Exploring Cold Brew Coffee: Varieties, Recipes, and Tips

While exploring the flavourful world of coffee, you might have come across a new term called “cold brew” and wondered what is cold brew coffee? How does it differ from regular coffee people have? Cold Coffee in general is any coffee that is served chilled but cold brew differs from it due to its distinctive brewing method. For reference, we have two types of basic brewing techniques: hot brewing and cold brewing; just as the name suggests, hot brew is brewed using hot water and instant coffee that results in an instantly made coffee that can be served hot or chilled. Cold brew on the other hand is a more well-defined and slow process where coffee is brewed in cold water for an extended time of 12-24 hours.

You'll surely be able to make amazing cold-brew coffee after following this guide. Here, we’ll be exploring cold brew recipes, types of cold brew coffee and tips to make the perfect cold brew coffee. 

TABLE OF CONTENT

In this Guide, we’ll take a look at

• What is Cold Coffee? 
• How to Make Cold Black Coffee?
• What is Cold Brew Coffee?
• How to make Cold Brew Coffee
• How to serve cold brew coffee
• Types of Cold Brew Coffee
• Tips to Make Successful Cold Brew

Read further, you’ll surely find out which one of these coffees resonates with you

What is Cold Coffee? 

Cold brew broadly is classified as any coffee that is served cold. This chilled beverage can include various categories of coffee like frappe, iced mocha, macchiato, iced latte, or cold brew. It can be prepared in 2 ways-

1. Prepare by hot brewing the coffee and then pour over cold milk or ice
2. Brewing the coffee cold which we will be explored below

Cold coffee is an appealing drink for coffee lovers who want something refreshing and want to explore the different flavour profiles cold coffee has to offer.

How to Make Cold Black Coffee?

Black coffee is just coffee that has nothing extra added- no cream, no sugar, or any sweetener.  Simply put, black coffee is just coffee and water. People prefer drinking cold coffee because it boosts energy and enhances focus. 

Here’s what you need to do to make Black Coffee- 

Hot Black Coffee:

1. Boil water on medium heat for about 5 minutes
2. Add instant coffee and sugar to a cup
3. Pour the hot water over the coffee mix
4. Stir well and it's ready to drink

Cold Black Coffee:

1. Start by adding coffee and sugar into a glass (coffee should be stronger than usual as it is going to be diluted by the melting ice)
2.  Add room-temperature water to the mixture
3. Let the coffee sit in the refrigerator for 4-5 hours
4. It is ready to be served

Iced black coffee is similar to cold black coffee, but it just needs one extra step to be added to the cold black coffee recipe. After refrigerating the black coffee, serve the coffee over ice cubes in a tall glass and it’s ready to be sipped. Iced black coffee only differs from cold black coffee with the extra ice added at the end while serving.

What is Cold Brew Coffee?

Cold brew coffee is prepared using a unique brewing method that requires coffee grounds to be steeped in cold or room temperature water for an extended period, recommended to be 12-24 hours. This slow process of brewing cold brew results in a coffee concentrate that is smooth, less acidic, and naturally a bit sweeter. Cold brew can surprisingly be served cold as it is, or hot by heating the brew.

Best Coffee Grounds for Cold Brew

Choosing coffee grounds for your cold brew merely depends on your personal preference. Go ahead and pick your favourite coffee grounds to achieve a flavourful cold brew that you’ll enjoy. But, remember that the grind size matters. While grinding the coffee make sure the coffee is coarsely grounded and not finely ground or else it will clump the coffee. If you already use pre-ground coffee that is finely ground, then make sure to not brew it for too long (3-4 hours less is preferred).

How long is Cold Brew Good for?

When talking about cold brew’s longevity, it can last up to weeks. If refrigerated at 4-10 °C, cold brew can last up to 2 weeks without losing any flavour or any quality being hampered. However, keeping cold brew at room temperature will result in spoilage of the cold brew within 6 hours. Therefore, it is recommended to keep cold brew in the fridge to keep it fresh and retain the flavour.

How to make Cold Brew Coffee

Cold brew coffee can be made easily at home with just a few ingredients and tools. You'll need coffee beans, a grinder, a huge jar to brew the coffee and a mesh cloth, that's it. Precisely follow the steps given below to make a perfect cold brew. 

1. Coarsely Grind the coffee beans

Take your favourite coffee and bring a grinder. Grind the coffee on the coarsest setting and make sure to avoid fine-grind coffee. The fine ground coffee will make the flavour extraction process faster resulting in a bitter taste. To avoid that make sure the coffee beans are coarsely ground.

