La Colombe Ups Its Nitro Coffee Game, Unveils Draft Lattes

This spring, we took a look at the growing nitro coffee trend in Philly, including a teaser from La Colombe co-founder and coffee maverick Todd Carmichael for a new "coffee concoction" he described as like nitro cold brew, "but five octaves higher on the insanely good scale." Chef Nick Elmi then gave us a first look at La Colombe's cold brew on tap, which was made available at Morgan's Pier and at La Colombe's Fishtown flagship. But now, Carmichael has finally unveiled the ultimate realization of his initial tease: the Draft Latte, which incorporates milk right into the pressurized mix.

Without added milk or sugar, cold brew pressurized with nitrogen already pours somewhat creamy and sweet. Here, the milk itself is pressurized, which La Colombe says further amplifies the natural sweetness of the milk as well as creating a creamier texture. The coffee company's blog describes the texture as being something "like a sugar-free milkshake."

Draft lattes are available now at La Colombe in Fishtown, and will be rolled out to other La Colombe cafes (in Philly and beyond) within the next few months. The Insider today has a further look at the equipment and its genesis, plus a bit of additional intel: La Colombe reportedly plans to can the lattes for sale nationwide. (Nitro coffee innovators Stumptown Coffee recently released a canned version of their own cold brew, sans milk, assisted by a widget inside much like a can of Guinness.)