Column Tier List: Best Coffee and Matcha

Graphic by Laura Menchaca

As a coffee and matcha connoisseur, I have gathered a tier list of some of the best coffee and matches the Rio Grande Valley has to offer. From corporate to local coffee shops, the list is complete in ranking these caffeinated drinks. Being the picky person I am, I believe that a quality drink must have the necessary components that some people may not take the time to sit, think and judge.I like my coffee balanced, not overpowered by sweetness from the creamer or sugar, or their coffee tasting like straight-up coffee. The same goes for matcha lattes, the taste has to be just right for it to not taste like straight-up plants. Taking the time to find the perfect drinks that fulfilled my requirements meant spending a lot of money on overpriced drinks, unfortunately, and time. Below is my list of drinks ranked from my favorite to the ones that are still really good, and a description as to why I believe they deserve the recognition they need. Let me preface this:I am ranking iced drinks. In my opinion, iced drinks just taste better than hot drinks. The best places to get great local iced coffee and matcha are Reserva and Southern Roots. Southern Roots offer this very unique drink that once I tried it, I could not go back. It is called the Iced Honey Lavender latte.I never would have thought the flavor of lavender would be so enjoyable, they use honey as one of the main sweeteners, and it elevates the drink into tasting like an authentic drink that is not processed with ingredients you would find in chain places. Along with the taste of strong coffee is very much present, they add this sweet cold foam that makes the coffee creamy and sweet, which balances my whole idea of the coffee not being too sweet or too strong.

Reserva offers several unique flavors of coffee and matcha as well. Their iced caramel latte passes the test on the perfect balance of sweet and strong coffee flavor, and their matcha has this perfect hint of honey and vanilla sweetness that compliments the strong, plant-like flavor of matcha. Below are these local places that offer really good coffee and matcha at an affordable price. You cannot go wrong with Starbucks, they offer the most known flavors, adjust to your liking of sweetness, substitute ingredients according to your liking, and are so fast to deliver. My favorite drink from Starbucks, is the iced shaken espresso with almond milk, without the classic syrup, and instead substitute two pumps of sugar-free vanilla syrup. On top of that, they sprinkle some cinnamon, and it adds this tanginess.Starbucks also has the creamiest matcha that just makes you want to go back and get it. They nail the syrup combination and make the matcha taste like a dessert that does you no harm. A very underrated iced coffee that I always rave about and have since been able to get people on board is the iced original coffee from Chick-fil-A. The price for iced coffee is pretty affordable, it costs approximately three dollars, which is already half of what you pay at these other places. I believe what makes their iced coffee taste different from others is that they only use 2% milk.To some that may be a big no, because they might not eat dairy, but for those that can handle dairy, please try it. The reason I believe the original flavor is better than the vanilla one is that the vanilla tastes like a straight-up cupcake, and the original is much more subtle with the vanilla flavor.All in all, I think these are the best places to enjoy a cold caffeinated drink, and everyone reading this should check them out.