One of the most important things about caffeinated beverages is how quick and easy they are to grab on the go. While many would agree that a personally crafted single-cup pour over should be appreciated with time and patience, there’s not always time for that. If you don’t have a minute to spare to stop at your favorite café, one of these five canned, ready-to-drink (RTD) coffees could be your savior.
Stumptown Coffee Nitro Cold Brew
This Portland coffee roaster is making waves in the newly popular nitrogenated coffee category with this canned version of the beloved treat. Although it doesn’t cascade as much as freshly-infused nitro coffee from the tap, this cold brew produces a nice head when poured into a glass and delivers the same smooth sensation. This black coffee has minimal bitterness and bite with chocolatey undertones. An easy drinker that packs a punch.
Riff Cold Brewed Alter Ego Coffeefruit Tea
Classic coffee comes from the seeds of the coffee plant. Those seeds are found inside the fruit, which is commonly overlooked due to its delectable center, the coffee bean. But the team behind Riff Cold Brewed in Bend, Oregon, decided they would use, rather than lose, these citrusy stone fruits. This carbonated drink is light-bodied and tastes exactly like a hybrid between coffee and fruit juice. Low acidity and bitterness make it perfect for a quick grab.
Olympia Coffee Ice Cold Black Coffee
Some coffees are just meant to be enjoyed plain — no sugar or cream to crowd out the subtle tasting notes. Olympia’s canned black coffee is precisely that. This drink from the roaster in Washington’s capital city is perfectly balanced with a delicate sweetness. This coffee is not acidic or fruity and feels mellow on the aftertaste, leaving no bitterness on the tongue. Try this RTD delight next time you need a drink on the go.
Fernwood Coffee Co. Coffee Cream Soda
Wait before you judge this can as “too sweet” or “not for me.” Fernwood must have had these judgments in mind when crafting this coffee-soda hybrid. The house-made vanilla syrup is a secondary flavor to the coffee concentrate and the two complement each other well. At 28 grams of sugar per can, this might be more of a novelty than a daily drinker, but either way this unique drink is a treat.
Jamaica Blue Coffee Co. Cold Brew
This pint-sized can already has a leg up on the rest of the competition with extra ounces, as most RTD coffees come in 12-ounce cans. Jamaica Blue is roasted and canned in Vancouver, British Columbia, and uses the highly specific, Jamaican-grown Blue Mountain coffee beans. This sought-after coffee is some of the finest in the world and has the price tag to prove it. The hype is all worth it once you taste this cold brew, a fruity and aromatic sip with low acidity that makes it easy on the stomach.
