Every Flavor Of High Noon Hard Seltzer, Blind Tasted And Ranked

High Noon has stormed our hearts and wallets and become one of the most ubiquitous RTD (Ready To Drink)/hard seltzers on the market. The refreshing canned highball is in every bar and on every liquor store shelf. Its boom has gotten so big that of the top 10 best-selling RTDs on Drizly.com right now, seven are High Noon products. High Noon has been the top-selling RTD with that retailer for three years running now and is showing no signs of stopping.

And while summer is certainly the big time of year for RTDs like High Noon, seasonality isn’t as important as it used to be. Still, summer is officially coming to an end this coming Labor Day weekend. That means that there are going to be a lot of High Noon cans floating around in coolers lakeside, poolside, beachside, and grill side this coming weekend. There’s never been a better time to rank every single flavor from the brand so that you know which one to pull out of that icy cooler water.

Below, I’m ranking all 17 flavors that High Noon currently offers. That’s 13 “vodka & soda” options plus four “tequila seltzer” cans.

That makes our lineup today the following cans of High Noon:

• High Noon Vodka & Soda Pear
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Cranberry
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Lemon
• High Noon Tequila Seltzer Strawberry
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Kiwi
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Guava
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Passionfruit
• High Noon Tequila Seltzer Lime
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Mango
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Peach
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Lime
• High Noon Tequila Seltzer Grapefruit
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Pineapple
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Watermelon
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Grapefruit
• High Noon Tequila Seltzer Passionfruit
• High Noon Vodka & Soda Black Cherry

My wife was kind enough to shuffle and pour these for me to judge. I then tasted these blind. The rub here is a lot more than what simply tastes good. I actually judge RTDs and hard seltzers at international spirits competitions. You’d be shocked at how many times the flavors are off in these (think cucumber instead of watermelon or raw squash instead of pumpkin spice). So what I’m looking for here is pure flavor and balance of the profile. Can I immediately identify the flavor? Is that flavor fresh, fake-feeling, overly sweet? Does the finish land the flavor profile as well as the nose? Is it more than just a sugar bomb? What if any nuance is actually there? Yes, you can get this nitty-gritty about RTDs and hard seltzers if you want to.

Moreover, deep-diving these canned highballs aside, this is about finding the best overall flavor that truly delivers what’s promised on the can with a real fruit feel to it. And if I can pinpoint that flavor note without knowing what’s on the can, all the better.

So after I blindly tasted all 17 pours, I ranked these based on a metric of what has the most balance and what delivers the best/most real/freshest fruit flavor overall. Let’s dive in!

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Part 1 — The Blind Tasting of High Noon Hard Seltzer

Taste 1

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Tart perry (pear cider) with a hint of pear peels dominate the nose with a hint of minerality.

Palate: The palate feels like the flesh of a sour pear mixed with slices of ripe sweet pear to the point where you almost feel the sandy flesh of a real pear on the tongue.

Finish: The end is all about that fresh and sweet pear that then tips back toward the sour pear with a hint of woodiness at the very end.

Initial Thoughts:

This is very clearly “pear” and a very fresh real pear at that. This is really distinct and delivers nuanced and real-feeling flavor notes.

Taste 2

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Red berries with a sweet edge dominate the nose.

Palate: Those berries turn slightly tart on the palate with no real distinction.

Finish: The finish peters out with a hint of that red berry sweetness lingering.

Initial Thoughts:

This was very “insert red berry name here.” It could be anything and therefore tastes of nothing (besides generic red berries).

Taste 3

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Fake lemon tea opens on the nose.

Palate: A very light lemon fizzy water barely makes an appearance on the palate.

Finish: A touch of sweet lemon peaks in on the finish but is dominated by mineral water.

Initial Thoughts:

This is barely anything more than fizzy water that a lemon casts a shadow over.

Taste 4

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Strawberry bubble gum overpowers the nose.

