Hard-seltzer brewing spikes in region

Hard seltzer was supposed to be a female-targeted drink. Gluten free, lower-alcohol, lower calorie count.

At least that’s the idea Nick Shields, manager of a small beer brand in Connecticut, got in 2012 while watching five women order five vodka-sodas at a dive bar. “What if,” he thought, “I could brew something as light, simple, and clear but with a moderate alcohol level? Something bubbly, refreshing, low-sugar, and with natural flavors? Something that tasted like sparkling water? It was so simple, yet it did not exist.”

Late that year, in his Westport, Connecticut, garage, Shields created…