Review: Kohana Cold Brew French Vanilla

Kohana’s French Vanilla Cold Brew is a blend of organic coffee, filtered water, and natural vanilla flavoring. The core of the product is, as you can tell from both the ingredient list and the color of the liquid, pretty similar to the brand's unflavored products (although, we don’t know for certain if it’s the Original, French Roast, or something else at the base). It’s bold and smooth, with the same “less acid” flavor profile that you’ll find in all of Kohana’s products. This actually makes a pretty big difference when it comes to a vanilla-flavored offering as vanilla typically seems to only accentuate the acidity of the product. In the case of this product, Kohana has done a really nice job of putting in just the right amount of vanilla flavor to accent, rather than overpower, the coffee. It’s a welcome change from what you’ll typically find in French vanilla latte drinks. And perhaps more importantly, it's one of the few French Vanilla flavored coffee products out there that a coffee snob can actually enjoy. Packaging, which is the same plastic bottle as the other Kohana products, is clean and well-executed. The Hawaiian motif is a nice point of differentiation as is the color palette that’s brighter than what other cold brew coffee products typically use. This certainly will help it stand out -- as will its shelf-stable formulation. Overall, a very enjoyable product with great execution.