Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ) is vying for a top-three share position in hard seltzer. The makers of Corona Hard Seltzer currently hold the #4 hard seltzer spot in the US.

Anheuser-Busch’s (NYSE: BUD) Bud Light Seltzer holds the #3 position. However, during last week’s (Q1 2022) earnings report Constellation Brands President and CEO, William Newlands, made it clear the company is setting its sights higher.

“Ultimately, we believe the Hard Seltzer category will be dominated by a few large brands in the long run, similar to the light beer category, and we are positioning Corona Hard Seltzer to be one of those brands,” said Newlands. “We believe it’s an important part of the high-end, and we plan to drive for success with our ambition to ultimately be a top-three player in this space.”

Corona Hard Seltzer was a relatively late addition to the spiked seltzer market. The brand launched last spring during the height of the pandemic. The beverage alcohol company backed Corona’s launch with a healthy $40 million dollar marketing budget, its largest single brand investment to date.

The investment had almost immediate returns. By the summer of 2020 Corona Hard Seltzer had already risen through the ranks to become the #4 seltzer brand in the country, controlling an IRI market share of 6% and beating out brands with considerably more tenure.

Mark Anthony Brands’ White Claw holds the #1 spot, consistently controlling more than half of the US hard seltzer market. Boston Beer’s Truly comes in at #2, achieving a market share of around 25%. Both brands were early leaders, launching in 2016 when the category was in its infancy.

The #1 and #2 hard seltzer positions would be lofty goals for Corona’s immediate future, and the #3 spot is certainly a reach goal. Like Corona, Bud Light is another fast-growing newcomer in the seltzer market. Bud Light Seltzer launched in January of 2020. Parent company Anheuser-Busch supported the launch by pumping an additional $100 million into its hard seltzer segment. As of last summer Bud Light Seltzer was ranked the #3 hard seltzer, controlling 9% of the market. Now Corona is very publicly coming for the brand’s third place title.

Corona Hard Seltzer Varieties

Corona Hard Seltzer is available in eight flavors and two variety packs. Variety Pack #1 features Blackberry Lime, Tropical Lime, Mango and Cherry. Variety Pack #2 features Pineapple, Strawberry, Passionfruit and Raspberry. All flavors contain 90 calories 0 carbs, 0 sugars and an ABV of 4.5% per 12 ounce can.

The brand also recently introduced Corona Hard Seltzer Limonada “inspired by the traditional Mexican Limonada recipes we all know and love.” Limonada comes in four flavors including Classic Lemon Lime, Grapefruit, Watermelon and Strawberry. Each 12 ounce can contains 100 calories, 3 grams of carbs, 3 grams of sugar and an ABV of 4.5%.

Corona is also home to Corona Refresca, a line of flavored malt beverages (FMBs) in tropical flavors of Guava Lime, Passionfruit Lime, and Coconut Lime. Each variety contains an ABV of 4.5%. Corona Refresca Más contains a boosted ABV of 8% and comes in only one flavor–Mango Citrus.  Not only does it have more alcohol, but also 25.6 grams of carbs and 251 calories per 12 ounces.

Bud Light Seltzer Plans to Grow

Bud Light Seltzer would not go down without a fight. The brand also has its eyes on increasing market share. During an interview with Reuters last year Anheuser-Busch’s US Chief Marketing Officer, Marcel Marcondes, talked about the company’s ambitious goals for Bud Light Seltzer, “The winners are not necessarily those that get there first, but the winners are the ones that manage to scale up their initiatives better and bigger…That’s how we plan to play the game here as well. We were not the first, but we expect to be the largest.”

Bud Light also has an impressive portfolio of seltzers to its name. The brand’s Classic Variety Pack features four flavors including Lemon Lime, Black Cherry, Strawberry and Mango. The beverages come in 12 ounce cans, each containing 100 calories, less than 1 gram of sugar, 2 carbs and an ABV of 5%. Bud Light Seltzer Lemonade was introduced in 2020.

The lemonade seltzer is available in a four-flavor variety pack including Original Lemonade, Black Cherry Lemonade, Peach Lemonade and Strawberry Lemonade. Each 12 ounce can contains 100 calories, less than 1 gram of sugar, 3 carbs and an ABV of 5%. Bud Light Seltzer Iced Tea launched in May of this year and features Peach, Raspberry, Tangerine and Apple tea flavors. The brand also recently released Bud Light Platinum Seltzer, an imperial hard seltzer that boasts an enhanced ABV of 8%.

Bud Light’s limited release offerings both focus on summer flavors. Bud Light Seltzer Out Of Office is a limited edition variety pack featuring vacation-inspired flavors such as Classic Lime Margarita, Mango Mai Tai, Watermelon Mojito and Strawberry Daiquiri. Bud Light Seltzer Retro Summer is another limited edition variety pack featuring cans adorned with tie-dyed designs and throwback flavors like Summer Ice, Blue Raspberry and Cherry Limeade.

Corona Hard Seltzer’s market share currently misses Bud Light Seltzer’s #3 position by a few percentage points. If Corona continues to grow its seltzer portfolio, overtaking Bud Light for a third place ranking is a distinct possibility. Constellation’s Q1 earnings summary last week put Bud Light on notice. Corona Hard Seltzer is coming for top-three.

Shirani Jayasuriya
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