as a former barista, these are summery drinks you need to try before PSL season
COFFEE ENTRIES PART 1
Listen, I know it’s only August but pumpkin spice season comes up faster and faster every year! Summer isn’t my favorite season, but it definitely has its perks, especially in the drink department!
Nothing hits harder than a refreshing drink on a hot day.
Do they actually hydrate you? This is just a list of diuretics so, no.
Do they keep you cool? Physically, no, but don’t tell your brain that!
Honey Lavender is a good choice.
Honey Lavender has never been more popular. As a barista for two summers in a row, trust me it’s a fan favorite. And good in almost anything**.
Matcha? Add it in. Cold Brew? Go for it. A simple latte? C’mon now.
It’s sweet, slightly floral, and makes you want to find a field to frolic in.
Honestly, lean into the floral! It’s not for everyone but that’s life.
I had an iced vanilla rose latte (with oat milk) at the cutest coffee shop in Jefferson, OH and it was one of the best drinks I’ve had all summer.
It’s been a long summer, and I’ve been to a LOT of coffee shops.
If your coffee shop does shaken drinks…ask for a shaken cold brew.
My go-to drink this past summer (while working, I’ve never ordered this so WARNING) is a cold brew with honey, vanilla, cinnamon, and oat milk SHAKEN (not stirred). I always made this during afternoon shifts for a fun pick-me-up to help me zoom through my shifts.
Cold brew gives me the zoomies bad…
Combining all this into a shaker aerates the cold brew and the oat milk, creating this extra smooth, slightly foamy delicious summer drink. Not too sweet, and perfect for summer.
Speaking of aeration….have you heard of the aerocano?
This is the drink for you if you’re bored of cold brew or plain iced coffee.
This is not for my sweet latte friends, this is for the individuals who are proud black coffee drinkers. Time and place, kids, there’s room for both!
I first saw this technique on TikTok a few years ago, where you steam your espresso shot with ice to create this foamy, light Americano. The steam melts the ice cubes and aerates the espresso, resulting in this gorgeous amber foam.
While I’m not a beer drinker, it has the equivalence of drinking freshly poured draft beer from the tap. Foamy, smooth, and highlights all the beautiful notes in the espresso.
I’d usually recommend this to the middle-aged “black coffee only” drinking men that’d come into the shop to impress them. Is it silly? Yeah. Did it work? Yeah.
Now take an americano and add tonic?
I was visiting my sister in NWA (the unofficial coffee capital of the US) and Pour Jons, a local shop, made their own tonic for their specialty summer drink. It was lightly sweet, incredibly sour, and had a very smooth finish. Weird, but so satisfying.
My sister and I were baffled. I’m no scientist, but I know pairing an acid with another acid just doesn’t work.
But this drink worked! She worked.
This is obvious but any fruit that’s in season.
I haven’t eaten a ton of watermelon this summer (tragic), but I sure have drank a lot of watermelons!
I had the best watermelon lemonade of my LIFE at the Corpus Christi Farmer’s Market. I mentioned this last month in my traveling entry, but she deserves to be highlighted more than once.
Sweet, refreshing, punched you in the face, put a ring on it, you name it, that lemonade could do it.
Agua Frescas are typically made all year long but taste especially good in the summer. Pictured below is Pepino y Limon (cucumber and lime): one of my favorites!
If you didn’t see the subtitle, I’ll be talking about coffee once again!
You can take the barista out of the coffee shop but you can’t take the coffee shop out of the barista.
(I really hope that makes sense)
With Love,
Cara