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Food

12th Jul 2020

Grizzly: The Irish hard seltzer you’re going to be seeing everywhere in 2020

Keeley Ryan

Introducing the Irish hard seltzer you’re going to be seeing everywhere in 2020.

Over the last few months, hard seltzers have become particularly popular in Ireland – and there’s a new one hitting shelves that you’re definitely going to want to try.

Grizzly Hard Seltzer, which was founded by Rory King, launched earlier this month – and he recently spoke to Her about the inspiration behind the brand and the “absolutely crazy” reaction so far.

The inspiration first came to him after he spent five years traveling the world while working in the drinks industry – and, after seeing how big hard seltzers were in North America, he decided to bring it to Ireland.

“I was in Canada last year and in any shop I went into, people were just buying them in the dozens. They couldn’t keep them on the shelves,” he explained.

“I went to New York later in the year, and it was the exact same there. Basically, from this time last year, I was thinking that I wanted to bring this to Ireland.”

The brand is 100 per cent Irish made and owned, with Rory explaining that the vegan, gluten-free drink was designed to “meet the growing demands of health conscious drinkers.”

And so far, it has gone down an absolute treat with fans.

“It’s been absolutely crazy,” he told us of the reaction so far.

“I’ve had big supermarkets [and] off licences reach out to me; I’ve had independents reach out, [too]. Obviously, the American and English alternatives are doing fantastic at the minute in the Republic of Ireland – so [there’s been a lot of interest] in a local one.”

There are three flavours to start out with: Mixed Berries, Strawberry and Lime and Lemon and Lime. However, there are going to be a lot more hitting shelves in the  future.


“We’re starting with three, but we’re looking to go with five or six within the first few months,” Rory explained.

“With the initial three flavours, [we’re hoping to] build a brand presence and a brand people like – and then it’s just a matter of bringing out new flavours that will hopefully keep people interested and intrigued.”

As for what his favourite of the three flavours so far would be?

“My favourite would be the Strawberry and Lime. I always Strawberry and Lime would be the most popular one, but [the other day] I tried all three of them again — and the Lemon and Lime [would be a close second],” he said.

Rory took to Instagram last week to announce that the brand would be donating 5 per cent of their profits between now and Christmas would be donated to The Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust.

“As a young Irish guy who spent ten years abroad, this is a charity I feel very passionate about. The ongoing work they do is immense and they rely solely on donations from the public,” he said.

 

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And if you want to try a sample of Grizzly, you’ll have a chance next month.

Every weekend throughout August, you will be able to find Grizzly Hard Seltzer on a different mountain in Ireland – and you’ll have a chance to get a can of your own.

Grizzly Hard Seltzer will be nationwide by the end of July. To keep up-to-date with the latest stockists, you can follow Grizzly Hard Seltzer on Instagram. You can also reach them at [email protected].

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