Your idea of hard seltzer as a malt-based alcoholic beverage is about to change, as brands push the boundaries of what they can do with sparkly booze. Although it’s a relatively new market, brewers both new and old are disrupting the booming industry with innovative new fizzy drinks.

Along with traditional hard seltzers like White Claw and Truly, wine-based spritzers and ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails are also rapidly rising in popularity. Like seltzers, spritzers and RTDs are typically also lighter, lower calorie options.

Beverage companies are having fun blurring the lines between the bubbles. For instance, popular brand High Noon is billed as both a hard seltzer and an RTD vodka soda. Popular winemaker Barefoot released a Hard Seltzer Wine Spritzer containing white wine and sparkling water.

When you get right down to it, the decision of how to classify a new beverage often comes down to marketing. “The decision to label a new product as a hard seltzer or RTD spritz is one ultimately made by the marketing department,” says Brie Wohld, the vice president of marketing for Trinchero Family Estates, makers of Del Mar Wine Seltzer. “Neither is necessarily better; it comes down to a matter of preference and desired target market.”

Chris Worth, the co-founder and president of Volley Spiked Seltzer notes that beverage makers also consider the moment. “Currently, the line is very blurred as to what defines a seltzer and an RTD because the category is so new and quickly evolving,” says Chris Wirth, the co-founder and president of Volley Spiked Seltzer. “We felt that this is a product that is meant for a ‘beer moment,’ which is inherently more expansive than a ‘cocktail moment.’ Having a cocktail is a larger psychological commitment.”

Indeed, part of hard seltzer’s appeal is that it’s lower in alcohol, making it a smooth, drinkable session beverage. And as new hybrid drinks enter and modify the space, we’re likely to see more high-end, luxury options.

Erin Grafton
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