Dunkin’ Donuts Will Get In on the Bottled Iced Coffee Trend

Dunkin Donuts Roasted Coffee by Mike Mozart on Flickr/Creative Commons

When National Coffee Day rolls around again next year, you can celebrate by popping a bottle of Dunkin’ Donuts iced coffee, straight from the fridge at your local grocery store. The Canton-based caffeinators have teamed up with Coca-Cola Co. to package and sell iced coffee drinks, beginning in early 2017.

The Boston Business Journal first reported the deal, announced today. The soda behemoth will manufacture, distribute, and sell the new line, which will feature Dunks’ Arabica coffee blends, plus milk and sugar. They will be available in a range of flavors.

This is Dunkin’ Donuts’ first foray into the big business of bottled coffee, which Nielsen reports is worth $2.3 billion. The trend began with Starbucks and its Frappuccino line, and has grown with national roasters like Stumptown and Hotbox Coffee selling their coffee in convenient bottles and, lately, cans.

La Colombe, a Philadelphia roaster making a big northeastern push with a new cafe in downtown Boston and another coming soon to Back Bay, started packaging its innovative, aerated Draft Latte in slender cans earlier this year. Even local startups are fueling the fad: Commonwealth Coffee Co. offers a seasonal selection of cold brew bottles, in flavors like the maple-infused Tapped, and Hoperation, with Centennial hops.

In addition to its locations nationwide, Dunks will sell its ready-to-drink beverages at grocery and convenience stores, and other national retailers.