Shaking Up the Canadian Shot Market

Black Fly Beverages has built a Canadian success story pioneering craft produced spirit mixed drinks and introducing innovation to a Canadian market thirsty for quality drinks.

Driving innovation in the Ready-to-Drink category (RTD) — and the first Ontario company granted  distillery license in more than 100 when they launched in 2005 — Black Fly is now taking a shot with Tequila Shaker Shots, launching the first Canadian RTD tequila shot and competing with a foreign company that has been the only company making and selling RTD shots in Canada for the past 15 years. Black Fly’s Tequila Shaker Shots are innovative in design, packaging, format and — most importantly — ingredients and taste.

“Black Fly Tequila Shaker Shots are a Mexican-inspired tequila popper made Black Fly style with authentic and premium ingredients, including 17% genuine Mexican tequila, real lemon and lime juices, refreshing soda and a hint of salt.” says Rob Kelly, co-founder of Black Fly. “I have been wanting to create a unique shot for the past 10 years, but it wasn’t until we moved into our new plant with all new bells and whistles that we had the ultimate flexibility to innovate, deliver and produce this exciting innovation and continue to expand our ever-growing line up if spirit mixed drinks all across Canada.”

Rather than a traditional 30mL shot, Black Fly Tequila Shaker Shots are served up in a big 50 mL test tube-style bottle for a very interesting reason — every 400mL wide-mouth Black Fly bottle starts out in a preform shaped like a test tube before it is made right in Black Fly’s plant into Black Fly’s signature bottle shape.

“I’ve always thought the preform would make an amazing package for a shot-style drink,” says Rob. “We have created the perfect blend of real tequila, soda, and pure lemon and lime juices to deliver an extremely approachable and tasty shot.”

Now available at liquor stores across Canada, Black Fly’s Tequila Shaker Shots are the latest addition to Black Fly’s robust roster of 17 different RTD mixed drinks available in bottles, cans and now shots. Also new for 2019 are Black Fly Vodka Lime and Black Fly Bar-in-a-Box mixed 12-pack with classic flavours Rum Mojito, Gin Tom Collins, Long Island Iced Tea and Vodka Cranberry.

“The name Shaker Shots is a call to action,” says Black Fly co-founder Cathy Siskind-Kelly. “Simply shake and enjoy. The buzz is already building across the country, and they have just hit the market.”

Since 2005, after receiving the first distillery license granted in Ontario in more than 100 years, Black Fly Beverages has launched more than 26 flavours of craft produced, significantly less sweet vodka, tequila, rum and gin mixed drinks that include flagship flavours like Black Fly Vodka Cranberry, Tequila Margarita, Vodka Grapefruit and Long Island Iced Tea.

Consumers have embraced this unique brand that continues to innovate and deliver bar quality mixed drinks in a host of great formats that include bottles and cans. All Canadian craft-produced Black Fly mixed drinks are made with real juices, lightly sweetened with cane sugar (not high fructose corn syrup), blended with real spirits (6% or 7% alc./vol.) including Mexican Tequila and are gluten free.

In addition to Black Fly’s highly popular signature 400mL bottles (in four-packs), and trendy Black Fly Sours, Sour Grape, Crushed Orange and Sour Raspberry in single serve 473 mL cans, Black Fly has an ultra light and extremely low sugar option at half the sweetness of their previously least sweet Vodka Cranberry; Black Fly Lemon Lime Vodka Soda Fizz and Black Fly Grapefruit Gin Soda Fizz in 355mL 6-packs. New this Spring 2019, Black Fly Vodka Lime in 4-packs, Black Fly Bar in a Box 12-bottle mixed party pack and Black Fly’s take on a Mexican Tequila popper — Black Fly Tequila Shaker Shots, large 50mL shots made with 17% genuine Mexican Tequila, lemon and lime juices, soda and a hint of salt. Totally unique and highly delicious. Black Fly is available in every Canadian province and territory.