Doritos launches ‘unexpected’ nacho cheese-flavored spirit

Americans drink more alcohol now than they did 100 years ago

Drinking in America is not only on the rise, but at a higher level now then when the substance was banned a century ago.

PLANO, Texas - Doritos has unveiled a new beverage that smells and tastes just like the cheesy chip brand.

On Tuesday, the Texas-based company announced the collaboration with global alcohol company Empirical.

According to Doritos, "Empirical x Doritos Nacho Cheese Spirit" is a limited-release spirit that brings the "iconic flavor of Doritos Nacho Cheese Chips in the spirits aisle."

"Doritos is all about disrupting culture and bringing our fans unexpected, bold experiences," Tina Mahal, the senior vice president of marketing for Frito-Lay North America, said in a press release. "We're always pushing our fans to try new things, so we figure it's time we disrupt the spirits category by offering our iconic nacho cheese flavor in a bottle."

Doritos unveils a collaboration with global flavor innovator Empirical: Empirical x Doritos® Nacho Cheese Spirit. This limited-release offers a multi-sensorial, delicious beverage experience that smells and tastes just like the real thing – bringing

Expand

To create the flavor, Doritos said the flavor layers of the chips were extracted through Empirical's production process, using real Doritos chips and retaining their essence through vacuum distillation. Unlike traditional distillation methods, vacuum distillation operates at lower temperatures, preserving the spectrum of flavors derived from Doritos, according to the company.

"Empirical is an 'uncategorized' spirits company, so it allows us the freedom to experiment with really interesting flavors and not have to be stuck in a gin box or tequila box or whiskey box," said Lars Williams, the CEO of Empirical said in a statement. "And we can take something that has a unique and amazing flavor, like Doritos, and evolve it into something completely new."

Limited-edition bottles of Empirical x Doritos Nacho Cheese Spirit will be available next month for a suggested retail price of $65.00 online and in select New York and California stores.

Pre-orders begin December 13.

This story was reported from Los Angeles.