4 Hard Iced Tea Brands To Drink Other Than Twisted Tea
Canned hard iced tea has come a long way since Boston Beer Company (the same folks who bring you Truly Hard Seltzers) launched Twisted Tea way back in 2001. Like many RTD’s including hard seltzer, Twisted Tea is a malt beverage brewed like beer flavored with tea and natural fruit flavors. Along with hard kombucha and hard lemonade (which make up the other subset of the “hard alternatives” category, as its known in the industry, hard ice tea provides a relatively low ABV option, causing great demand for younger customers who perceive the tea segment as tasty, refreshing, and better-for-you.
According to Grandview Research, growth in the hard tea segment is exploding. “The global hard tea market size was estimated at USD 1.99 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach USD 2.47 billion in 2022. The global hard tea market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 24.7% from 2022 to 2030 to reach USD 14.50 billion by 2030.”
Though Twisted Tea is still the top seller, and Anheuser Busch and Pabst are key players, many smaller brands have launched “craft” hard teas that are zooming up the sales charts. They often call out specific varieties of tea and botanicals that add to the perception of a healthier beverage than a syrupy soda base or a fake fruit infusion.
One small brand making a big splash is Owl’s Brew. We chatted with Owl’s Brew founders Jennie Ripps & Maria Littlefield via email and got their take on the industry segment.
Owl’s Brew founders
Owl’s Brew has had 218% growth year over year, which the founders attribute to quality ingredients. But perhaps the brand also is part of a trend of RTD cocktails incorporating botanicals and adaptogens. “When tea is actually fresh-brewed…it’s loaded with good stuff (think vitamins and antioxidants) so you can actually get something back when you drink. That’s what we love most about what we’re creating!”
According to the founders, “Today’s consumer is very different than the consumer five or ten years ago. People want to give something good back to their bodies —even when they are spiking it. Whether it’s a cocktail or a hard seltzer, the consumer is demanding more and more to know what is actually in these products. While we think that we will continue to see the hard tea category build, we think better-for-you and cleaner beverages are the future of drinking.”
They add, “We should note, that while we use tea and botanicals as a base for all our beverages and are certainly part of this emerging hard tea category — we’ve really always seen what we are doing as part of a larger trend of doing better things for your body (in everything from what people consume, to what’s in their household product, to what beauty products they use). We believe this is the beginning of the ‘clean boozy’ category.”
We tasted a few of the R “Tea” D’s currently on the market–here’s our take:
Owl’s Brew
Owl’s Brew is a popular choice, particularly among women and comes in slim pastel cans touting fresh brewed organic tea, undetermined sourced alcohol (from fermented sugars), concentrated fruit juices and cane sugar. Flavors include Jasmine & Blueberry a NY International Beer Competition 2022 Gold winner, White Tea & Watermelon, Matcha & Pineapple. Their newest are Black Tea & Pineapple and Green Tea & Peach.
Refreshing, tart, and not too sweet, they are preferable to the usual odd tasting and overly burpy hard seltzers.
Fishers Island Original, Pink Flamingo + Spiked Tea photo credit Jessica Halas
Bronya Shilo launched her Fishers Island Lemonade back in 2014, in the early days of canned cocktails. Her Spiked Tea, which she began distributing in 2021, drinks like a Long Island Arnold Palmer, clocking in at 7% ABV and made up of black tea, lemon, honey, plus vodka and whiskey. The boozed-up lemonade originated as the summery signature cocktail at Shilo’s family’s Pequot Inn.
Tattersall released their Whiskey Peach Tea as one of four flavors in their new line of canned cocktails launched in June 2022 that contain their own sustainably produced house spirits as part of the mix. Based on popular cocktail recipes from their Minnesota and Wisconsin tasting rooms, this 7% ABV sweet tea is whiskey forward with a little mint and a little fizz.
Brewed from South American guayusa herbal tea and infused with a variety of fruit flavors (try this summer’s limited edition Peach Slice), this craft hard tea from the folks at Lagunitas Brewing offers up zero sugar and light carbonation for a straightforward canned refresher. Iced tea lovers will appreciate the gentle hit of caffeine and the sessionable 5% ABV.