Cold Brew Coffee

Cold brewing is the process of soaking coffee grounds in water at cool or room temperature for an extended period. Coarse-ground beans are soaked in water for a prolonged period of time, for 12 to 24 hours. Cold Brew Coffee is popular because this method produces great flavor with less acidity.

The water is normally kept at room temperature, but chilled water is also used. The grounds are filtered out of the water after they have been steeped using a paper coffee filter or a fine metal sieve. The result is a coffee concentrate that can be used in a variety of ways.

Because the ground coffee beans in cold-brewed coffee never come into contact with heated water, the process of extracting flavor from the beans produces a chemical profile different from conventional brewing methods. Brewing at a lower temperature results in lower acidity and lower caffeine content when brewed in equal volume. It is around 65 to 70 percent less acidic than hot drip coffee or espresso. Although less caffeine is extracted with the cold brew method, a higher coffee-to-water ratio is often used, which can lead to comparable caffeine levels. Cold Brew is a method of coffee preparation, whereas Iced Coffee is a way to serve coffee.

How to make Cold Brew Coffee

Cold Brew

Cold brew is made in batches, the resulting brew can then be stored and served in a variety of ways. Generally, there are two types of Cold Brew: Concentrate and Ready to Drink.

The difference comes down to the ration of water to coffee.

Ready to drink is generally made with a ration of 1 pound of coffee per 2 gallons of water.

Concentrate uses a ratio of 1 pound of coffee to 1 gallon of water.

At home, a French press is ideal for making small batches of cold brew coffee, for commercial applications, we recommend the Brewista Cold Pro 2.

The process is the same, soak coffee in cool water for 12 to 24 hours and the filter out the ground coffee. The exact ratio of coffee to water, and the time spent together are variables you can experiment with.  Cold Brew should be stored in the refrigerator and consumed within two weeks.

How to Serve Cold Brew Coffee

Cold brew concentrate is diluted with water or milk, and is served hot, over ice, or blended with ice and other ingredients such as chocolate. Ready to drink cold brew need not be diluted.

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