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Matcha is having a moment. People want to be seen ordering it and drinking it, but sometimes they really aren’t enjoying the flavor or experience.
That’s according to Jai Lott, Global VP of Food & Beverage for Blank Street Coffee. The coffee chain now has 84 locations, about half of which are in the U.K. The other half are concentrated in New York City, with a few outposts in Washington D.C. and Boston.
“To continue to build more love around the matcha menu, we looked to light, fun and complimentary flavors designed to refresh you all summer long," said Lott.
To change U.S. consumers’ minds, Lott and Innovation Manager Jared Wierman developed three refreshing chilled beverages that layer matcha with fruit juices to create appealing pastel-colored drinks. One features sparkling yuzu, another watermelon and a third, mango.
“One of our goals for summer was to introduce high-quality ingredients so we created some fresh fruit purees to build refreshing matchas,” said Wierman.
Lott also hopes the matcha drinks will help answer the question “What happened to 2 p.m.?” The chilled matchas are the type of beverage that will pull people in for an afternoon break, he believes. And while they are targeted to summer, “cold beverages are more resilient to seasonality,” Lott said.
To promote the new matcha trio as a “summer in the city” go-to, Blank Street is running a pickleball promotion for loyalty club members. The Blank Street Pickleball Club gives the chain’s app customers access to 408 complimentary pickleball court reservations across New York. Attendees can play pickleball with friends on branded courts and refresh at complimentary on-site matcha bars serving the new summer menu. Reservations are open every Summer Friday between 2-6 p.m from July 12-August 23.
The menu is really about getting outside in the summer and what refreshes you so you can go on to the next activity, said a Blank Street spokesperson.
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