A spiked-coffee renaissance is seeing the traditional Irish coffee slowly ditched in favor of canned, cold-brew releases.
In the past year, entries to the category have included an agave-based brew, a flavored Bailey’s blend, and a 5-percent-ABV offering from PBR. Now, renowned Philadelphia coffee roasting company La Colombe has partnered with beer giant MillerCoors to release a hard coffee collab.
According to Food & Wine, the 4.2-percent-ABV spiked cold-brew will be released in five markets this month: Boston, MA; Tampa, Ft. Myers, and Treasure Coast, FL; and Denver, CO. The release blends La Colombe’s medium-roasted Colombian and Brazilian cold brew coffee, with cane sugar, natural flavors, and alcohol. The product is set to arrive in two varieties: Black and Vanilla.
There’s currently no info on the alcohol providing the 4.2-percent-ABV kick. But, in all likelihood, it’s the product of brewing and fermenting malts and/or sugars, as in hard seltzers.
“La Colombe has a long legacy of working with some of the most innovative chefs and restaurants from around the world. We have deep roots in the culinary scene, starting as purveyors of roasted coffee in the kitchens of Philadelphia and New York. Now, 25 years later, we are roasting and purveying cold brew to some of America’s most iconic companies — like MillerCoors,” Todd Carmichael, CEO and co-founder of La Colombe, told Food & Wine.
He added: “MillerCoors and La Colombe are similar in many ways. We are both beverage companies that are pushing the boundaries of what is possible in food and beverage. The introduction of the Hard Cold Brew Coffee is a reflection of that.”
La Colombe Hard Cold Brew Coffee Black and Vanilla are being offered in 9-ounce single-serve cans and four-packs. According to Food & Wine, they’re hitting shelves today, but at the time of publishing, the release is yet to appear on La Colombe’s website.
