BY SARAH ALLENBARISTA MAGAZINE
Photos courtesy of Pacific Foods
The calendar might say it’s October, but warm and even sweltering temperatures across the United States are marking this year as the one with an endless summer. And coffee professionals know what that means: There’s still a bundle to be made in cold drink sales.
And as any coffee pro knows, customers are increasingly searching for options in plant-based beverages—which is why today we are launching the Plant-Based Cold Drink Challenge at Barista Magazine’s Instagram.
Industry Leader Pacific Foods Barista Series™ Hosts
Who better to present the challenge than Pacific Foods Barista Series™, known industry-wide as the leader in plant-based drinks? We asked five incredible baristas from across the United States to take the idea and run with it, using Barista Series™ Almond, Oat, and/or Coconut as the inspiration for their own original plant-based cold drink.
And today, we all get to see the fruits of their labor!
It’s no secret that the products in the Pacific Foods Barista Series™’ line steam beautifully in hot coffee drinks—baristas everywhere have been touting that virtue for years, which is why Pacific Foods Barista Series™ has been the chosen brand of plant-based beverages for countless specialty-coffee companies throughout the United States for more than a decade.
Cold Is the New Hot
The creations up for consideration in the Plant-Based Cold Drink Challenge, however, introduce entirely new ideas for how Pacific Foods Barista Series™ beverages can be used in cold drink applications.
For example, it only makes sense that a beverage known for exceptional steaming also whips into a gorgeous cold foam. The nuances of the various products in the Barista Series™ line can showcase the nutty, fruity, or floral characteristics you find in your coffees.
You’re the Judge!
This is a contest, after all, so we want to hear which drink you think sounds the yummiest—in fact, you’re the judges! “Vote” for your favorite by “liking” the post at Barista Magazine’s Instagram page. Note that while you may see some of the baristas posting about their drinks on their own pages, only “likes” made at Barista Magazine’s Instagram will count toward each participant’s totals.
But since this is Pacific Foods Barista Series™ we’re talking about, and everyone knows how supportive and engaged they are with the barista community, each of our five participants will end up a winner because they will all receive cash prizes!
The barista whose drink has garnered the most likes by 5 p.m. PDT on Friday, October 13, will receive a cool $1,000 for their efforts. Second place wins $500, and third, fourth, and fifth places will each receive $200.
So stop dilly dallying and head over to Barista Magazine’s Instagram to cast your vote—or, heck, cast more than one. The Plant-Based Cold Drink Challenge is about creativity and fun, and the innovations and imaginations of these five outstanding baristas.
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