This is going to be HARD

 

I gazed into my fridge this morning and took in the view: countless colorful slim cans. All claim similar things: "90 Calories!" "Natural Flavors!" "Voted #1 Hard Seltzer" "New Look, Same Great Taste!" and it goes on. 

But which one is the best? For which occasion? Best overall? I will find all of this out, but first: an introduction.

I have come to terms with the fact that I am fully bought in to this relatively new trend/way to consume alchohol. It started for me about 3 or 4 years ago with the brand Bon & Viv, though up until recently, I didn't remember the brand beyond "the one with mermaids on it from that beer fest." 

I was at a local beer fest during my senior year of college (classic I-just-turned-21 move). The lovely lady at the counter handed me a sample and some gold temporary tattoos of mermaids. I took a sip and was instantly intrigued--what a concept! "Super down!" I think was my immediate verbal reaction. I took the trend under my wing and away we flew. 

Next I found Truly--a beautiful brand--and was delighted to find out there was a divide in the country over two very popular brands. I love having hard opinions and fighting with fans of teams that oppose my chosen teams, so naturally when I found out that there seemed to be two brands at war, and one of them was Truly, I knew I had to find my place. 

With that came my first sip of White Claw and as the overly sweet fake raspberry flavored bubbles cascaded over my tastebuds, the hard line was set. My inner voice shouted: "I am an admant anti-Claw-er and have found my TRUE place with Truly." I then found joy in asking people "Truly or Whiteclaw?" at parties as casually as inquiring "Giants or Dodgers?" becuase the reactions of my peers on both sides of the rivalry are the same: passionate, hard opinions. Each claim their choice is tops while casting a look of disgust over the drink in their opponent's hand. 

Truly fans generally seek them out becuase they think Whiteclaws are too sweet. Whiteclaw fans say that Truly does not taste like anything or is not sweet enough. I think this indicates a palate difference, which I will explore further in future posts. 

About a year ago, I began to see more and more brands pop up and wondered, which one do I try next? Will more rivalries ensue? Or will the introducion of new brands on the market be just the thing this country was waiting for? We no longer have to be bipartisan hard seltzer drinkers--we can support and endorse many brands? The wars and civil unrest that this birth of new brands will prevent brings me hope in this dark dark time. 

This blog will serve to plot my journey through brands tried and true and the new ones hitting the market daily! I will take on a different brand of hard seltzer every post and give my very honest review of whether it is worth drinking socially. In the event of a "good" seltzer, I will recommend a food pairing. 

But let me make one thing clear: if you LOVE Whiteclaws and do not respect the opinions of a woman who started this loving and optimistic journey with Truly, you may not like what I have to say. 

After weeks of exploring, Truly is not necessarily my "go-to" anymore...and I do plan to revisit the Whiteclaw aversion for a retaste...but more on both of those statements later. 

Cheers! 
Molly