Keurig Kold Review | The Nibble Webzine Of Food Adventures - The Nibble Webzine Of Food Adventures

PRODUCT: Keurig Kold Cold Beverage Machine

October 2, 2015 at 8:44 am · Filed under Beverages, Food Fun, Giftable, Kitchenware-Tabletop

Editors Note: This product was discontinued in 2016.

Thanks to Keurig, 20 million American households make their coffee of choice—or tea, cocoa, chicken soup, even iced tea brewed into a cup of ice—one K-Cup at a time.

Six years ago, fans and industry observers asked Keurig: What can you do for cold beverages?

On Monday the company launched its long-awaited cold beverage system, Keurig Kold. The result involved 250 engineers and scientists, 10,000 consumers who participated in research, 50 patents issued and another 100 pending globally.

This plug-in machine offers Keurig’s same ease and convenience for single-serve cold beverages: carbonated sodas and flavored seltzers, still flavored waters, iced teas and sports drinks.

The good news:

Keurig Kold makes delicious soft drinks, perfectly carbonated without a CO2 canister, at the push of a button.

The beverages are delivered perfectly chilled, in 8-ounce glasses. Most servings are 100 calories or less, and there’s an excellent variety of low- and zero-calorie options.

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Keurig Kold: the coolest way to make cold drinks. Each Kold Pod makes an eight-ounce drink. Photo courtesy Keurig.

The Kold Pods create favorites like Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Dr Pepper and Canada Dry; craft sodas (e.g. Orange Cream, Spiced Root Beer, regular and diet, from brands like Flynn’s and Red Barn); plus plus lemonade, flavored waters, seltzers and iced teas (Tierney’s).

There are also sports hydration drinks; cocktail mixers are coming soon, starting with Margarita and Mojito.

Keurig Kold is imposing, cool, and at $369.99, a status symbol. You can get one at Keurig.com and selected retailers, in black or white.

What’s less than ideal:

The price tag. Even if it’s ultimately discounted, it would take a household with money to burn to choose this system over the 99¢ two-liter bottles or club store bargains (or the $59-and-up Sodastream).

Depending on the beverage, the pods are $4.49 to $4.99 for a four-pack. That’s $1.12 to $1.25 plus tax for an eight ounce drink.

The machine’s footprint is larger than anything else on your kitchen counter. The pods are similarly oversize.

The pods are recyclable #7 plastic, but not every municipality recycles #7.

The pods for Keurig Kold are big: at least three times the size of the K-Cups. Photo courtesy Keurig.

HOW IT WORKS
Insert a drink pod, press a button and the water in the reservoir is drawn into a proprietary chilling mechanism. When the water is cold enough (39°F), it gets pushes though Karbonator beads that are inside each pod—small, round beads that are perhaps the coolest part of the invention.

Water + beads = perfect carbonation. A secret imparted by Keurig: Carbonation absorbs into water best when the water is really cold.

IS IT FOR YOU?

Keurig Kold is impressive. It’s fun. And the drinks are delicious—they seem even tastier than if you purchased the same drink in a bottle or can.

The big question that vexes the NIBBLE folks who tried Keurig Kold is: Who is the customer for this machine? It must be a household that:

Doesn’t look for bargains.

Wants the latest, coolest wow item.

Has space for it.

Isn’t into sustainability.

Alternatively, it’s a wonderful plaything, a gift for people who have everything. If they already own one, there are other rooms in their home that could make use of another.

Would we want one? In an ideal world, yes; in our particular practical world, no. Even if someone gave us a Keurig Kold, where would we put it in our small home or office?

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