SEATTLE — Starbucks Corp. is expanding its iced coffee offerings with the addition of several cold brew items to its menu. The introduction reflects the increase in popularity the cold brew category has achieved in the past few years.
The focus of the new menu will be two varieties, a nitro cold brew and a traditional cold brew made with vanilla sweet cream. The nitro cold brew is infused with nitrogen to create a smooth texture, according to the company.
“We start with a small chilled keg of Starbucks Cold Brew coffee,” said Anthony Carroll, senior manager of coffee quality development for Starbucks. “Then it’s infused with nitrogen, which unlocks the super-smooth, natural sweetness of the cold brew coffee, which then cascades from the tap with a velvety texture you can see and taste.”
The nitrogen variety is currently only available in select stores in Seattle, but the company plans to roll it out to more than 500 company-operated stores later this year.
The vanilla sweet cream cold brew variety is made with cold brew coffee over ice and topped with a vanilla sweet cream. A tall serving has 100 calories and 12 grams of sugar, according to the company.
Other varieties included in the new menu roll out include Starbucks Doubleshot on ice, a caramel iced macchiato and a traditional iced coffee.
“For over 40 years we have perfected the craft of roasting and brewing the finest hot coffee, and while we have always offered our customers new options in cold coffee, nothing will compare to the pace of flavor, craft and brewing innovation we will see in the next few years,” said Howard Schultz, chairman and chief executive officer of Starbucks. “The opportunity to create an entirely new cold coffee experience is limitless and our customers are already telling us that they want to meet us on this journey as cold coffee is now becoming a go-to drink.”