Palate: The strawberry bubble gum builds on the palate with a sweet candied vibe.

Finish: The finish then takes on a fresh and very real strawberry feel with an almost meaty vibe that’s a hint grassy.

Initial Thoughts:

This is a wild ride. It actually delivers a real fresh strawberry note by the end that’s refreshingly balanced. The opening/nose is very sweet though.

Taste 5

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Kiwi leather and skins draw you in on the nose.

Palate: There’s a hint of floral dogwood on the palate that leads back to the fresh kiwi

Finish: The end has that savory note that leans woody floral and back into the skin of a kiwi.

Initial Thoughts:

This is weird and I respect it. It’s clearly “kiwi” with an extra layer, which works.

Taste 6

Tasting Notes:

Nose: The nose is supercharged guava from top to bottom.

Palate: The guava is sweet overall but eventually a hint of tartness sneaks in.

Finish: The guava really amps up through the finish with an almost fleshy vibe.

Initial Thoughts:

This is incredibly clear. It’s Guava amped up to 11.

Taste 7

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Musty tropical fruit husks drive the nose toward minerally fizzy water.

Palate: That “tropical fruit” hints at passionfruit on the palate.

Finish: Ultimately, this ends up pretty light and watery on the end.

Initial Thoughts:

The passionfruit just doesn’t come through all that much.

Taste 8

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Big notes of roasted agave and fresh lime draw you in on the nose.

Palate: The lime stays fresh on the palate as fleeting notes of white pepper and agave flutter throughout the taste.

Finish: The end has a Ranch Water vibe that gets a little watery.

Initial Thoughts:

This is good but kind of falters on the watery finish.

Taste 9

Tasting Notes:

Nose: This is a fresh and juicy mango bomb on the nose.

Palate: More fresh mango flesh and skins appear on the palate with a light mango-driven sweetness and a hint of meaty stringy fruitiness.

Finish: The end holds onto the fresh mango without getting too sweet or watery.

Initial Thoughts:

This is an A+ pour. The mango is so fresh and real-tasting while offering a nicely balanced overall sip.

Taste 10

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Fresh peach iced tea dominates the nose with fresh fruit and dark tea sweetness.

Palate: Fresh and ripe peaches drive the palate with a touch of skins and pits next to the real peachy sweetness.

Finish: The is nice and peachy and just the right balance of sweet and minerally.

Initial Thoughts:

This is another clear and concise pour. It’s very nicely peach-forward without resorting to fake flavors or too much sweetness.

Taste 11

Tasting Notes:

Nose: There’s a hint of citrus but mostly just fizzy water on the nose.

Palate: Again, there’s maybe something vaguely citrus at play on the palate.

Finish: The end is just fizzy water.

Initial Thoughts:

This is pretty weak. I’m guessing it’s “lime” but it’s so indistinct that that’s being very generous.

Taste 12

Tasting Notes:

Nose: There’s a touch of grapefruit but it’s very in the background and I had to really look for it.

Palate: Very light grapefruit notes emerge on the palate.

Finish: The end is like a fizzy water that’s had a grapefruit peel dropped in it.

Initial Thoughts:

This was clearly “grapefruit” but only just. It almost felt afraid to be bold.

Taste 13

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Fresh pineapple flesh and earthy skins pop on the nose.

Palate: There’s more fresh pineapple flesh with a very real vibe that’s damn near earthy it’s so real.

Finish: There’s this fleeting hint of coconut on the finish that helps this one really pop.

Initial Thoughts:

This is very good and, dare I say, dynamic.

Taste 14

Tasting Notes:

Nose: This is all about the watermelon bubblegum on the nose with a massive sweetness.

Palate: That bubblegum dominates the palate as well.

Finish: The end is pure, sweet, and sticky watermelon candy/gum.

Initial Thoughts:

This is so sickly sweet and gummy. Yes, it’s candied watermelon but… that’s about it.

