Starbucks Releasing Bottled Cold Brew In July

Starbucks already offers a variety of bottled beverages for sale at grocery and convenience stores around the country. But if you’re looking for something a little less sweet than a White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino, you don’t have a ton of options, until now. The coffee giant will begin selling bottles of its unsweetened cold brew at stores starting next month. 

Starbucks began shipping bottles of the cold brew to retailers earlier this month and expects the on-the-go drinks to be on shelves starting July 1.

Cold brew, the cool kid on the caffeinated block, is brewed slowly with coffee grounds that are steeped in cool water for an extended period of time — in Starbucks’ case, 20 hours.

Many consider cold-brewed coffees to be a smoother, less bitter drink than hot-brewed coffees, while packing a more caffeinated punch. Like traditional hot coffee, the drink also comes free of sweeteners and creams, as customers can add their own.

Starbucks first began offering cold brew in its coffee shops last July. More recently, the company announced it would add Nitro Cold Brew to the menu at 500 locations starting this summer.

Nitro Cold Brew infuses nitrogen in cold-brewed coffee, which gives it a “smooth and creamy sweetness,” the company said at the time, noting that the drink almost comes out looking like a Guinness beer.

Starbucks isn’t the only coffee shop to jump on the cold brew bandwagon. Dunkin’ Donuts announced this week that it would begin offering the beverage nationwide this summer, Fortune reports.

To begin with, the drink will be available in restaurants in New York and Los Angeles on June 27. More areas will sell the drink throughout the summer. Dunkin’ says the cold brew will be served each day in small batches while supplies last.

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