What is Hard Seltzer? A Beginners Guide to Hard Seltzers

What Are Hard Seltzers All About?

Chances are up until a few months ago, you’d probably never heard of hard seltzers. Well don’t worry, you’re not alone. We got our own crash-course in this Summer’s newest drinks craze whilst in the US last year - and we decided that it was too good not to share. So, we’re here to guide you through the new drink on everyone’s lips.

First, let’s start with the name:

Hard = alcoholic

Seltzer = sparkling water

Got it? Ok good…

Hard Seltzers tend to range from 4 to 5% ABV, are ‘ready to drink’ straight from the can, mostly pour transparent, and come in a dazzling variety of flavours.

Sound a bit like that electric blue dance juice from your teenage clubbing years? Well, think of hard seltzers as the alcopops more mature, better looking older brother. Hard seltzers are usually under 100 calories and have very low sugar levels (think 3g of sugar a can, compared to 30g for earlier RTDs) – probably why they became such a hit in the US last year.

Where Did Hard Seltzers Come From?

It’s a bit complicated where the first Hard Seltzer actually came from – but a viral YouTube video from comedian Trevor Wallace, and his infamous ‘Ain’t no Laws when you’re drinking Claws’ line helped transform US hard seltzer pioneer White Claw from underground cult-favourite, to frat party staple. Suddenly the stigma around drinking low carb disappeared in a delicious haze, and in 2019 US drinkers even ended up buying more hard seltzers by volume than vodka!

Now, with all the major drinks company’s testing the water with their own hard seltzers, and a bunch of great new independent brands coming through, we’re super excited to see how the UK takes to this new way of drinking.

There's A New Alcoholic Sparkling Water In Town

Has the pandemic caused us to be more experimental with our drinking from home alternatives?

It’s no secret that us Brits have been drinking a little more than normal in the last few months. With nobody sure of what the post-lockdown social scene is going to look like, we’ll probably see drinking-from-home carry on for some time, even if the fabled pub trip is back on the cards.

So, whilst most of us would have been gearing up for a summer of festivals, shows and summer BBQs, it looks like it might be a bit more Zoom Town than Boom Town for the near future.

In the same way craft gin turned the home bartender into a bona fide botanist (‘oh but it’s just not the same without blood orange bitters’) will we see the same kind of at-home drinking pageantry cross over to the ready-to-drink market?

The beauty of a ready-to-drink is that it’s just that, ready-to-drink straight from the can. But who’s to say that some fancy garnishes and sexy filters won’t make it taste even better.

So, let’s turn 2020 around, and see what all this fuss is about…

Cheers!

Long Shot Hard Seltzers use only all-natural fruit juices for flavour, and come in three varieties: Strawberry & Rhubarb, Grapefruit, Raspberry & Blackcurrant.