“I don’t like hard seltzer! I don’t understand what the Americans see in it!” I hear you say. Well, as your token anglicised American friend, I am here to tell you that I haven’t tried hard seltzer either as I strongly dislike normal seltzer, so I honestly couldn’t give you an explanation…..until now! With one of America’s hottest summer crazes of at least the last year or two - White Claw - now readily available in UK supermarkets as well as numerous UK craft breweries trying to match the same, low-carb/sugar style of alcoholic seltzer, I set out to have the ultimate “basic bitch” face off on my first non-beer “Pint Vs Pint”. I am sacrificing myself and doing the drinking here so you don’t have to!
From the start, I did call out that I didn't believe hard seltzer would take off here in the UK so I wasn't shocked to see that the White Claw at my local Tesco superstore was marked down on a "reduced to clear" discount (this was a few months ago by the time I am writing this). Not wanting to let the opportunity pass me by (and because I didn't have to pay full price), I picked up a can of the black cherry White Claw and a white peach and mango "Clean and Press" from Brewdog Distillery in an attempt to drink them both for you and report back regarding how good they are individually as well as how the UK version stacks up against the US original. To outline, Brewdog's version weighs in at 5% ABV and 90 calories with White Claw's being 4.5% ABV and 95 calories. For that, I would give 1 point in favour of Brewdog for their creation.
Looking at the packaging of both, it appears as through Brewdog are trying to appeal more to the health conscious among us. Right from the start, they are going with a name that alludes directly to working out - Clean & Press. The packaging boasts of zero sugar and zero carbs. While BD targets the the gym crew, I would say (based on packaging) that White Claw is meant to appeal more for those wanting a casual hang session; only mentioning the fact that it's Gluten Free and with no artificial sweeteners (but that second piece of information is very small at the top of the can, by the lip).
Pouring them both out, they were both as expected in appearance - clear like sparkling water with carbonation bubbles fizzling away. For aroma, the White Claw (WC) had a thick, artificial black cherry smell. With the Brewdog (BD), the peach and mango both came through in the smell, with the mango being perhaps a touch more apparent.
Prefacing my opinion on the tastes, I will just state that I don't (overall) like seltzers on the regular, so you can take my opinion with a pinch of salt. As with the smell of the WC, the taste was also like a classic American popsicle (ice lolly for Brits). To be fair, the crispness from the carbonation wasn't as bad as usual seltzer. The dryness I got from the heavily carbonated seltzers was there but not to the usual degree where it actually becomes quite harsh to drink it. While I will admit that it wasn't as shit as I had expected it to be, it certainly wasn't one that would make me claim that I particularly *like* it nor is it something I would want to drink a whole can of (regardless of the smaller size of the seltzer cans).
The BD still had a sparling water quality to it while having less crispness and dryness in the taste than the WC or other seltzers I've tried have had. Unfortunately with that also came less actual taste. While I got the mango, it was pretty weak and the peach was nearly nonexistent. Because the carbonation was lower (as mentioned), it was easier to drink because it was a smoother sip, but I actually prefer the strength of the flavour of the WC.
With both, I weirdly get a bit of coconut coming through regardless of the fact they are wildly different flavours to not only coconut, but to each other. Unsure if perhaps it's something to do with the process in which they are made, but do let me know if you can explain it. For me, there was far more flavour - whether it be artificial or otherwise - from the White Claw (as much as it pains me to admit it). However, if I could take the best bits of both (the lower carbonation of the BD and the more intense flavour of the WC), I think you might end up with an okay concoction. While I can see the appeal for more health-conscious people or people more into spirits than beer who want to avoid getting too drink, there's really no taste of alcohol in either and it leads me to question "Why Bother?" or say "This could be deadly" (depending on how I am looking at it). Either way, while it has it's own positive, the UK attempt at hard seltzer doesn't seem to fully match the originator - the US - in terms of flavour quality.
After trying both, I genuinely cannot see what all the fuss is about. Saying that, I would try the pumpkin spiced one I saw somewhere on social media (neither White Claw nor Brewdog) should I come across it in passing because "pumpkin spice". But, seriously, having tried them both, my advice would be that they're not so horrible but they do seem slightly pointless (in my opinion only, based on my drinking habits and those around me).