This backlash, however, had the effect of making Four Loko all the more enticing to a number of college students and young adults. “It was the 20-year-old version of snap bracelets, where the notoriety and the popularity are kind of inextricably linked to their prohibition,” says cocktail expert and author John deBary. “It was always like, Hey, did you hear about this thing that New York City is banning? Or, Hey, you hear about that kid who died of drinking Four Loko? Let’s drink it.”