‘Alcoholic Seltzer’ Is the Latest Buzz in Adult Beverages

Health-conscious adults who like to drink are buzzing about spiked seltzer.

The hard seltzer drinks — flavored seltzer water with 5 or 6 percent alcohol content — first arrived on the beverage scene in 2013 with Spiked Seltzer, and the light and bubbly alternative to beer and wine has been increasing in popularity ever since.

According to MarketWatch, Smirnoff just launched its own Smirnoff Spiked Sparkling Seltzer in flavors that include watermelon, cranberry lime and orange mango. The 12-ounce cans are just 90 calories and contain just 1 gram of carbohydrates.

Meanwhile, a 12-ounce Truly Spiked brand drink has 100 calories and 2 grams of carbs. Other spiked seltzer drinks have similar nutritional information. By comparison, the average light beer typically contains 110 calories and 6 grams of carbs per 12-ounce serving, says CBS New York. A 5-ounce glass of wine has about 125 calories.

The popularity of bottled water, including carbonated water and flavored water, continues to grow in the U.S. The carbonated water market grew 150 percent between 2001 and 2015. So, it’s really no surprise that seltzer water with a boozy kick has taken off.

Bar patron Brooke Diennca tells CBS:

“I like that there’s not a strong aftertaste, so it feels like I just had a sip of seltzer, it doesn’t really taste like alcohol. So it’s easy to drink.”

Greg Kitzmiller — an alcohol industry expert teaching marketing at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business — tells The Baltimore Sun that he believes alcoholic seltzers are here to stay.

Kitzmiller said there’s plenty of room in the market for hard seltzers to stick around because consumers are increasingly less brand-loyal. Consumers’ thirst for variety and novelty should work in these brands’ favors, he said.

Have you tried any of the hard seltzer brands? Share your thoughts below or on Facebook.