The Ready-to-Drink (RTD) alcoholic beverage market is experiencing a boom. With over 300 brands and a projected market value of $21.1 billion by 2027 (CAGR 15%), this category has exploded with innovation.
Curion’s new study crowns a new entrant and up-and-comer as a top performing RTD vodka-based seltzer. Looking past many of the typical “reviews” from category fans or blog enthusiasts, we dug deep to find the data-backed RTD Vodka based seltzer wars with Curion Score.
The Rise and Drive of RTD Alcohol Seltzers
Today, 50% of all alcohol innovation dollars are spent on RTDs, and this innovation spend is money well spent. Pre-mixed hard seltzers have risen to become the fastest-growing categories in the overall spirits industry, and pre-mixed cocktails (vodka seltzers included) are set to carry the most growth in RTD’s on a global scale with an expected 26% volume of the total category by 2026.
“Ninety-four percent of consumers choose RTDs because they offer their preferred flavor choice, while 92 percent of consumers choose RTDs for convenience.” (Forbes)
With other 300 brands in this category, White Claw and Truly, when combined, take up the most space as top-selling hard seltzers by brand share (Statista, March 2024). However, the biggest impact comes from the “Others” category, taking up a whopping 40% of brand share.
Although well-established as a traditional vodka brand, the Absolut brand entered the canned cocktails market with “vodka sodas” and cocktails. Also, High Noon has quickly become a major player in the RTD vodka seltzer market with sales increasing by 261% in 2020 alone and earning a 2023 rating as a top contender in taste tests (Beverage Dynamics).
Product Leaders don’t always align with Product Performance
It’s no secret that major players like White Claw and Truly dominate the total seltzer market. The premiumization of RTD alcohol products is a growing trend that is getting a wider reputation in this category among sophisticated consumers. Today, spirits-based RTDs, those made with vodka in particular, are estimated to sit at a 45% category volume share, driven by higher quality ingredients and more sophisticated flavor profiles.
Champions in this spirits-based sector like High Noon and NÜTRL have proven themselves to be superior products to many in the category, according to VinePair. However, what is considered “Superior” by sales volume does not always align with what are “best performing” in areas like taste and quality to consumers. This can be blamed on wider market appeal, brand recognition, impactful marketing campaigns, various price points, or even the dominance of established brands taking up more shelf space.
When product performance gets hidden in all the noise of dominating product leaders, action is needed to weed out the winners and give them the recognition they deserve. Curion’s 30 years of expertise in alcohol testing and category insights are helping to identify other emerging 5-star performers in the RTD Vodka Seltzers segment.
Curion Score, leverages a proprietary database of 1.5 billion data points, and was able to produce a comprehensive assessment of each product’s performance within the context of the entire category.
“Due to the near constant innovation in Hard Seltzers, we’ve seen performance in this category improve over time. What was a good product a few years ago might be underperforming now due to this category evolution. The Curion Score™ goes beyond simple ‘liking’ by stripping away branding and focusing purely on the sensory experience, and measuring this up against the category itself” Michael Nestrud, PhD, VP of Research & Innovation at Curion.
With product performance at the heart of the study, the sensory experience remains the key to a winning product for these brands: Absolut, High Noon, Nutrl, Cutwater, Sunny D, Smirnoff, and -196.
Which RTD Vodka Seltzer Reigns Supreme?
Curion’s study proves that while emerging brands may lack the marketing power or familiarity of industry giants, their product performance is shaking up the RTD vodka seltzer category.
In fact, the Curion Score analysis dove into the consumer attitude & usage insights and found that while ready-to-drink alcohol consumers are most familiar with and most likely to purchase Smirnoff, White Claw, and Truly brands, they were also least familiar and likely to purchase -196, which scored higher than the more familiar brands.
