Going nuts for Aussie ALMOND milk!

Do you want a dairy alternative that doesn’t taste like a cardboard box?  After picking up Alternative Dairy Co.’s oat milk, we were offered their almond milk to try as well. When deciding on alternative options early on, Alternative Dairy Co. wasn’t a brand of milk we had used before and so this relative newcomer…

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Do you want a dairy alternative that doesn’t taste like a cardboard box? 

After picking up Alternative Dairy Co.’s oat milk, we were offered their almond milk to try as well. When deciding on alternative options early on, Alternative Dairy Co. wasn’t a brand of milk we had used before and so this relative newcomer was passed over for consideration in favour of an oldie but a ‘goodie’.

I say ‘goodie’ because like most, I agree that almond milk is very much an acquired taste and personally it didn’t taste like almonds to me. I used to describe the flavour of almond milk as similar to (what I imagine – I haven’t actually done it) the flavour you get if you were to lick the cardboard box your most recent online order arrived in.

We were happy with the oat milk though, and we have a good relationship with the supplier, so we thought we’d give it a shot to seem polite and make sure we weren’t actually missing out on something wonderful.

Alternative Dairy Co. have one goal – ‘Create plant-based milks that are perfected for cafés.’ In this regard, they seem to be hitting the nail on the head. When we got a sample of the almond milk we tried it out and we couldn’t taste it. All we got was the smooth, wonderful coffee flavour from the beans we’ve worked so hard to roast to near perfection. We asked some regular almond milk drinkers to taste test and give us feedback and they almost unanimously wondered if we’d accidentally served them dairy milk as they couldn’t taste any of that almond flavour they’d grown used to. We worried for a minute that this might actually be an issue! Did almond milk drinkers actually like that cardboard taste? But no, they had simply grown used to it and come to accept it as a way of like if they wanted to drink coffee. They had chosen almond for health, dietary or ethical reasons and they were committed to staying away from dairy milk. They loved the Alternative Dairy Co. option.

So we looked into the info behind this wonderful little blue carton and discovered that not only did it taste good, but it was made with Aussie almonds and at least 97% total Australian ingredients! This is great news for those that are restricted to dairy alternatives but are also conscious of the issues facing the Californian almond industry (producers of over 80% of the world’s almonds) The almonds Alternative Dairy Co. use are grown right here in Australia, in the Murray-Darling Basin. Aussie made with 97% Aussie ingredients sounded like the icing on a great tasting cake. To add a nice little cherry as one last extra bonus, the almond milk is also Gluten Free for those who need to be wary of gluten.

As we added all three Alternative Dairy Co. milk options to our menu we decided that we no longer needed to source Lactose Free milk. It doesn’t heat well, it was the only item left we were getting from a certain supplier and we didn’t actually sell very much. As with any product cuts though, we had a few lactose free loyalists that were resistant to change. So we made a big call and offered for them to try the almond milk, as we believed it didn’t have a strong almond flavour, and if they didn’t like it then we would give them their money back. With nothing to lose they all made the change, were pleasantly surprised, agreed it was a great milk option and even sent friends and family in to try it out too!

So next time you’re in The Roastery or buying from The Bearded Brewer Caravan or Pop Up, remember that there is a great new almond option available, be brave, give it a go and say goodbye to that cardboard flavour for good.

Zoe – Manager

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