The August heat is as relentless as the need for caffeine. Local coffee shops have a solution, though, and it’s not the watered-down iced coffee in plastic cups swirled around all over social media. These locally made cold coffee concoctions have the flavor profile, body, balance, and texture expected of cocktails, while also serving up all of the refreshing notes necessary to keep cool and alert all month long.
Coffee Concoctions
Methodical Coffee set the tone this summer with Creamy Cold Brew, a slushie made with Methodical cold brew, oat milk, and simple syrup at The Commons location—perfectly timed for the Unity Park opening. Unlike blended coffee drinks that become diluted with ice, a slushie is frozen in a machine and is ready to dispense as soon as it reaches the desired consistency.
“The thought of bringing on an offering like this, but making them with good quality ingredients, felt perfect for us—especially during the hot South Carolina summers,” says Marco Suarez, co-owner of Methodical Coffee. “And as soon as we launched them, they quickly became a top seller at The Commons. The goal is to now roll them out to all locations.” Their slushie is also available at Chestnut Coffee House.
Bridge City Coffee tapped into summertime nostalgia with its Sun Kissed Americola—espresso pulled (the term for pressurized water being forced through coffee grounds) over an orange peel with house-made vanilla syrup and ten ounces of cola. It’s a well-understood fact that there’s nothing quite like cracking open an ice-cold Coca-Cola on a blistering-hot summer day.
Over at Due South Coffee Roasters, find a different kind of pop and coffee combo with its popular Pop Coffee that looks simple yet delivers a complex experience. A Hyppo Popsicle—choose from whichever flavors are available—is dunked in Due South cold brew, and as the popsicle melts, the coffee transforms, creating a different intensity of flavor with each sip.
Junto Coffee went straight for the Pool Party with a refreshing and unexpected take on a classic—an iced Americano mixed with watermelon syrup and fresh mint and topped with grapefruit juice. It’s reminiscent of a watermelon Paloma often enjoyed poolside.
The Blue Boy at Cohesive Coffee is a vibrantly colored treat made with blueberry jam, butterfly pea flower concentrate, brown sugar, and condensed milk. “A lot of cocktails use butterfly pea flower as a coloring agent, but it’s also got a very cool and unique flavor profile,” says owner Josh Williams. “The bitterness is cut by the sugars to offer an incredibly refreshing and fun drink to enjoy on a hot day.”
Cryptid Coffee, still operating as a pop-up until their brick-and-mortar opens later this year, developed a drink inspired by Nancy Wheeler from the Netflix show Stranger Things. The Nancy mixes sparkling water, espresso, housemade peach syrup, and spearmint, creating a summer Shandy-like experience for those times when a cold beer would hit the spot.
Tropical vibes are strong with Leopard Forest Coffee Company’s Iced Coconut Americano—espresso, coconut water, half and half, and cinnamon.
And if simple, yet indulgent, is the goal, head to Unlocked Coffee Roasters for a summery affogato made with honey vanilla ice cream and espresso poured on top.
