It’s been a huge couple of years for the seltzer industry, and W Seltzer has been sharing in the success as one of the top seltzer brands in Australia. Launched by the folks at Wayward Brewing Co. in 2020, W Seltzer is on a mission this summer to educate people about the differences between the production processes of seltzer – after all, no two seltzers are created equal.
“We took just over a year to perfect the recipe of our hard seltzer, and each batch takes around two to three weeks to produce,” says Wayward Head Brewer, Shaun Blissett. In contrast, a batch of mixed seltzer using spirits and soda can be created in just an afternoon.
“With a brewed approach to seltzer, there are so many elements of the process you can refine; how much rice you add, what type of yeast you use, how long it ferments. It all builds to crafting the best possible product you can. With blended seltzers, the ingredients are usually ethanol, water, fruit flavour and a sugar or sweetener – there’s not much you can do to improve or evolve the recipe.”
There are huge differences between how each seltzer brand tastes.
“Don’t try one seltzer and write the entire category off completely”, says Shaun. “A brewed seltzer generally has a much fuller mouthfeel. We also find that we don’t have to sweeten our seltzer, the real fruit extracts we use give it a perfectly fruity finish, without that overly sweet lolly taste.”
Widely regarded as one of the favourite seltzer brands in the country, W Seltzer continue to grow their presence in bottle shops around Australia, and this year the brand are turning their attention to increasing their presence in on-premise venues too.
“A huge advantage to being a brewed hard seltzer is that we’re able to offer kegs to on-premise venues. It’s being taken up a lot by venues looking for a better health alternative to more sugary drinks, like cider or RTDs – it has the bonus of being lower in price too. We’ve seen a lot of success on tap with our existing trade customers, particularly with our Tropical Mango Hard Seltzer. Once the mango goes on tap, it doesn’t come off!”
Wayward are backing up their on-tap offerings with big plans for both on and off-premise point of sale in the summer too, with umbrellas, branded fridges and lightboxes all available to help boost W Seltzer sales for their trade customers.
“As the category grows, we want to partner with venues and increase the sale of seltzer for each of our customers in a sustainable way. It’s no secret that the hospitality industry has suffered greatly these past couple of years, and we want to support our customers where we can. Our new POS is proving to get a lot of positive pull through for venues, with sales of our seltzer increasing significantly. It’s a great result for us both.”
W Seltzer is naturally brewed in five fruity flavours: Tropical Mango, Juicy Peach, Classic Lime, Summer Berries, and Watermelon. Available in tinnies, including mixed 12 packs, and kegs.