Gilroy says that within the last week, his store has seen good momentum for the product after setting up a floor display for the 12-packs. “Right now is kind of a down time but it’s done really well for a new product, for sure.” I think there’s a lot of interest, just that curiosity factor,” says Bret Gilroy, liquor manager of a Fareway grocery store in North Liberty, Iowa. “As a new product, it’s doing really well. (Twelve-packs of Truly Hard Seltzer Citrus and Twisted Tea Hard Iced cost $16.99 at a Target in Largo, Florida.) Hard MTN DEW is also available in single-serve, 24oz cans as well as six-packs of 12oz cans. Other retailers who spoke to Good Beer Hunting also priced the 12-packs at $18.99, though a Walmart in Chattanooga, Tennessee appears to price them at $15.98. Ulmerton Liquors carries Hard MTN DEW in 12-packs, which retail there for $18.99. He speculates that brand affinity for regular Mountain Dew, coupled with what he describes as enticing packaging, is a large part of customers’ desire to try Hard MTN DEW. He says the customers purchasing it span demographics and that it’s “a good mix” of people making Hard MTN DEW purchases. The task ahead of Hard MTN DEW will be to maintain early momentum for the longer haul.Ĭarl couldn’t say exactly what’s behind its e popularity, and he hasn’t tried the product himself. Within nine months, however, that demand had softened, official brand partner Travis Scott found himself in legal trouble following a deadly accident during his AstroWorld performance, and Anheuser-Busch InBev had pulled the plug on the seltzer brand. Cacti became a top-5 seltzer brands in its first week and bested competitors including Truly Hard Seltzer Lemonade and Vizzy variety packs. This has echoes of Cacti Agave Spiked Seltzer, which debuted to gangbusters demand that outpaced supply in early weeks.

“Customers are very much into it, that’s for sure.” “I would say it’s probably about 5-to-1 outselling other new products like seltzers,” says Carl (who declined to give his last name), the manager of Ulmerton Liquors in Largo, Florida. According to accounts from retailers in those states, drinkers are buying the four flavors of Hard MTN DEW (Original, Baja Blast, Black Cherry and Watermelon) at rates far beyond other recent hard seltzer and FMB launches.Ĭhain retail sales data for Hard MTN DEW will be available soon, but based on anecdotal accounts from grocery and liquor stores, the numbers should look promising. Were legal drinking age adults really asking for a spiked version? ( Boston Beer says Mountain Dew soda was originally created as a mixer for spirits 80 years ago.) And how was Pepsi, which hadn’t until now distributed alcohol, planning to legally and logistically move into this highly regulated space? The latter, at least, has an answer: Pepsi created a new business division, Blue Cloud, to seek alcohol distribution licenses in Hard MTN DEW’s 17 proposed launch markets.Ĭurrently available in three states-Iowa, Florida, and Tennessee-Hard MTN DEW has come out of the gates swinging. To start, the standard version of Mountain Dew is itself a flavor mystery. “That’s unusual.”Ī nnounced in August, the flavored malt beverage (FMB) initially drew its share of “WTF” reactions. She says her Kroger sold out of its first delivery of 18 cases of Hard MTN DEW within four days. “Unfortunately it sold out before I could force myself to try it,” says Lauren Reardon, assistant store manager of a Kroger grocery store in La Verne, Tennessee. 22 debut, one thing has become clear from retailer reports: Drinkers are more than ready to get all jacked up on boozy Mountain Dew. Hard MTN DEW’s development, production, and distribution are convoluted.

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