Whether it’s surveys or sales data, results consistently show that brands with big ABV and flavor can win over drinkers. Those survey respondents ranked flavor as the most important criteria in choosing a beverage, a priority that’s borne out across alcohol categories from beer to canned cocktails. While drinkers are seemingly split on the ABV question, they’re united in one preference: flavor. Survey data collected by the Brewers Association and Nielsen last spring showed a high ABV was considered important to 66% of weekly craft beer drinkers who responded meanwhile, just 44% of weekly craft beer drinkers said low ABV was important. The difference is in the carbohydrates: Because of their base ingredients, IPAs contain roughly 16-17 grams of carbs while hard seltzers contain 1-2 grams of carbs. Bell’s Two Hearted IPA (7% ABV) has 282 calories per 16oz, and New Belgium Brewing’s Voodoo Ranger IPA (7% ABV) has 249. But these higher-ABV seltzers pack the same caloric punch as popular IPAs: Both White Claw and Truly Extra have 220 calories per 16oz can. The conventional wisdom is that drinkers choose hard seltzers as a more healthful alternative to beer. find it lucrative to launch in the higher-ABV, higher-calorie space suggests that narrative never mattered at all. The fact that two of the fastest-growing alcohol brands in the U.S. Non-alcoholic beer, while energized by new brands, remains a drop in beer’s sales bucket at just 0.4% of the overall market.Ĭonsumers might say they’re health-conscious, but that doesn’t necessarily motivate their real-world alcohol purchasing decisions.
The pace of new 100-calorie craft IPA releases has slowed. Despite media buzz and financial backing from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., fitness-focused craft beer brand Sufferfest Beer Co. In fact, hard seltzer is more likely the beverage of indulgent partying-“ Ain’t no laws when you’re drinking Claws,” right?Īside from the seemingly unchallengeable juggernaut that is Michelob Ultra, hardly any new alcohol brands have successfully cornered the perceived “better-for-you” beer segment. The spate of new, higher-ABV hard seltzer offerings from some of the largest brands in FMBs upends an oft-repeated tenet of hard seltzer’s rise: That it’s a result of health-conscious drinkers motivated by moderation. A press release announcing Truly Extra’s launch notes that the package is explicitly designed to appeal to convenience store shoppers who seek “single serve, higher ABV beverages.” These products demonstrate what we’ve tracked across beer and seltzer: Despite reports of the popularity of “better-for-you” alcohol, higher-ABV offerings like Double IPAs-and now extra-strength seltzers-are on the rise.Īfter just five years of national distribution, hard seltzer is a $4 billion category in the U.S. What’s more, these higher-ABV seltzers are sold in 16oz rather than 12oz cans. They also invite a reconsideration of hard seltzer, a beverage category whose popularity has so far been repeatedly linked to health-conscious, “lifestyle” consumers choosing moderate-ABV and low-calorie beverages. These new releases come as companies realize that drinkers were already spiking standard-strength hard seltzers, and they allow brands to cut out that middle man. Big plays, smart moves, and otherwise curious indicators of beer's possible future. From Barons to Barrels with Captain Pabst.
Message in a Bottle with Brewery Ommegang.Beer is Labor with East Brother Beer Co.Ferments at Low Temps by Stephanie Byce.