T-Mobile Is Selling Bottles of Its Own “5Gin,” with “5Ginger Beer” Chasers

I’ve seen my fair share of alcohol-related product tie-ins over the years. Perhaps they’re promoting a movie, like when the Kingsman franchise hooked up with Old Forester to produce some bourbon. Perhaps it’s one of many ill-fated videogame tie-ins. But a bottle of gin to promote mobile internet connectivity? That’s a new one even for me, but that’s what T-Mobile is dropping tomorrow in the form of its new “Ultra Capacity 5Gin.” Working in tandem with Eugene, Oregon’s Heritage Distilling Co., T-Mobile has created their own gin brand, supported by its own mixer, Extended Range 5Ginger Beer. And they’ll be selling both of them online this Thursday afternoon at t-mobile5gin.com. As the brand puts it: “It’s 5G o’clock somewhere.”

Technically, the gin release promotion is meant to call attention to T-Mobile’s “largest, fastest and most reliable 5G network,” but you know that at Paste, our attention is going to be focused on what’s in the bottle. In that respect, 5Gin is a showcase for Heritage Distilling Co., a majority women-owned Pacific Northwest business known for its Elk Rider line of spirits. 5Gin is indeed Heritage’s Elk Rider Gin, available here far beyond its usual distribution range. Tasting the sample sent in by T-Mobile, we found the 5Gin to be resinous, piney and quite floral, with distinct impressions of rose and warm chamomile tea. It’s a warmly herbaceous gin, very “garden”-like, with less of the candied citrus that has come to be so common in American gin in recent years.

If you want to get some Ultra Capacity 5Gin and some Extended Range 5Ginger Beer for yourself, you’ll have to visit t-mobile5gin.com tomorrow, June 24, starting at noon PT. Limited quantities will be available, with bottles of 5Gin selling for $30 a pop. Pair with some tonic or juice—both harder to pair with the “5G” naming theme than “ginger beer”—and you’ll probably have a good time.