Review: Concentrated Cold Brew Coffee

Califia Farms, which had previously produced only ready-to-drink coffees (blended with the company's almond milk), has officially jumped into the cold brew coffee concentrate category with this product. The key selling point of this multi-serve beverage is, much like other cold brew products, its low acidity level, which Califia touts as being 60 percent lower than hot brewed coffee. Whatever the reasons are, the coffee inside this Tetra Pak carton is extremely enjoyable. It’s bold, but smooth, and truly doesn’t have much more than a touch of acidity to it. And while this product is marketed as concentrate, we found it to be quite enjoyable drinking it straight. Obviously, you can -- and are encouraged to -- customize it a variety of ways, either by diluting it, mixing it with milk or almond milk, and by serving it hot or cold. The product is very versatile and it tastes great no matter what you do with it. Visually, Califia has done a tremendous job creating what might be the best looking Tetra Pak carton out there. It’s a 32 oz. screw top carton with a slanted top, which, thanks to its boxy rather than tapered look (the more common shape of multi-serve Tetra Pak cartons), has a higher end and more sophisticated look to it. If there’s anything that we feel is missing, it’s more description about the actual coffee. This was probably a conscious decision rather than an oversight, but it’s one that seems important for this type of product. Overall, Califia Farms has done a great job with this product and it’s definitely one of the best shelf-stable cold brews out there.

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