Despite shifting consumer preferences and changing purchasing behaviors during the coronavirus pandemic, one reality has remained unchanged: People still love to drink. Some individuals have become suave home bartenders, while others have become experts at ordering wine online. For the lazier — ahem — more efficient among us, drinking hard seltzer is still a popular choice.
According to recently shared Nielsen data, the hard seltzer category is very much growing. Comparing the last two weeks of May from this year and last (the period around Memorial Day), Neilsen off-premise data showed that hard seltzer sales soared from $61 million to $215 million in the weeks surrounding the holiday.
Given the category’s growth, it’s only understandable that some beverage companies are looking to capitalize on the consumer demand. Anheuser Busch, which already owns Bud Light Hard Seltzer, Bon V!V Spiked Seltzer, and Natural Light Seltzer, recently released another new entrant to the category: Social Club Seltzer.
Emulating classic cocktail flavors such as the Old Fashioned, Sidecar, and Citrus Gimlet, these cocktail-inspired riffs clock in at 7 percent ABV and about 150 calories each.
The U.K. market is also set to benefit from a surge in seltzer releases this summer. White Claw, one of the most successful brands in the hard seltzer category, began launching its line in U.K. grocery stores, as well as with other retailers on June 1. Molson Coors has announced the release of Bodega Bay Seltzer, an offering with 4 percent ABV and 73 calories, in flavors such as Elderflower; Lemon & Mint and Apple, Ginger & Acai Berry. Kopparberg, NATRL Seltzer, and Smirnoff have also crafted new hard seltzer options that are hitting U.K. shelves.
Whether or not the U.K. will embrace the category in the same way that American drinkers have remains to be seen. If they do, this could mark another significant chapter in the meteoric rise of hard seltzers.
