Yes, that's right, you read that right - we're finally talking about cold brew, also known as cold brew coffee. This drink is probably the trend of the summer and since we already have around 20 degrees here in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, we would like to prepare you for the hot days. Making cold brew at home is probably one of the easiest preparation methods and can even be stored as an extract in the fridge for up to two weeks. In this blog post you will find out how and with what you can easily make your cold brew at home, what coffee you need and how you can spice up your cold drink with different recipes.
As the name suggests, cold brew is not brewed with hot water, but extracted in cold water. This process can take several hours. What is the advantage of this? Quite simply, around 70% less acids and bitter substances are dissolved than in coffee brewed with hot water. The taste is therefore very fruity and refreshing. By extracting in cold water, the time can also be extended quite easily, which means that the longer we extract the coffee, the more we literally get out of it. A longer brewing time creates a kind of concentrate of the coffee, which we can then dilute and spice up with various ingredients. Basically, however, our rule of thumb is: depending on the type of coffee, around 100 - 150g of coffee per liter of water.
But which coffee is actually suitable for this preparation method? Basically, we recommend that you use one of our light filter coffee roasts, such as one of our two coffees from Rwanda , Ethiopia Washed or our current Easter coffee . But you can of course also use our medium coffee roasts for this - we recommend: Honduras , Panama or Ethiopia .
But now finally to the actual preparation - at home or on the go, when traveling you can easily prepare cold brew with the help of the Cold Brew Maker from Hario . Thanks to the removable filter inside the glass bottle, you can not only prepare cold brew with ease, but also transport your energy supply and even serve it straight away thanks to the sealable silicone lid. The filter is of course reusable, it really doesn't let any coffee grounds through and is "hacked" into the upper part of the lid, so it literally floats in the bottle. By the way: After removing the filter, it can easily be cleaned by hand under running water. With one of our cold brew bottles you can prepare around 650ml. But how much coffee and water do you actually need for this?
Depending on the coffee you choose, we recommend using around 75 - 100g of coffee for the Hario Maker. We then simply pour water in through the top outlet after inserting the filter and closing the actual lid on the bottle. How far? Of course, until the entire filter is wetted with water from the coffee. The degree of grinding also plays an important role here, the ground coffee should be coarsely ground. We recommend letting the coffee extract for at least twelve hours!
Tip: If you don't have a cold brew maker to hand, you can use any container. Simply add the coffee and water, seal the container with cling film and put it in the fridge. After the brewing time, filter the cold brew. You can use your Chemex, for example, or your hand filter including filter paper.
Now that you have finally prepared your cold brew, here are a few recipe suggestions to refine your new favorite cold drink. The easiest method is of course to serve it on ice cubes , with a slice of lemon and/or orange if desired - which is our personal favorite. This simply preserves the taste of the coffee and is not influenced by other factors.
A little tip : If you would like twice the amount of caffeine, you can also make ice cubes from the cold brew concentrate. To do this, simply pour a little into the ice cube tray and put it in the freezer.
The second variant is our so-called Vanilla Brew , where we serve the cold brew on a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and if you like you can also add a small dash of milk. Definitely the right choice for all Affogato lovers out there - simply delicious and creamy!
Our ginger brew is guaranteed to cool you down. You will need ginger beer for this, ideally from Bundaberg. Depending on your taste, we recommend serving around 1/3 ginger beer and 2/3 cold brew in a glass with ice cubes, mint and lime.
You can also make the whole thing with tonic water instead of ginger beer, but we recommend adding a small splash of agave syrup. And if you don't want to do without the lemon completely, you can add a zest to the glass.
Are you more of a fruity and tangy type ? Then we have something for you among our recipe suggestions. The two types of fruit juice, passion fruit and grapefruit, are ideal for mixing with a batch of cold brew. Unlike the previous preparation, we recommend a mixing ratio of ½ to ½ - depending on your taste and intensity, of course!
Some of you might just like the cold brew with a dash of milk . But isn't plain milk a bit boring? Right! Why not try something different, maybe a plant-based nut milk with a chocolatey coffee, we think you'll definitely like it.
And if our suggestions aren't enough for you, you can of course experiment a little and get creative at home. The motto is: next summer can come!
Enjoy it!
