From iced summers to matcha winters: what's next in your cup
When the sun comes out, coffee goes cold. When it gets dark at five, matcha, chai and a proper hot chocolate step in. Iced coffee and matcha have become two of the biggest talking points in coffee, and both are worth understanding whether you are making drinks at home or running a café.
Ireland runs on coffee, and the menu is changing
A TheJournal.ie poll of 1,000 Irish adults found that around three in four describe themselves as coffee drinkers, and almost half of those say they drink more than they did ten years ago. The flat white is still the most popular order, but two drinks are moving faster than anything else on the Irish menu: iced coffee and matcha.
Iced coffee: the heatwave showed the demand
When Ireland had its mini heatwave from Friday 22 to Monday 25 May 2026, Square's transaction data showed iced coffee purchases up 145% on the weekend before, and 149% on the same weekend in 2025. The five best-selling iced drinks were the iced latte, iced matcha, iced coffee, iced Americano and iced mocha. One of those is matcha, which tells you how closely the two trends are linked.
Cold drinks can also earn more. In Square's analysis of 646 Irish sellers, cold brew had the highest average price of any coffee at €4.35, against €3.60 for a flat white. (That analysis covers the two years to the end of 2023.) For a café, a good iced menu is a way to sell more, and to charge a little more for it.
The types worth knowing
- Iced latte: espresso, cold milk and ice. The best seller in Square's heatwave data, and easy to get wrong if the espresso is weak. Use a strong, sweet-leaning espresso so it still tastes of coffee once the ice melts. Our espresso coffees are a good place to start.
- Iced Americano: espresso over cold water and ice. Clean and refreshing, and it shows off a good single origin.
- Cold brew: coffee steeped cold for many hours. Smooth, low in acidity and sweet, and it can be made in batches ahead of service. For cafés, we supply a Marco cold brewer and Solo pre-made cold brew espresso.
- Flash-chilled or iced filter coffee: hot filter coffee brewed straight onto ice. Brighter and more aromatic than cold brew, and a great way to use light-roast, fruity coffees such as our Yirgacheffe.
- Iced mocha: espresso, chocolate and cold milk over ice. A crowd-pleaser, and the fifth best seller in the same data.
- Espresso tonic: espresso poured over tonic water and ice. A good option for people who don't take milk.
- Cold brew tea: for customers who don't drink coffee, we stock the teapigs cold brew range in flavours such as Peach & Mango, Pink Grapefruit, Watermelon & Hibiscus and Cucumber & Apple, plus Lemon, Lime & Ginger and Lychee & Rose. Browse our speciality teas.
Matcha: the drink that keeps growing
Matcha has gone from a niche drink to a regular menu item in Irish cafés. In June and July 2025, Square's Irish data showed matcha sales up 155% on the year before, and matcha was nearly 5% of all coffee-drink sales, up from just over 2%. Matcha drinks sold for an average of €4.62, more than a flat white, while flat white sales grew 10% and cappuccino 6%.
Supply has not kept up with demand: since late 2024, Japan's matcha shortage has meant suppliers setting quotas, and Dublin's The Matcha Bar has spoken about the squeeze. It pays to know what you are buying, and to have a second source.
Understanding the grades
You will see "ceremonial" and "culinary" on tins. Ceremonial matcha is usually made from the first harvest of leaves, and is bright green, smooth and slightly sweet. It is made to be whisked with water and drunk on its own. Culinary matcha comes from later harvests and can be more bitter, which is why it suits baking and recipes where other ingredients balance it. Neither word is legally regulated, so a label is not a guarantee of quality. Ask where the matcha is from, when it was harvested, and whether it is sweetened.
See our matcha and chai range. For cafés we also supply Japanese matcha in 1kg packs.
Matcha through autumn and winter
- Hot matcha latte: matcha whisked smooth, then topped with steamed milk. Oat milk is the favourite alternative milk in Irish cafés, and it pairs well with the grassy flavour.
- Iced matcha latte: still sells all year round, especially with a flavour such as vanilla or white chocolate.
- Matcha and chai: a seasonal twist for colder days. Take a look at our chai powders.
- At home: a bamboo whisk or a handheld frother makes it easy to get a smooth, lump-free drink.
Hot chocolate is back
As the weather turns, a good hot chocolate earns its place on the menu next to the flat white. It is also an easy upgrade: offer a richer dark and a white option, and customers will happily pay more for the better drink. Browse our chocolates. For cafés, our range includes Arkadia white drinking chocolate, Italian Luxury dark chocolate, Pausa Italian Luxury, Cadbury's, Premium Choco Gold and Fresher's hot chocolate, plus an Arkadia golden latte turmeric blend for something different.
Keeping it going all year
For cafés, the equipment and the skills carry across the seasons. A grinder that can dial in a strong espresso for an iced latte will also do the job for a hot flat white, and a good set of syrups, powders and teas gives you seasonal options without rebuilding the menu every month. For home customers, a good bag of beans and a jug in the fridge is all you need to bring summer back in October. See all our coffees, or set up a subscription so the next bag arrives before the last one runs out.
Sources: Square Ireland transaction data on the May 2026 heatwave, via Drinks Industry Ireland (28 May 2026); Square Ireland data on matcha growth, via Drinks Industry Ireland (14 January 2026); Square Ireland research on Irish coffee sales (May 2024, covering 646 Irish sellers to end of 2023); TheJournal.ie coffee poll of 1,000 Irish adults; TheTaste.ie on the matcha shortage (November 2024); Tasting Table on matcha grades.
