New Belgium Brewing Releases 8% ABV Fruit Smash Super Hard Seltzer
New Belgium is going harder after the higher ABV (8%) hard seltzer subsegment with Fruit Smash Super Hard Seltzer.
The new offering is available nationwide in a variety 12-pack featuring three flavors: Pineapple Punch, Cherry Lime Chill and Wild Watermelon.
“Fruit Smash Super Hard Seltzer is perfect for turning up the fun and making any occasion feel like a party,” Michelle Robertson, Fruit Smash brand manager, said in a press release. “Our new Super Hard flavors deliver bold, real-fruit juice flavor and extra quirkiness to the seltzer world.”
Made with real fruit juice, the original Fruit Smash line (4.7% ABV) launched in March 2021 with three flavors: Pink Lemonade, Tropical Punch and Berry Blast. New Belgium launched its first 8% ABV hard seltzer offering last year with 19.2 oz. single serve cans of Pink Lemonade Fruit Smash Super Hard Seltzer.
“With its unapologetically playful branding, Fruit Smash Super Hard Seltzer is an unexpected and colorful alternative to basic hard seltzers,” New Belgium wrote in the release. “Each can is packed with fruit-fed flavor that makes you feel like you’re floating on an inflatable cockatoo at 2 p.m. on a Saturday.”
White Claw Releases ‘White Claw Surf’ Hard Seltzer Line
Mark Anthony Brands launched a new line of White Claw hard seltzers this week, labeled White Claw Surf.
Surf is available in a variety 12-pack with four flavors: Citrus Yuzu Smash (lemon with yuzu); Tropical Pomelo Smash (pomelo grapefruit with lime, orange and lemon); Watermelon Lime (watermelon with cold-pressed lime); and Wildberry Acai Smash (wild berries with notes of acai). Each flavor is 5% ABV and gluten free, with 100 calories.
“White Claw Surf is the biggest news in seltzer since the original launch of White Claw,” John Shea, CMO for White Claw, U.S., said in a press release. “White Claw Surf is a breakthrough new idea that combines full flavors with sensational refreshment and the incredible sessionability expected from White Claw. It is our next exciting addition and something completely new and different in the world of seltzer.”
For the brand’s launch, White Claw has partnered with professional surfers Ivy Miller, Hunter Jones and Blair Conklin for a “Surf Like No Other” campaign, featuring a series of videos showing how the athletes “can surf anywhere,” as well as marketing at South by Southwest (SXSW) – a film and music festival in Austin, Texas, that White Claw sponsors as its “official hard seltzer.”
The White Claw brand family was ranked the No. 7 beer brand family in off-premise sales in multi-outlet plus convenience tracked by market research firm IRI, with more than $239 million in sales year-to-date (through February 20). The brand family has a 4.15% share of the overall beer category. White Claw’s original hard seltzer variety pack is the 12th largest SKU in the beer category, with nearly $58 million in off-premise sales (YTD through February 20).
Two Robbers Launches Hard Fruit Punch as Brands ‘Chapter 3’ Variety Pack
Philadelphia-based Two Robbers Seltzer Co. has released a hard fruit punch variety pack, the company announced on Instagram last week.
Available in a variety 12-pack with three flavors – Fruit Punch, Watermelon Punch and Mango Punch – the line marks the third beverage offering from Two Robbers (or “Chapter 3” as the company has referred to it), joining its original hard seltzer line and Happy Coffee hard nitro-coffee variety pack.
The 4.5% ABV hard punch line is now available in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland and Washington, D.C.
“At its surface, Fruit Punch for many of us conjures up the kind of ‘feel-good’ nostalgia that very few beverages can,” Two Robbers wrote in an Instagram post last month. “But dig a little deeper and you’ll find that the lesser known history of this seemingly nostalgic drink is one that is filled with mystery. Some say that punch originated in India prior to the 17th century, as a blend of alcohol, water, fruits and spices. Others say that it was invented by sailors as a more agreeable alternative to beer, and one that wouldn’t spoil. Either way, by the 18th century it became a staple option at any old-time bar, alongside beer, wine and spirits. As we know, this history was diluted in the 20th century by its commercialization into the modern fruit punch we’ve become all too familiar with.
“Despite that shift, we set out to make a Fruit Punch alcoholic beverage that would pay homage to the drinks true, rich, and mysterious history,” the company continued. “A drink that would be made just as it was centuries ago, with alcohol, water and real fruits. Something just a bit punchier than our classic hard seltzers for those occasions when you want to sip slow and reminisce.”