Wawa and Cape May Brewing Co. release a boozy ‘Shore Tea’

Wawa’s gone downashore for its latest boozy collaboration, a hard peach tea called Shore Tea, made in conjunction with Cape May Brewing Co.

The limited-edition beverage, which uses Wawa’s Peach Iced Tea and Cape May Brewing’s “adult libations,” clocks in at an easygoing 4.5% ABV, according to a news release.

Shore Tea will be released Thursday at all of Wawa’s beer stores, including a new one in Langhorne, where the brewers will be on hand for the store’s grand opening and the official ribbon cutting of the first cases.

“We were excited when Wawa reached out to us with the possibility of collaborating. We’re huge fans, and many of our crew members make Wawa a regular part of their routines,” Ryan Krill, chief executive officer and cofounder of Cape May Brewing Co., said in a news release. “We’re thrilled that we have the opportunity to continue to expand into the hard beverage space with an incredible partner to bring fans a product that they’ll love.”

An early sampling of Shore Tea — or “Shortie,” as my significant other insists on calling it — proves it to be sweet, slightly effervescent, and refreshing. If you like flavored teas, hard teas, and making new friends at the Shore, you’ll probably like this. As soon as you pull out anything that says “Wawa” and “ABV” on the same can, people from Delco are bound to find you, so be prepared.

James Fox, director of brewing operations for Cape May Brewing, said the company approached the process of making this tea similar to how they make their hard seltzers.

“We kept it simple, just like if you were going to make tea at home. Fortunately, we were able to use the same ingredients that Wawa uses in their peach tea,” Fox said in a news release. “After the alcohol was added, we had several benchtop trials to dial in the ratios and flavors. We are really happy with how this turned out; it’s easy to forget that it’s hard tea.”

Yes, yes it is, dear friends, so be sure to grab a hoagie or a soft pretzel to help soak up the booze.

Shore Tea is Wawa’s first collaboration with Cape May Brewing Co. Last summer, Wawa released a Sunfest Strawberry Lemonade Shandy with Delco-based 2SP Brewing Co. that proved to be a popular addition to their line of winter beers, which are made with Wawa’s coffee products.

By getting into the hard tea game, Wawa is tapping into an already popular market in the Philly area. In 2020, Twisted Tea announced that the Philly region was epicenter for Twisted Tea Light consumption in the United States.

Wawa will officially release Shore Tea at the opening of its newest beer store at 639 E. Lincoln Highway, Langhorne, at 8 a.m. Thursday. Fox and Wawa’s senior manager of concept development, Michael McLaughlin, will be on hand for the events. The first 100 guests will receive a Wawa and Cape May Brewing Co. “tea-shirt” (we see what you did there).

Shore Tea will also be released Thursday at Wawa’s 14 other stores in Pennsylvania that carry beer and it will be available at select beer retailers on July 25. A six-pack for Shore Tea will run you $12.99.

On Saturday, Cape May Brewing will host a launch party with live music and giveaways at its tasting room at 1250 Hornet Road, Rio Grande, N.J., inside the Cape May Airport complex.

The companies are also holding a sweepstakes where fans can win Wawa swag and an “in-depth” tour of Cape May Brewing Co.’s facilities by one of its brewers. To enter the sweepstakes, which runs through July 25, visit @Wawa on Instagram for details.