For me, there is nothing quite as refreshing as cold brew coffee. I’m all about riding my bike to my local coffee shop for a tall glass of this cold, caffeinated heaven, but, some days I just don’t have time to make the trip. On those days, Present-Me thanks Past-Me for procuring a store-bought bottle of iced coffee to keep in my refrigerator. Sure, it’s not quite as good as the real thing, but it does the trick. “But, wait!” says Present-Me, “What if I learned how to make the real thing at home so that I could have cold brew bliss whenever I wanted?” Future-Me is getting excited just thinking about it.
Cold brew coffee is the delicious result of steeping coarsely ground coffee beans in water for at least 12 hours. Its long brew time may seem extreme, but it is totally worth it. Because the grounds are never exposed to heat, it has a cleaner, more balanced flavor than typical iced coffee (which is often just old drip coffee poured over ice). Not only does cold brew coffee taste better, but it also has more caffeine (which is extra important if, like me, you regularly have a stack of books that need reading). Although the resulting beverage is undeniably luxurious, the process for making cold brew is quite simple. You just need to plan ahead! Here is how you make cold brew coffee at home:
Grind your beans
This first point may seem obvious, but a great batch of cold brew starts with really good coffee beans. Pick your favorite roast then grind very coarsely. There should be large chunks of bean in your grind if it is done correctly. Too fine a grind will result in cloudy coffee.
Get the right size container for your batch
The ratio of coffee to grounds is somewhat subjective (depending on how strong you like your coffee), but Katie uses the 1:1 ratio. That’s 1 lb of coffee beans to 1 gallon of water. To make less or more, simply do some conversions. Just make sure to weigh the coffee as opposed to measuring it with scoops/cups for best results.
Add Water
Put your ground beans and an appropriate amount of water in a large container. A french press works well, but any old mason jar with a lid will do. If you’re going big batch, make sure you can get all the water and grounds in your chosen vessel.
Stir
Now stir the coffee grounds to make sure they are all wet.
Wait…
Let your cold brew steep for at least 12 hours. Complete the first two steps on a Friday night to enjoy your cold brew Saturday morning.
Press
To separate the liquid from the grounds, place a cheesecloth or a very fine mesh strainer over the top of a second container and pour in your cold brew. Discard the solids and the cheesecloth, then…
