Creative, quirky cold drinks can be highly individualized to reflect a coffeehouse's identity— even its neighborhood.
BY BRENDA G. RUSSELL S
ummer in the Ozarks, they say, is like the George Jones tune: "Hotter Th an a Two Dollar Pistol."
At the Dancing Mule Coff ee Co. in Springfi eld, Mo., that
makes the fi rst choice a frappe. Favorite fl avors include mocha, Turtle (caramel and chocolate) and Peanut Butter Fandango (using Ghirardelli chocolate and Jiff y from the jar). But just about any cool drink turns into a best seller when
this shop makes it an in-house or drive-through special. Helping the iced latte customer break out of his routine is a specials board with a fl air for dramatic names. Last year there was the Fuzzy Bunny, originally an Easter
special with white chocolate and blueberry syrup, and the White Rabbit with white chocolate, amaretto and Irish cream. But co-owner Randy Austin has developed perennial favorite cool drinks with cool names, like the Bob Marley, a natty wedding of white chocolate, banana and coconut. "We just try to have fun with it," Austin says. All three
drinks can be made as iced lattes or blended. A winter drink that can ice up for hot weather is the Flying Squirrel, a latte with four shots of hazelnut syrup. Summer calls for creativity as coff ee shops try to develop
Frappes and fruit-based smoothies, perennial hot-weather favorites, offer many opportunities for creative flavor combinations. Photo courtesy of Big Train
drinks as habit-forming as their winter warm-ups. Th ere are many addictive options: iced teas, lemonades, frappes, Italian sodas, bubble teas, French sodas, smoothies and iced coff ees. Sometimes the choice comes down to a name. "Descriptive
fl avors, such as Madagascar vanilla instead of just regular vanilla, give some uniqueness to food menu items," says Joseph
March 2012 • www.specialty-coffee.com | 23