2. Add the Ingredients

Transfer ¼ cup of ground coffee into the container being used to make the cold brew and then add 1 cup of water. Stir gently to make sure the coffee grounds are saturated with water.

3. Steep Overnight

Cover the jar/container with a lid. Whether you decide to leave it at room temperature or in a refrigerator, the brewing time remains to be 12 hours. 

Why 12 hours? The slow process allows the cold brew to extract the real coffee’s taste and aroma. It results in a different flavour profile than the traditional hot brewing method. 

(remember to not brew the coffee for more than 24 hours or else the bitterness will become extremely prominent)

4. Filter the Coffee

Strain the cold brew through a coffee filter. Use something like cheesecloth or flour sack cloth to strain.

5. Serve Chilled

Serve the cold brew straight out of the fridge and sip into the goodness of coffee.

How to serve cold brew coffee

There are various ways to serve cold brew: 

1. You can serve cold brew by simply going for the classic cold brew with ice, dilute cold brew 1:1 water or choice of milk to reduce bitterness. 
2. Add your favourite milk or non-dairy alternative to the cold brew in equal halves. Add sweeteners like vanilla syrup or maple syrup if wanted. Serve over ice for a creamy cold brew latte.
3. Create a cold brew cocktail by mixing your favourite spirit in a small amount. You can add vodka and coffee cold brew and serve the ever-delicious cold brew martini. There are various ways to make your personalized cold brew cocktail, just go and experiment with your favourite liquors.

Whether you prefer to drink a shot of cold brew or dilute it with water/milk or even if you want to take it a step forward with cold brew cocktails just remember that cold brew is a delicious canvas ready to provide you with various flavourful experiences.

Types of Cold Brew Coffee

Cold Brew Coffee has gained immense popularity because of its smooth flavour and low acidity levels as compared to transition hot brewing method. There are various types of cold brew coffee to be enjoyed. Here are 5 variants of cold brew coffee you can try out:

Classic Cold Brew

As the name suggests, it is the regular way to make cold brew coffee. All you need to do is steep cold water with coarsely ground coffee beans for about 12-24 hours. This will result in a fresh cold brew coffee with a clean finish.

Nitro Cold Brew

Nitro cold brew coffee has nitrogen infused into the cold brew. The drink is first prepared as a regular cold brew and then nitrogen is infused into it.  Nitro cold brew is then served through a tap. The nitrogen bubbles result in natural foam on top of the nitro cold brew.

Sparkling Cold Brew

It is made by adding either sparkling water or soda into regular cold brew. Add ¾ cup cold brew and ⅓ cup sparkling water. The fizziness of soda and strong flavours of cold brew result in a perfect refreshment for summers. 

Irish Cream Cold Brew

Irish cream has nuttiness in it and offers notes of vanilla and chocolate. Add ¼ cup irish cream liqueur to cold brew coffee to get a rich and flavourful drink. The balanced flavours make it a perfect drink for special occasions.

Flavoured Cold Brew

There is no limit to the flavours that can be added to cold brew coffee to make it complement your palate. Start by adding little amounts of these flavours into your cold brew and then start increasing the concentration if needed. Top 3 flavours are:

- Coconut Water

- Vanilla Extract

- Salted Caramel

Tips to Make Successful Cold Brew

While making a cold brew is not rocket science, some points need to be kept in mind to avoid any mess-ups and achieve the perfect cold brew coffee at home. 

• Grind Coarsely

Coffee beans need to be well-ground without creating a fine grind that’ll result in an overly fast brewing process creating a very bitter cold brew.

• Filtered Water

Use filtered water for cleanliness and to enhance the sweetness of cold brew coffee.

• Steeping Time

A minimum of 12-15 hours of steeping time is mandatory to create the perfect cold brew but avoid over-steeping (more than 24 hours) to prevent the bitter taste.

• Keep it Cold

Maintain an ideal temperature of 2-10°C to keep the cold brew fresh and keep flavours intact for up to 2 weeks.

FAQS

There are different types of cold brew coffee which include - Regular Cold Brew, Nitro Cold Brew, Sparkling Cold Brew, Irish Cream Cold Brew, Vanilla Cold Brew

There are various types of cold brew with no end to them. Some of the popular ones are nitro cold brew and vanilla cold brew.

Cold brew coffee, when consumed neat, is generally strong but it gives a sweet after taste. If your cold brew is too bitter there might be many reasons such as over extract, too less water quantity or exposure to light and air.

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