Who doesn’t want a smashable cold one in summer!? Cold brew coffee could be our answer to a morning schooner… and you can still drive to work. So here’s a little more about cold coffee & how to go about brewing it.
BREW WITH COLD WATER, WE SAY
Cold water keeps our brew stable, not giving bacteria the same opportunity to grow as hot filter that cools down.
With a cold brewer like the Hario ‘Mizudashi’ Coffee Pot, you can set & forget (for 18hrs). As the hot water is not extracting a lot of flavour immediately we don’t need to stress about over-extracting the coffee. Typically, we end up with a sweeter brew with more subtle acidity.
This method gives you a longer shelf life than ‘chilter’, of approximately 5 days.
BUT IF YOU DON’T HAVE A COLD BREWER…
If you’re already kitted out with your filter brew gear e.g. V60, Moccamaster, Aeropress then brewing & cooling it in the fridge – we call this method ‘Chilter’ – is no prob & can produce great tastin’ stuff.
Play around with grinding a little finer or up-dosing to pull up that brew strength too.
LEAVE BEHIND THE COLD DRIP
Cold brew & chilter are basically immersion brews; coffee grounds sunk into water & left for a few hours. These are more predictable than cold drip in our opinion. As long as we have a fridge & something to filter the coffee grounds, we’re all set. (We have brewed a one cup Aeropress cold brew.)
Cold drip is a method where water drips (imagine a leaky tap) onto a bed of coffee then works its way through the ground coffee. Typically, cold drip equipment is pretty big & needs a stable environment. It has a few variables that are tricky to control, such as knowing how fast/slow to set the drips for. There’s also no real way to ensure the coffee grounds are extracting evenly. (Until the brew has finished some 18-24 hours later).
All in all, cold drip is a bit old school… our drip towers have been banished to the storeroom in favour of cold brew, for some time now…but for sentimentality’s sake, here’s a photo of them in their heyday…
ICY COLD Q&A:
HOW TO GO ICY, BUT NOT WATERY?
You can alter the standard brew ratio (60g/L) to allow for ice. Example: 800ml water + 200g ice (1 litre total) will require a dose of 60g coffee.
WHAT GRIND SETTING DO I NEED FOR COLD BREW?
We recommend grinding coarser than you would for filter coffee and Aeropress. If you’re buying beans from our online store, select ‘Cold Brew’ in the grind dropdown menu and we’ll sort out the rest. If buying from your local café, we recommend asking them to grind coarse on the EK – we turn ours up to the max!
*A Mahlkonig EK43 is what most specialty cafes will be using to grind your coffee for home.
IS COLD BREW BIG ON CAFFEINE?
Caffeine content is similar to that of hot filter coffee, although the longer you brew, the more caffeine will be extracted.
IS IT SACRILEGE TO ADD MILK?
Nope, whatever floats your boat! We have written a recipe with more body & strength to add milk to. Our blends will work best when adding a milk of your choice.
As a general rule, just adapt your ratio to optimize the final beverage taste.
WHICH COLD BREW MAKER DO WE RECOMMEND??
The Hario Mizudashi makes brewing very easy. As mentioned above though, ‘chilter’ via your Aeropress, French press, etc will work well too. We’ve even brewed in a glass jar & then filtered through a V60 paper.
HAND OVER THE HARIO RECIPE:
Head straight here to nab our cold brew bundle with a rotation of single origins, handpicked by our roasters for a great tastin’ brew.
75g/L RATIO:
This is our recipe to add a splash of milk to. Sugarplum is at the top of our list for the festive season (think rum & raisin notes)
Go for a stronger brew made with our Reservoir blend for a more fruit driven coffee & Killerbee or Paradox for a more chocolatey and richer brew.
60g/L RATIO:
Again Sugarplum is our pick, for a festive brew brimming with citrus notes. Not a Sugarplum fan? Check out our latest single origin lineup for a light but dynamic cold brew.
Generally, Natural processed coffees will have more sugary fruit flavours with fuller body & Washed will have boosted acidity and more clarity.
RECIPE:
1_Weigh & grind your coffee to the coarsest setting
2_Pop the top, sit the filter in the carafe and sling your coffee grounds in
3_Pour 1 litre of room temp water over the coffee grounds
4_Give the carafe a swirl, making sure all the coffee is submerged in the water
5_Put the lid on, pop it in the fridge. We’ve had the best results brewing between 18-24 hours, but feel free to experiment!
6_ At the end of brew time, remove filter and dispose of coffee grounds to compost (the bottom cap unscrews for easy cleaning) and replace the lid
7_ You’re ready to serve your tasty cold brew. Enjoy black, or add a splash of milk
8_ Your cold brew will keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days
