Although the Japanese have been sipping cold-brew coffee since at least the 1600s, it’s gained traction in the United States only in the past 10 years. New cold-brew programs at biggies such as Starbucks have c-store operators buzzing with curiosity about this beverage. S&D Coffee & Tea’s Scott Geringer tells us more:
- Cold brew starts by steeping roasted coffee grounds in room-temperature water for usually 10 to 12 hours. The process extracts the flavor and aroma volatiles from the coffee, leaving behind volatiles in the coffee oil, resulting in a lower-acid concentrated brew with rich aroma and smooth flavor.
- An S&D survey of 3,163 consumers found 80% are, at minimum, interested in cold brew, with more than half saying they’re “extremely interested.”
- However, about one-fifth of adults who’d tried cold brew at Starbucks in the past three months thought it was the same thing as iced coffee. More than 60% who tried it switched back to iced coffee because they preferred the flavor.
- There’s no national player in ready-to-drink cold brew. Leading regional roasters such as Portland, Ore.-based Stumptown, Philadelphia-based La Colombe and Austin, Texas-based Chameleon offer concentrated glass bottles with four to five servings. Some c-stores are looking to brew their own using the Toddy system favored by Starbucks, but cold brew’s short shelf life means it can’t be brewed in batches ahead of time. Suppliers including S&D are testing aseptic packaging on already-brewed cold brew, which can be shipped and stored at ambient temperatures until service.
More Ideas to Steal
Here are a few favorite promotions and ideas shared during CSP's Hot Dispensed Beverages Meeting in March:
How’s your mood?: In the fall of 2015, Chevron ExtraMile and Seattle’s Best soft-launched cobranded “Adjust your attitude” travel mugs, with emojis depicting the different emotional stages as you drink your coffee (ending with “crushing it”). It launched with 50,000 cups in 720 stores and has perked up to 200,000 cups due to its popularity, said Capitol Cups’ Tina Belfance. At the very least, the average person keeps promotional drinkware for eight months, she said, citing the Advertising Specialists’ Institute. “That’s a lot of brand impressions,” she said.
Jet-pack sampling: To help introduce a seasonal coffee flavor, one c-store retailer deployed four employees with portable coffee dispensers to give out samples at the pump.
Mug amnesty: To get more consumers to start using its travel mugs, one retailer launched a “mug amnesty” program, allowing them to exchange a competitor’s travel mug for theirs.
Preventing Wi-Fi abuse: Retailers looking to capitalize on consumers’ increased expectation of free Wi-Fi can take a page from Panera’s book. To discourage squatters, the fast-casual chain puts a 30-minute limit on Wi-Fi after login.
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