Coronavirus closure inspires Wichita coffee shop to get creative, sell half-gallon lattes
Reverie Coffee Roasters at 2202 E. Douglas has been closed since March 22, and owner Andrew Gough says he’s not sure when exactly he’ll reopen the shop for normal business.
But fans have been able to continue to pick up some of their favorite Reverie products to go throughout the closure, including cold brew and bagged coffee.
The situation has also inspired Gough and his staff to come up with some new products, and one has been making me especially thirsty.
Last week, Reverie started bottling and selling four of its iced lattes to-go, and so far, customers are loving it, Gough said. A half-gallon bottle of his new “Chill the F Out” lattes, which contains the equivalent of six drinks, is $30. Customers can order them online then pick them up between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays.
The four flavors available are vanilla, caramel, mocha, and plain espresso and milk. Oat milk is also an option for people avoiding dairy.
Last week, Gough said, he expected to sell 20 bottles or so. But by the end of the week, he was up to 100 orders.
“They’re really good,” he said. “The response we’re getting back is that people are super excited to finally have a drink that tastes like it did in the shop.”
Gough said he partnered with Hildebrand Farms Dairy on the project, and they are providing the half-gallon glass bottles, which are fixed with the Reverie logo. Taking home the lattes in the glass milk bottles has been part of the fun for customers, he said.
The shop has had to limit the number of lattes it sells by the half-gallon, though, because making them is time consuming. The staff must stand at the espresso machine and pull individual shots, one after the other. There’s also a limit for now on the number of bottles available.
But if the lattes continue to be as popular as they have been, Gough said, he might continue selling them even when things get back to normal.
“I could see it sticking,” he said.
People can order the lattes at https://reverie-coffee-roasters.square.site/. On that site, they can also find bagged whole bean or ground coffee, chai concentrate, cold brew concentrate and coffee-related merchandise.
This story was originally published April 28, 2020 at 12:22 PM.
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