Hard Seltzers: The Brand Review (Part I)

What the bloody hell is a "hard Seltzer?!"

A Hard Seltza is a type of alcoholic beverage that has taken our planet by storm. The drink has been so successful, that is has bulldozed many of the USA giant beer brands out of the way. The term Seltzer is a term that Americans call 'sparkling drinks' And the 'Hard' bit is referring to the alcohol.

So, why are they so great? "Sales in the hard seltzer category in the US off-trade hit $1.5 billion last year, while on-trade sales rose from 210 million in 2018 to $1.2 billion last year. - The Drinks Business. An IWSR report also predicts that consumption of hard seltzer brands is expected to triple by 2023 to reach over 281m cases!"

Some genius has found a way to make water into booze. In most cases the alcohol in “spiked” seltzer comes from fermented cane sugar, with carbonated bubbles added. Which means they are guilt, gluten, and almost calorie free. (Averages about 90 cals per can!)

Shall we just take a moment to digest this...

I first came across hard seltzer's in October 2019 in Orlando, FL and was blown away by fact that they were sold EVERYWHERE including bars and restaurants. 

I could see that the USA were evidently in love with their new sparkling mini-tinny and due to its popularity and broad availability you quickly became the odd one out if you were not drinking one. 

The the most popular USA brand called 'White Claw'now brags almost 60% market share (thedrinkbusiness) and some sources suggest it took over beer sales for the first time in history...

The appeal for me is the huge range and possibility of flavours, to mention a few: Cherry, Grapefruit, Lime, Raspberry, Mango, Lemon, Tangerine, Watermelon and Pure (unflavored). The headliners for me has to be the Mango and Grapefuit which are disappointingly not yet available in the UK........

Is the UK ready to change their habits in pint drinking, weekday wine and spritz for bunch? Well, this is just a hunch... but the British public have been waiting for something new. And with the rise of canned wine and gin and tonic, its easy to see how a skinny, low calorie drink, with 'Instagram-worthy' branding and recyclable packaging can quite easily slot into our health conscious lives. The seltzer first landed the UK for this summer 2020, and so far the numbers are promising. Over the next five years, IWSR predicts that hard seltzers will likely witness the highest growth rate within the UK’s ready-to-drink category, with a forecast volume compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 71.7% from 2019 to 2024.

So who are the fizzy contenders for the UK? And how does their branding, positioning and marketing tactics stack up? Check out for my next blog for the full review!

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