“Our RTD Vodka Seltzer study, powered by the Curion Score™, revealed clear 5-star winners and key attributes driving consumer preference. The Curion Score™ insights are vital for brands, helping refine products, sharpen marketing strategies, and ultimately drive repeat purchases for brand success.” Keren Novack, President of Curion
Taste, flavor variety, and alcohol content were seen as the most important factors when purchasing in this category. Also, the biggest influences for purchasing different flavors of RTD alcohol beverages are curiosity about flavors they haven’t tried before, and that they like the flavor in other beverages.
Not only did the study unveil two 5-star products, but it also revealed that several products were not able to stack up well against the category, despite having strong overall liking (OAL) scores.
Key Insights:
Familiarity falls short: Loyalty alone doesn’t ensure 5-star product performance. Newer competitors outshone established names, highlighting the growing importance of innovation and relevance in consumer decisions.
Curion Score differentiates the best: Curion Score assesses RTD Vodka Seltzers with a whole category view. Two products tied in overall liking, but Curion Score uncovered a 40% difference in overall category rank with category performance indicators.
New entrants to disrupt the market: -196, an RTD vodka cocktail hailing from Japan, earned a 5-star Curion Score, outperforming classics and signaling a strong threat to established brands.
RTD rises among all alcohol: Top performing RTD vodka seltzers were not only 5-star products in the RTD category but among alcoholic beverages overall, indicating that consumers love these seltzers even compared to other beer, wine, & spirits.
The RTD Vodka Seltzer’s “Must Watch” Brand
Accoriing to Keren Novack, President of Curion, highlighted -196, pronounced “Minus One Nine Six,” by Suntory as a “must-watch” brand, using their proprietary Freeze Crush Infusion (FCI) technology to lock in bold flavor by freezing whole fruit at -196°C. Since its 2005 launch as “Strong Zero” in Japan, it’s become the second best-selling RTD, just behind White Claw.
Curion’s analysis revealed that Suntory’s -196 brand product is an optimized product with no sensory detractors. So it is no wonder that combined with overall appeal, the lemon-flavored product emerged as a standout performer with 5 stars. Interestingly, another lemon-flavored competitor product failed to match this success with 2.5 stars, validating that -196 Lemon is the superior performing product. This contrast highlights that flavor alone isn’t enough to guarantee success.
These results, among others, crowned Suntory’s -196 Lemon Vodka Seltzer product as a stellar Curion Score 5-star contender at the top of its category, and within our study tying one other product for the top spot.
What’s Next for RTD Vodka Seltzers?
With hard seltzers hitting its high peak around 2021, different classifications have been emerging and taking center stage.
Spirit-based canned cocktail drinks are evolving beyond vodka to continue moving toward premiumization. In fact, the survey revealed through Attitude & Usage in this category that, after Vodka, consumers express the greatest preference and purchase intent for tequila and rum liquor bases in RTD alcoholic beverages. The use of various spirits for a base, on top of developing new flavor profiles, will continue to grow and segment the market.
In this booming but saturated market, brands are debuting their own pre-mixed products and making it even more difficult to stand out to consumers. Product innovation like unique flavors, premium ingredients, and functional benefits can help brands in their product developments in this category.
Health-minded consumers are gravitating towards better-for-you canned cocktail options with a “health halo” around lower calories, carbs, and sugars. The category is responding with natural flavors, alternative sugars, health and wellness implications on packaging, and botanical-forward options.
“Alcohol brands cannot make health claims, but spirit RTDs, such as Flying Embers’ probiotic-spiked hard kombuchas and Owl’s Brew’s tea-based seltzers, benefit from the “health halo” created by ingredients like vitamins, antioxidants, and probiotics”(BevSource).
However, the key to standing out and truly taking the crown lies in sensory focus. Concentrating on improving the overall sensory experience of the product can lead to higher consumer ratings. And as the Curion Score™ has proven, it’s important to look at the rising stars and fast track brands for a better view of the market, as product performance is key to repeat purchases.
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