Seven Creative Approaches to Build a Spring Beverage Menu

What connects foil-covered chocolate eggs with Tax Day? Both serve as unmistakable signals that spring has arrived. Once the cold months finally recede, those first hints of the season can energize us and stir up anticipation for the latest seasonal beverages.

While customers waver between hot and iced options, a thoughtfully assembled seasonal lineup can draw their interest and pay tribute to everything that made it through winter. If you're unsure how to begin building your own seasonal menu, the following seven ideas—drawn from well-known cafés around the country—can help you get started.

Let Your Surroundings Set the Theme

Often, inspiration is waiting just outside your door. In Phoenix, Ariz., Presta Coffee's spring menu pays tribute to the Arizona-Sonora desert flora that blooms across the city at this time of year, including aromatic desert sage and the crimson Baja fairy duster shrub.

Blair Smith, a roaster and the general manager at Presta, described where the ideas came from. "We found inspiration for this menu both in the surprising abundance and verdancy of the desert in spring," Smith said. The lineup includes the suitably named Desert Sage, a latte that combines sage with peach; the Fairyduster, a rose matcha latte accented with lemon zest and raspberry; and the Cactus Flower, a sparkling lemonade made with local prickly pear nectar.

In Austin, Texas, blueberries appear throughout the menu at Desnudo Coffee. The Boggy Berry Latte is an inventive blend of lacto-fermented blueberries, vanilla syrup, milk, espresso, and ice.

Co-owner Juan Trujillo explained that the drink drew its name and inspiration from Boggy Creek Farm, a small urban farm a few blocks from his coffee trailer. Boggy Creek is a regenerative, non-certified organic operation supplying produce, eggs, flowers, and other local goods, and it farms sustainably without pesticides or chemicals.

"We wanted to start a conversation with people around the issue of sustainable food growing," Trujillo said. "We strongly believe that's how we should grow food in the future; to only consume what grows where we live."

Tap Into Your Team's Ideas

The baristas who serve your customers every day understand them better than anyone. Channel the extra energy of spring and invite the team to contribute. At Colectivo Coffee in Wisconsin, Beverage Category Manager Emma Cowen ran a company-wide contest in which employees submitted recipes for a new signature mocha.

Smoked Vanilla Mocha from Colectivo Coffee

"We had a group of tasters narrow them down to our three favorites and then held customer voting events at three cafe locations," Cowen said.

The recipe that won was the Smoked Vanilla Mocha, built with Hollander chocolate sauce, vanilla, and Alderwood smoked salt, then finished with cinnamon and raw sugar.

Give Mocktails a Starring Role

A season of 7 p.m. sunsets and patio seating calls for a toast. Mark the occasion by creating a coffee mocktail: take a cocktail you enjoy and replace the alcohol with coffee. The Cuba Libre—white rum, lime juice, and cola—is a favorite of Daniel Kerram, owner of Mane Coffee in Boca Raton, Fla.

Kerram reworks the cocktail by substituting ingredients while preserving its character; at times that means adding something or adjusting proportions rather than making a straight one-for-one swap. "We take Mexican Coke, cold brew, fresh lime, and passion fruit syrup for a super vibrant and refreshing iced beverage," he said.

At Colectivo, the caffeine-free pick is the Hibiscus Spritz, which draws on the vivid red color and gently bitter taste of an Aperol Spritz. It combines Rishi Tea's hibiscus limeade powder, blackberry syrup, and sparkling water into a tart soda suited to patio sipping.

Let Tea Take the Lead

When coffee no longer sparks fresh ideas, loose-leaf tea can open new creative doors. For a standout tea-based spring drink, try The Canary at Horizon Line Coffee in Des Moines, Iowa. The Canary is an appealing tea-based mocktail made with osmanthus flower tea, Topo Chico sparkling water, lemon verbena, Szechuan and white peppercorns, coriander, lemon, simple syrup, and a garnish of thyme.

Horizon Line obtains the tea through a long-running relationship with Spirit Tea, a Chicago-based supplier. "Spirit's teas are excellent," co-owner Brad Penna said. "We were looking to highlight something more floral than usual, and after sampling their osmanthus flower tea, it was a no-brainer."

Draw on Nostalgia

If one sense defines spring, it's smell. Scent is well known for its connection to memory, so letting your sentimental side guide you can uncover a wealth of strong ideas. Colectivo's Honey Lavender Coconut Latte grew out of Cowen's warm recollections of spring break trips with her mother.

"I'd always order virgin piña coladas at the beach," she said. "I wanted to incorporate some of my own nostalgia to elevate the menu." The playful, floral latte contains espresso, the milk of your choice, local honey, and lavender-coconut syrup.

Turn Dessert Into Inspiration

For some, dessert marks the seasons: spiced gingerbread and rich eggnog carry us into winter, while fruit-forward treats and light, refreshing sweets help welcome spring. Beyond serving as the sweet finish to a meal, a favorite dessert can also supply a clever idea or two.

The Cuba Libre from Mane Coffee

Horizon Line's Hummingbird Latte is the café's interpretation of a classic Jamaican cake. Espresso and milk are paired with pineapple, banana, sweetened condensed coconut milk, vanilla, spices, and a topping of toasted pecan and shredded coconut.

"Think carrot cake meets tropical fruit," Penna said. "As with all our drinks, the coffee is still designed to be the focal point, so it's not overly sweet."

Bring Back What Customers Loved

If it isn't broken, there's no need to fix it. Look back at menus from past springs—and check the sales figures. If a drink sold especially well last year, why not offer it again?

This spring, Horizon Line brought back two of its most praised drinks: the Bourbon Peach Latte and the Grey Goddess, a soothing combination of Earl Grey tea, cold brew, vanilla, and milk. Both earned places on Horizon Line's Spring 2023 menu because of feedback from past customers.

"We rarely repeat seasonal drinks, but both were big fan favorites, so we brought them back," Penna said.

When unsure, a floral latte is a dependable choice. Lavender, rose, and jasmine are the crowd-pleasers of spring menus and are likely to keep customers coming back. But if the longer days leave you with extra energy, push yourself to look beyond the usual floral palette. Enjoy the process, keep workflow and efficiency in mind, then repeat the approach for summer.