Taste 15

Tasting Notes:

Nose: There’s a sense of roasted agave cut with fresh grapefruit oils on the nose.

Palate: The palate takes on a Paloma-Lite vibe with plenty of tequila and grapefruit without the overly saccharine vibe of a grapefruit soda.

Finish: The end holds onto that Paloma-Lite feel with a nice balance of agave spice and grapefruit freshness.

Initial Thoughts:

This is pretty nice. Admittedly, it just made me crave a real Paloma, but the flavor notes were on point.

Taste 16

Tasting Notes:

Nose: There’s a musty sense of passionfruit on the nose.

Palate: That passionfruit does come through on the palate with a lot of mineral water.

Finish: The end is more fizzy water than passionfruit, which is there but only just.

Initial Thoughts:

Passionfruit is tricky. It’s a lot as a flavor note. Still, this was pretty thin.

Taste 17

Tasting Notes:

Nose: This is super-duper clearly black cherry on the nose with a hint of vanilla.

Palate: That black cherry drives the palate with this almost creamy sense of vanilla almond cookies adding a new dimension.

Finish: That almond/vanilla/cherry vibe drives the end to a sweet but balanced finish.

Initial Thoughts:

This is another winner. It’s clearly cherry while offering a little something extra.

Part 2 — The Ranking of the High Noon Hard Selzters

17. High Noon Vodka & Soda Lime — Taste 11

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is lime.

Bottom Line:

This tasted of fizzy water and that’s about it. There was maybe a hint of citrus but it wasn’t succinctly “lime” or anything for that matter. This feels like a hard pass unless you’re looking for a “plain” High Noon.

16. High Noon Vodka & Soda Watermelon — Taste 14

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is watermelon.

Bottom Line:

Look, watermelon flavor in RTDs can go two ways. Either it’s very much a bubblegum/candy watermelon or it’s a fresh watermelon taste. The former is very … juvenile. The latter can easily go sideways and produce an overripe cucumber or even fresh pumpkin vibe (both cousins of the fruit) which is not ideal. I don’t knock High Noon for choosing the candied watermelon vibe as it’s consistent. It’s just so sweet that it may as well be candy seltzer.

15. High Noon Vodka & Soda Cranberry — Taste 2

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is cranberry.

Bottom Line:

This was just too indistinct. It was “berry” not “cranberry.” Cranberry is a super specific flavor and this just missed the mark to the point that it felt afraid of going all in on cranberry’s earthy tartness.

14. High Noon Vodka & Soda Lemon — Taste 3

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is lemon.

Bottom Line:

This went from fake lemon tea to very light lemon seltzer water. It wasn’t bland but it was edging toward that very quickly. That said, if you are looking for the mildest of options of High Noon, this is it.

13. High Noon Vodka & Soda Passionfruit — Taste 7

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is passionfruit.

Bottom Line:

This was okay but pretty weak on the passionfruit flavor. There wasn’t a whole lot there but it was at least distinct.

12. High Noon Tequila Seltzer Passionfruit — Taste 16

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $17.99 (eight 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

This side-quest seltzer from High Noon is all about that tequila base. There’s not a lot known about the tequila other than it’s mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and seltzer water. In this case, that flavor note is passionfruit.

Bottom Line:

This was simply more dynamic thanks to the addition of agave flavor notes. The passionfruit was still pretty backpedaled but nice enough.

11. High Noon Vodka & Soda Grapefruit — Taste 15

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is grapefruit.

Bottom Line:

This is very much in the “fine” section of the panel. The grapefruit was there but only just. Overall, this was a nice middle-of-the-road pour with a touch of grapefruit.

10. High Noon Tequila Seltzer Lime — Taste 8

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $17.99 (eight 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

This side-quest seltzer from High Noon is all about that tequila base. There’s not a lot known about the tequila other than it’s mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and seltzer water. In this case, that flavor note is lime.

