US-based Rocky Mountain Soda is entering the ready-to-drink (RTD) canned cocktail space to add to its “better-for-you” beverage portfolio. The move adds to the company’s hard seltzer range, Lifted Libations, which is made with all-natural ingredients and spiked with organic vodka. The new RTD drinks include Mile High Mule, made with organic vodka, ginger, lime, as well as Tee Time, made with organic vodka, tea and lemonade.

“These products speak to the conscious consumer – they’re convenient, non-GMO, vegan and gluten-free. With constant change happening in the world, it’s nice to have a cocktail ready to go. Mile High Mule and Tee Time fit into active lifestyles and are sessionable [can be consumed over a long period of time] with a lower alcohol by volume (ABV),” says Moose Koons, Co-Founder of Rocky Mountain Soda. 

“These new products are the natural next step and evolution for us,” he adds. 

Premium spirit positioning
Lifted Libations uses organic vodka in lieu of malt liquor in its full line of spiked seltzers. Rocky Mountain Soda notes that the result is “a pure clean taste and buzz available in currant, orange, lime and grapefruit.”

Organic spirits and seltzer water are trending in alcoholic beverages as consumers seek more natural and healthy alternatives. In June, US-based Square One organic spirits launched RTD cocktails made with organic vodka, botanical extracts and real juice. Square One positions its beverages to “Millenials and Gen Z consumers who are increasingly conscious about what they are drinking,” Allison Evanow, Founder and CEO, Square One Organic Spirits said at the time.  

“They are attracted to the certified organic ingredients and lack of artificial flavorings,” Evanow added. 

Botanicals continue to blossom in alcohol NPD. Innova Market Insights has tracked a 21 percent CAGR in alcoholic beverages launches with botanical flavors (Global, 2015-2019). The market researcher’s data also show that 18 percent of launches with botanical flavors were tracked with a No Additives/Preservatives health claim, crowning it as the most widely used claim paired with botanicals (Global, 2019). Gluten-free (17 percent) and Organic (14 percent) claims took a close second and third place in the flower and herb space.

Taking the world by storm
Hard seltzers were pegged as a key trend in March by Innova Market Insights, as consumers continually seek out low-sugar, better-for-you beverages. According to the market researcher’s Consumer Lifestyle and Attitudes Survey 2018, nearly seven out of ten consumers across the countries surveyed (US, UK, France, Germany, China and Brazil) have reduced their sugar intake, making hard seltzers an attractive option for consumers with active lifestyles.

Following suit on the trend, Anheuser-Busch InBev released a Bud Light Seltzer for a healthier positioning and this past March, Leinenkugel’s debuted a beer-seltzer hybrid called the Spritzen in three fruit-inspired flavors.

The drink follows on the success of hard seltzers in the US, which offer a refreshing beverage with less sugar compared to traditional options, such as beer. However, even beer has found its way into seltzers with the release of Leinenkugel’s “Spritzen” beer with a splash of seltzer launched earlier this year.

The hard seltzer trend is slowly making its way into the UK marketplace, with brands like Kopparberg spotting an opportunity for success. Balans, Kopparberg’s preliminary product in the space, is described as the “UK’s first aqua spritz; a revolutionary alcohol-infused sparkling  water with a hint of fruit taste.” Other brands starting to appear include Bodega Bay, Crooked and Drty Drinks.

More recently, Coca-Cola jumped onto the hard seltzer bandwagon with plans to launch Topo Chico Hard Seltzer into Latin America in 2021. The new product would be an experimental beverage inspired by Topo Chico sparkling mineral water, which has been popular with many mixologists.