Starbucks bets on nitrogen-infused cold brew coffee
Starbucks Corp. is doubling down on the iced coffee and cold brew market.
The Seattle-based chain said Tuesday that it will add nitro cold brew to its lineup in its stores in Los Angeles and six other cities this summer. It had previously served the brew exclusively at its higher-end Reserve Roastery and Tasting Rooms.
Nitro cold brew is Starbucks’ standard cold brew recipe infused with nitrogen. The coffee, which is poured from a tap like beer, has a frothier look and creamier taste. It also tends to have a much higher caffeine content than a standard iced coffee.
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Starbucks didn’t say exactly when this summer the nitro coffee will become available. To start, it will not be available in licensed locations, such as those in Target and grocery stores.
Starbucks also is launching a cold brew topped with vanilla sweet cream, in hopes of continuing the sales jump it saw from the introduction of cold brew last year, and a beverage that features a double shot of espresso on ice, lightly sweetened and served with a dollop of milk.
Traditional iced coffee is brewed hot at double strength and then served over ice. Starbucks makes its cold brew, which is an entirely separate beverage, by steeping grounds in a container of cool water for 20 hours. Cold brew contains less acid and is in general less bitter than traditional iced coffee.
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In its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended in September, Starbucks said sales of its iced drinks rose 20% after the cold brew introduction. Research firm Euromonitor said late last year that although there has been “unrelenting innovation” in hot drinks, including a growing wave of premium roasts and new brewing methods, there is still room for growth, especially in iced coffee.
Starbucks expects the U.S. cold coffee market to double in the next three years. U.S. iced coffee consumption has grown 75% over the last two years, Starbucks said, and cold brew consumption grew more than threefold from 2010 to 2015, according to Starbucks and research firm Mintel.
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