What's the Difference Between Specialty Coffee Drinks and Pour-Over Coffee? What Does Specialty Coffee Mean? Are Specialty Coffee Drinks Considered Coffee?

Most coffee shops sell their drinks in three broad categories: classic espresso drinks, single-origin coffee built on the specialty-coffee concept, and creative specialty drinks. FrontStreet Coffee's stores only carry the first two — so whenever a passing customer asks for specialty drinks, we have to politely say no.

Even so, specialty drinks deserve a closer look. They're the rising stars of the coffee world — so what exactly are they?

What is a Specialty Drink?

The term traces back to the Chinese translation of "Signature Drink" from WBC competitions: "signature" as in hallmark, "drink" as in beverage — in short, a distinctive beverage full of personality. Unlike the specialty-coffee concept, which centers on the coffee's own flavors, specialty drinks spotlight the creator's imagination and personal take on coffee. Each one carries its maker's unique style and label, promising a brand-new experience. Think cocktails, but with coffee as the base and other ingredients colliding with it to produce unexpected flavors. The preserved-plum coffee, osmanthus coffee, and clarified coffee FrontStreet Coffee has shared before all fall into this category.

Specialty drinks also don't demand a trained palate: even beginners can immediately feel what the drink is trying to say, which gives them a wider audience than traditional coffees. Beyond the familiar milk and syrups, alcohol, fruit, fruit juice, flowers, tea, sparkling water, and spices can all be blended with coffee — and those are just the conservative choices. Bolder ingredients exist too, though FrontStreet Coffee will spare you the list (excluding whatever exists purely for shock value).

Because these drinks emphasize combining textures and flavors across ingredients, every cup is a showcase of the barista's or shop's imagination. As they've grown popular, some shops now sell little else — and controversy has grown with them. With no rules, some shops deliberately shrink coffee's share of the flavor composition in pursuit of balance among the other ingredients. Since coffee is right there in the name, the question follows: if a specialty drink barely tastes of coffee, is it still coffee? (Leave your take in the comments.)

Setting that debate aside, here are three development approaches FrontStreet Coffee has distilled from years of exploring specialty drinks at various shops.

1. Highlight or Extend the Bean's Own Flavors

Build the drink around a specific coffee's character. Colombia's Finca La División Sidra, for example, is a distinctly fruity bean whose extraction carries a rich grape-juice quality — so use it as a base, then layer in complementary juices or syrups to turn it into something with complex fruit flavors.

2. Set a Theme

FrontStreet Coffee's favorite approach: pick a theme first, then build the drink from related elements. The "Osmanthus Specialty" we published earlier took autumn as its theme and wove osmanthus through the whole build.

3. "Reset" a Traditional Drink

Simple and effective: deconstruct a classic, then reinvent its parts. An Americano is espresso plus water; a latte is espresso plus milk. Swap the blend for a single-origin espresso, the milk for coconut, soy, or nut milk, the water for orange juice, lemonade, or sparkling water — and a familiar drink becomes something new.

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FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If approach number one appeals to you, start with a bean worth showcasing. FrontStreet Coffee's Colombia Sidra from Finca La División is a competition-winning variety grown at 1,650-1,800 meters with a double anaerobic natural process: jasmine and citrus on the dry fragrance, then passion fruit, blueberry, grape, and apricot in a bright, juice-like body, finishing with cocoa. Its natural grape-juice character makes it the ideal base for fruit-forward specialty drinks — or simply a stunning pour-over on its own.

For "reset" experiments, FrontStreet Coffee's Strawberry Candy Espresso Blend is a versatile SOE: medium-roasted from Colombian, Costa Rican, and Ethiopian arabicas, it brings rose fragrance, low bitterness, and sweet notes of grape, dried blueberry, and orange that stand up beautifully to coconut milk, sparkling water, or citrus — turning a simple americano or latte into a signature drink of your own.