Young people and their seltzers. Since the sparkling beverage revolution of 2019, the two have been inseparable.
White Claw was undoubtedly the first drink of its kind to reach household name status. Its meteoric rise in popularity was largely due to the brand finding a perfect niche in its marketing and huge amounts of social media support.
Several factors came together to build White Claw’s image as the perfect fit for a younger demographic. The drink has a lower calorie count than the average beer, which struck a chord with more health-conscious millennials. A 12-ounce can of claw contains 100 calories, while the average 12-ounce beer has anywhere from 140 to 153.
Talk on social media about the new genre of drink also skyrocketed after the phrase “Ain’t no laws when you’re drinking claws” was popularized by comedian Trevor Wallace in a comedic sketch posted to his YouTube channel in summer 2019.
By the year’s end, the total market revenue for hard seltzers had more than doubled, going from $2.36 billion in 2018 to $5.03 billion in 2019, according to Statista Market Insights. White Claw summer had left its mark.
From that moment, the White Claw brand was synonymous with the younger generation of drinkers, and no college function would be complete without it. After White Claw legitimized hard seltzers, brands like Truly and High Noon would reap the benefits, and many beer companies, like Bud Light and Corona, would capitalize on the popularity with seltzers of their own.
Hard seltzers found a road into the hearts of many younger drinkers because of their flavors. Callie Matyas, a rising digital advertising junior and avid fan of fruity drinks, said it was never a question between seltzers or beers for her.
“I just like the taste more; I’m a tropical girl,” Matyas said. “Plus, it might just be me, but beer makes me bloat.”
She added that many of her sorority sisters share the sentiment. According to her, most Greek life events only sell beers and seltzers. Between the two, Matyas and her friends will always choose the ladder.
“It’s something tasty to sip on while you’re just talking. It goes down easy,” Matyas said.
Matyas also recalled seeing the rise of White Claws during her high school years. She said her first ever seltzer was a claw, but nowadays she mostly sticks with High Noons.
While White Claw forged the path for hard seltzers, some of its protégés have taken its spot at the top of the food chain.
Jason Nay, a part-owner of Fred’s in Tigerland for 10 years, said White Claws have had a very hard fall off at the bar.
“This entire year’s worth of sales for White Claw is what we did in January, February and the first half of March in 2020,” Nay said.
The fall of White Claw’s popularity at Fred’s coincided with the rise of another seltzer. Nay said High Noons are the current king, with the watermelon and pineapple flavors leading the pack.
“The second most popular, out of anything ordered, is a High Noon,” Nay said.
In first place are vodka drinks, Nay said, and he doesn’t see that ever changing. Fred’s uses its own in-house brand of vodka, and Nay said the term “vodka drinks” covers everything from lemon drop shots to screwdrivers to vodka-Sprites.
Because of the ubiquity of Fred’s vodka, Nay said climbing to the number two spot is still no small feat.
According to him, High Noons started out as a niche order for young college kids in November 2020, but by October 2021, they had already jumped to the number two spot and could regularly be seen in the hands of people as old as 50.
“It’s big now. You still have your hardcore beer drinkers that are skeptical, but you even see some of them start to come around,” Nay said.
Despite the runaway success of hard seltzers, Nay said beer isn’t going anywhere in terms of popularity. He said Michelob Ultra is currently the bar’s third most popular drink and that as long as sports are on TV, beer will have its place at a bar.
“I think a lot of people just like to drink beer during a game and sip on it, you know?” Nay said.
Nay said he enjoys both drinks but finds himself leaning towards seltzers.
“It just goes down smooth, and I don’t have to worry about burping,” he said. “I like a good beer, but if I drink one too fast, I’ll just be burping.”
According to him, the perfect ice chest for a beach day, game day or any other day full of socializing is a 50-50 split of High Noons and whichever beer he’s been enjoying the most.
The generally younger demographic of Fred’s makes for a peephole into the current state of the seltzer swing.
On the other hand, bars such as the one in the Lod Cook Alumni Center don’t even carry seltzers.
“I think it’s a young people thing,” said William Quinlan, a bartender for the alumni center.
Quinlan said the bar’s demographic ranges from middle-aged people all the way to seniors. He said beer is by far the bar’s most popular option and that seltzers weren’t even on the radar.
“I feel like if older people aren’t already drinking something better than beer, the carbonation and hyper-focus on youth advertising of seltzers isn’t going to make them switch,” Quinlan said.
He feels seltzers often try to force an element of coolness to their advertising that can often fall flat.
“I don’t even really think it works on young people, but that just means it’d work even less on older people,” Quinlan said. “It’s just sort of tacky.”
Quinlan himself is a self-described beer man, mostly because he simply prefers the taste. He also thinks the fruity flavors that seltzers are known for combined with the carbonation makes them harsher on the stomach.
Quinlan doesn’t see himself ever becoming a “seltzer head,” but he thinks the drinks have carved out a permanent place in the market.
“Some people just don’t like the taste of beer, so they’re never really going away,” Quinlan said. “But I don’t think it ever was or will be a competition between the two, more just companies figuring out another thing they can sell.”
