Why Costco's Kirkland Signature Frozen Cocktails Were A Total Failure

Not every product that hits the shelves is destined to last. Some are only intended for a limited time, some don't appeal to customers, and some just aren't very good. That last reason appears to be what led to the failure of Kirkland Signature frozen cocktails. Based on feedback from those who tried them, they were not worth the time or money.

Reviews of the frozen cocktails were most often negative. Though they had some fans, many were underwhelmed. Some found the lime too tart and the strawberry too sweet. Others on Reddit complained that they were too sweet and noted that they didn't freeze very well. Another common complaint was that, although each pop was 8% alcohol by volume, the small package size (3 ounces) meant you'd need to eat several before you felt any effects from the alcohol. It took about three of them to equal the alcohol of one typical IPA, for instance. For some customers, it defeated the purpose of having an alcoholic freeze pop in the first place. Combined with the price, they just weren't worth it for many.

Aside from the taste, there were some practical concerns with the frozen cocktails that you might not have expected. More than one review pointed out that, because of the shape of the freeze pops, they had the potential to be sharp enough to cut your mouth when they were fully frozen.

On paper, the frozen cocktails should have done well. Each package drew attention to the fact they were only 100 calories and contained no artificial sweeteners. Some reviews specifically called this out as an attractive feature, and most people would probably agree that it was a selling point.

On the flip side, after so clearly proclaiming the lack of artificial sweeteners, all three flavors list artificial colors in the ingredients. Only the lime flavor was made without artificial flavors. That really takes some of the power out of the no artificial sweeteners claim.

Another issue people had with the cocktails was the price. An 18-pack of the frozen cocktails cost $28.99 in 2022. That made each freeze pop about $1.61. That was a significant increase over their 2019 debut, when the pack cost about $17. For some, that price was steep given the size of the cocktail.

The frozen cocktails were pulled from shelves sometime in 2023. It's hard to say for sure when it happened, as Costco didn't make an announcement about it. There's no way to know exactly why they stopped selling them any longer, but it seems like a combination of factors contributed to customers not being really impressed by them. In the end, it seemed like disappointing flavors and a high price point left a lot of customers underwhelmed.