The team behind Vancouver's popular wintertime Hot Chocolate Festival have come up with a way for chocolatey drink lovers to enjoy something special in the warmer months.
Called Koolfest, the summer festival will feature the "region's craziest, most colourful and delicious iced drink creations."
The new fest will run July 19 to August 10 and has 50 "chocstars" (HCF's longtime nickname for vendors) with over 75 drinks to try.
The Hot Chocolate Fest shared a few intro details in June about the event on social media, including that the festival will feature a mix of veteran HCF vendors as well as some newcomers, and teasing prospective drink-seekers to keep their "kool."
"The flavours list will include drinking chocolate, frosty chocolate milkshakes, malts and mochas ... but also interpretive adventures with other cold drinks such as iced coffees and shakeratos, fruit juice coolers and slushies, floats, spritzers and mock cocktails, exotic iced teas and bubble teas, frozen affogado dishes and more!"
Koolfest will feature 50 vendors, 75+ cold drinks
On July 1, Koolfest revealed its list of participating vendors on its website, which can be toggled based on location, dietary specification (i.e. vegan, gluten-free), or other factors like "open late" or "takeout only."
The vendors span the region from North Vancouver south into Richmond, all through Vancouver and east into Burnaby, Coquitlam, and Port Coquitlam, with a couple of outliers as far north as Whistler and southeast as Langley.
You'll find mango drinks at both Vancouver Beaucoup Bakery locations, while Gastown's recently-opened Chocolats Favoris has a pair of chocolate shakes to check out. Gem Chocolates is working with flavours like ube, yuzu, and toasted coconut for its affogato-style drinks that pair a scoop of ice cream or sorbetto with a "shot" of hot chocolate.
Little Pisces, which opened a second location this May in Richmond, has bevs like Hojicha Horchata Milk and Matcha Banana Milk Floats, while Coquitlam's Doughnut Love is pouring Iced S'mores Cold Brew for Koolfest.
To help cold drink seekers find their "kool," the fest organizers have made an interactive vendor map.
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