Hard seltzer of the Week: Simply's Limeades prove they know this field better than anyone

Welcome back to FTW’s Beverage of the Week series. Here, we mostly chronicle and review beers, but happily expand that scope to any beverage that pairs well with sports. Yes, even cookie dough whiskey.

Simply saw an opportunity and took it. When the hard seltzer landscape exploded and brands like White Claw turned to lemonade for an obvious extension, The juice giant protected its turf. Simply Spiked Lemonade was one of 2022’s best new alcoholic drinks. Sweet and bubbly, they delivered more flavor — and about 70 percent more calories — than the rest of the boozy, fizzy drinks in the field.

Lemonade was merely the first step. Summer 2024 is the backdrop to Simply’s Limeade line, 12-packs of seltzer that swap out one sour citrus for another and introduce a few new supporting flavors to the mix. Some of which are finally getting the shine they deserve (blackberry!) and others which are tragically overplayed (… passion fruit). Let’s see how they stack up compared to the original.