Bottom Line:

This had a legitimately nice balance of agave and lime. It was like pre-made Ranch Water but kind of just petered out at the end, which is fine since Ranch Water is a very weak/watery drink already.

9. High Noon Vodka & Soda Kiwi — Taste 5

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is kiwi.

Bottom Line:

This is the funkiest of all the High Noons. There’s a floral nature that works (barely) but might be off-putting for some.

8. High Noon Vodka & Soda Guava — Taste 6

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is guava.

Bottom Line:

This is where we get into the very distinctly flavored High Noons. This is very guava from top to bottom but that’s about it — it’s not dynamic. If you’re into that fruit, you’ll dig this.

7. High Noon Tequila Seltzer Strawberry — Taste 4

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $17.99 (eight 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is strawberry.

Bottom Line:

This started off very low on the list for delving into strawberry candy with a lot of sweetness. But it completely redeemed itself on the finish with that real earthy meaty strawberry vibe.

6. High Noon Tequila Seltzer Grapefruit — Taste 12

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $17.99 (eight 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

This side-quest seltzer from High Noon is all about that tequila base. There’s not a lot known about the tequila other than it’s mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and seltzer water. In this case, that flavor note is grapefruit.

Bottom Line:

This was pretty good and balanced. It basically just made me want a real paloma. That said, if you’re avoiding the high sugar of that highball, this is a really good filler that delivers those notes.

5. High Noon Vodka & Soda Peach — Taste 10

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is peach.

Bottom Line:

This was very clearly peach and real peach at that. Overall, it was sweet peach because peaches are sweet but that black iced tea vibe helped this go a little deeper than just sweet peaches.

4. High Noon Vodka & Soda Pineapple — Taste 13

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is pineapple.

Bottom Line:

This had real dynamics to it with earthy pineapple peels, real-feeling pineapple flesh, and a whisper of coconut. This one is super fresh.

3. High Noon Vodka & Soda Mango — Taste 9

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is mango.

Bottom Line:

This was so clearly real mango that it was almost baffling. It also gave you a sense of all parts of the mango while delivering a sweetness that made sense to the fresh fruit. This is another winner.

2. High Noon Vodka & Soda Black Cherry — Taste 17

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is black cherry.

Bottom Line:

This was probably the most interesting and tasty of the pours. That vanilla/almond cookie essence really worked with the black-as-night cherry. The only reason that it’s not number one is that it went in a direction that seems unnecessary to black cherry. That’s me really nitpicking though. This is legitimately tasty.

1. High Noon Vodka & Soda Pear — Taste 1

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 (four 12 oz. cans)

The Seltzer:

High Noon’s Vodka & Soda drinks are made with corn vodka that’s been distilled five times to really smooth the edges out. That vodka is then mixed with “real juice,” “natural flavors,” and sparkling water. In this case, that juice/flavor is pear.

Bottom Line:

This is the most deeply structured and clearly hewn of all the pours. The pear was tart and fresh while offering every part of the fruit from the tree to the flesh to the pit. There was a damn near perfect balance of sour and sweet with the fizzy water that worked better than any other pour.

Part 3 — Final Thoughts on the High Noon Hard Seltzer

There were five pours that truly stood out on this blind tasting: Peach, Mango, Pineapple, Black Cherry, and Pear. Each one hit it out of the park with succinct and real fruit flavor notes plus that little bit something extra.

And look, I get it, if you don’t like a certain fruit flavor, it doesn’t matter how balanced a High Noon is. If you don’t like, say, kiwi or peach, then the Kiwi or Peach High Noon is really not going to be for you. That said, some of these are really better than others. I’d straight up skip the bottom seven altogether.

If you’re looking for a true balance of flavors and a clear sense of real fruit, the Pear High Noon is unmatched. So is the Black Cherry, really. They’re both the cans you want to be reaching for as summer slowly fades into fall.