IT’S COFFEE; NOT ROCKET SCIENCE by Lee Ann Atwater
“it’s cold brew, not iced brew.”
process calls for a 24-hour steep in an airtight container (Nitro Bros uses kegs) so the natural ingredients remain in the product. Shaughnessy then explains, “After we keg the cold brew, we charge it with nitrogen, like Guinness, so when it’s poured out into a glass, you get that lovely cascading effect – visually beautiful,” he continues. “A caffeine cloud that looks like cream in the coffee and gives a creamy mouth feel.” This eliminates the need for additional sweeteners or creamers giving you a “better for you” brew to satisfy your caffeine cravings. In May of 2017, with product in-keg, as it were, they literally began peddling their nitro cold- brew beverage around town and at events on a customized tricycle.
L ike all of the great companies of this world, Nitro Bros Cold Brew started with a garage, well a garage, an idea and a trike, but you get where we are going with this. It is no surprise that Canadians are loco for coffee both hot and cold. We follow up with Kyle Shaughnessy and David Piotto, co-founders and owners of Nitro Bros Cold Brew to see how they are keeping the wheels turning on the brand during the pandemic, expanding to Kelowna and offering coast to coast delivery for their Nitro Cold-brew Coffee products. We know from our previous conversations with Kyle Shaughnessy and David Piotto they are entrepreneurs that put the cart before the horse. To understand their seat-of-their pants approach to business, we must take a minute or two to revisit how things got started. Shaughnessy
up and running was explaining and educating coffee lovers on what their product was. Cold brew is not just iced coffee, it is so much more than that. Most of the conversation the Nitro Bros had with customers when they first started the business, was educated customers to under- stand that “it’s cold brew, not iced brew.” The benefits of cold brewing over just iced coffee are, “that cold brew yields more caffeine and provides a smoother taste of coffee,” explained Shaughnessy. So, why is there difference between cold brew and ice brew, well it is all in the science. When you brew traditional coffee, you get the delightful aroma of coffee from the steam. “It smells great, but through the boiling process you are burning off the natural caffeine and sugar,” explains Shaughnessy. However, when cold brewing, the
was on a trip to Columbia visiting family and friends, when he had the opportunity to taste some of the best coffee on the planet. When he returned to Calgary, he shared his experience with his then University roommate, now business partner, David Piotto, the two started to grind ideas on how they could offer this amazing cold brew coffee to others and they brewed up an idea that they knew could turn this nitro infused cold beverage into a Business. The first major hurdle after getting the business
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APRIL 2021 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • APRIL 2021
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