Hard Seltzer, the new alternative to beer

Hard Seltzer is the new kid in town, and it has arrived from the United States with a disruptive flair. Behind this exotic name, which we could translate as “hard soda,” we find a 4–5% ABV drink with carbonation and fruity or spiced flavors. It’s similar to a beer, but it isn’t beer. It’s a product aimed at people who don’t tolerate hop juice but enjoy “premium” drinks and are looking for that little alcoholic kick.

Legislation has yet to regulate this beverage, so there is no standard recipe. You’ll find everything. While some brands choose to add neutral alcohol, others achieve the alcohol content by fermenting sugar, malt or the fruit itself. Beyond that, the combinations are almost endless. It’s almost like a canned cocktail, but with one caveat: the key difference lies in the marketing.

Manufacturers attribute to hard seltzer a series of properties that are beneficial or at least not harmful to health: low in calories and gluten-free. Here’s the debate: low in calories compared to what? Hard seltzer is dressed up in a fresh, modern aesthetic. By comparison, Jack Daniels and Coke cans look pretty tacky, even though they’re similar in essence: a fizzy soft drink with a splash of alcohol.

In any case, several Spanish microbreweries have already jumped on the bandwagon. For example, Cervecera Península (Madrid) has launched the Wave brand in lemon-lime and raspberry versions, which they describe as a “refreshing flavored drink (...) with bubbles and 4.5% alcohol. Our completely clear hard seltzer is the perfect alternative, with only 99 kcal per can and gluten-free.”

In turn, the Savis microbrewery (Málaga) describes its hard seltzer as the “new alcoholic drink made from natural fruits, fermented just like a beer to obtain alcohol and carbonation. The alcohol is produced by fermenting cane sugar or glucose. The refreshing gluten-free drink has an alcohol by volume of around 5% and a relatively low calorie content.” The Andalusians go one step further in combining flavors and aim to emulate popular cocktails such as the mojito or gin and tonic while still incorporating fruits like strawberry and cherry.

The third brewery to join the adventure is Birra e Blues (Valencia), which closed a funding round worth €425,000 to launch its own hard seltzer on the market under the RAD brand.

Por lo pronto, el sector cervecero ha visto una oportunidad en esta nueva bebida alcohólica. Llama la atención que el fenómeno comience a la vez en diferentes puntos del panorama nacional, que a la vez son los más vinculados tradicionalmente con las altas temperaturas en la península. Ahora queda esperar si el hard seltzer arraiga como en Estados Unidos o se convierte en una moda pasajera.