Dunkin’ testing 48-ounce cold brew bucket — will New Jersey be next?

There is something about a bucket that makes food and drink feel like an event. A bucket of fried chicken on the kitchen table. A bucket of shrimp at the boardwalk. Popcorn in a bucket at the movies. Even beers in a bucket down the shore in July. Dunkin' already does buckets of Munchkins, which feels right. Now they are testing something that pushes that idea a little further.

Dunkin’ testing 48-ounce cold beverage bucket in New England

According to Delish and Newsweek, Dunkin' is piloting a 48-ounce “Cold Beverage Bucket” at select locations in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. The price is around nine dollars, and the drinks come pre-filled. There is not much room for customization, which honestly feels beside the point when the selling feature is the size. The bucket has a handle, a lid, and an extra-long straw. Social media has done what social media does. Some people are begging for a nationwide rollout. Others are joking about heart palpitations and caffeine overload.

The test markets make sense. New England is Dunkin’s home base, and if something is going to catch on, it will start there. Forty-eight ounces is not subtle. It is not the cup that fits in the car holder and disappears into the commute. It is the kind of drink that announces itself the second it lands on a desk.

New Jersey Dunkin’ fans remember Route 31 runs in Ewing

I will admit something. I am not the biggest cold brew guy. My order is simple. Large hot black. Sometimes a vanilla cream donut if the morning calls for it. At the station, we run on Dunkin’. There are complimentary Dunkin’ pods in the break room that power me through the Judi and EJ Show every day. About a decade ago we even had a Dunkin’ club. Every afternoon someone made the run to the Route 31 location in Ewing and came back balancing a cardboard tray loaded with custom orders for half the staff. It was organized chaos, and it worked.

ALSO READ: Your daily NJ coffee may lower dementia risk 

Will the Dunkin’ cold brew bucket come to New Jersey?

So while cold brew has never been my first choice, I can appreciate the ambition here. As the weather starts to turn, I get more open to iced coffee. A 48-ounce bucket with a handle feels less like a drink and more like a commitment. It feels like something that sits next to the soundboard and dares the afternoon slump to try something.

Right now it is only in parts of Massachusetts and New Hampshire. That is fine. Test it. Tweak it. But let’s not pretend New England is the only region that understands caffeine. If this thing really delivers, New Jersey will be ready. There is a radio station here that could probably put a few of those buckets to very good use.