Coffee Project New York, the East Village born company boasting seven locations and a vigorous online shop, is dipping its toe in the ready-to-drink market with a canned coffee beverage they’re calling The Coffee Palmer.
“The Coffee Palmer is a little tart, a little sweet, and could be described as an interpretation of a summer shandy or its namesake, the Arnold Palmer,” says Elizabeth Nealy of Coffee Project NY, “it’s a 60/40 blend of coffee and lemonade with a smooth balance of bitter, sweet, and acid.”
“The Coffee Palmer was developed as a simple grab-and-go option for our customers who are looking for specialty-level quality in a more convenient format. It can be taken anywhere and is ready to drink, for accessibility to home coffee drinkers at all brewing skill levels. Customer accessibility is important to us in specialty coffee because it helps introduce new fans to the coffee world, and we’re always looking to share our love for coffee.”
We spoke with the folks at Coffee Project NY to learn more.
Tell us about the design of the product.
The Coffee Palmer cans were designed in-house and took several drafts before we settled on the current iteration. The taller can is easy to hold, while the metallic foil incorporated into the label grabs attention. Our favorite part is the red Nutrition Information label.
How long have you been working on this project?
As with any canned or manufactured product, development takes quite some time: there are rounds of communication, sampling, tweaking, approval, design, and shipment that occur behind the scenes. We started working on the cans at the beginning of 2025.
Who is the target customer for this product?
We want anyone to be able to enjoy the Coffee Palmer, but it’s ideal for situations like outdoor gatherings, having an office pick-me-up, mixing into a cocktail or mocktail, traveling, or park days.
Do you have future RTD products in development?
Not yet! We are giving some time to gauge our customer response and gather feedback. However, we do currently carry a separate high-end convenience option for customers: the Instant Pod, an instant coffee capsule that’s ready to drink in seconds. The capsule uses our “Woke Up in New York” drip blend, which we roast ourselves in NYC before sending to manufacture.
Final thoughts on the RTD category?
Smaller scale roasters like Coffee Project New York are showing more interest in this niche because it allows us to diversify our product catalog and gives us some insurance as purchasing habits fluctuate. This may seem inconsequential but the specialty coffee industry—comprised of all of these small coffee roasting businesses—is balanced on top of unsustainably thin profit margins and an international trade market that is currently extremely volatile.
RTD has its own set of sustainability challenges, but there is a demanding market for the convenience of canned or bottled beverages. It’s no secret that younger people are more interested in mixed coffee beverages and convenience coffee, too, so it would be nice to win over some budding coffee drinkers.
Thank you!
Find the Coffee Palmer ($20 for 4 pack) at Coffee Project NY locations and online.
Photos courtesy Coffee Project New York.
Sprudge showcases coffee products in the “ready-to-drink” (RTD) category: packaged beverages sold in a prepared form, ready for consumption. Learn about this growing segment of the coffee industry, get inspired, discover new brands and more!
