutral, zero-calorie counterpart. That’s about 50 calories of tonic in your average G&T.

Another cocktail with a nearly identical calorie count to the Vodka Soda, the Americano is an ideal summer aperitivo for those trying to maintain a beach bod. Essentially a bubbly version of the Negroni without the gin, the Americano tops Campari and sweet vermouth with soda water. And thanks to its low-ABV, you’ll still feel up for hitting the gym at night, even if you’ve had one or two of these with lunch.

Champagne is a great go-to booze for anyone trying to drink healthier (some studies even say that it’s good for your heart). And adding a splash of orange juice certainly won’t hurt your efforts. At approximately 116 calories, the Mimosa is still slimmer than the Vodka Soda—though we can’t say the same if you drink it in bottomless proportions at brunch alongside a heaping plate of eggs benedict. But hey, life’s all about balance.

The most low-cal cocktail of them all, the Champagne Cocktail clocks in at nearly 30 calories less than the Vodka Soda, for a near even 100. Made only with Champagne, one sugar cube and three dashes of Angostura bitters, this classy, old-school drink is as delicious as it is waistline-friendly.