DIY: Cold Brew Coffee
What baristi could learn from bartenders
29. August 2017Dalgona Coffee & Cocktail
22. May 2020Cold Brew coffee is becoming increasingly popular both in terms of pure enjoyment and at the bar for mixing. A small guide. In the case of an Immersion Brew, the increasing popularity is probably due to the relatively simple preparation, reproducibility and the low amount of equipment and work involved.
As the name "Cold Brew" suggests, this is a cold brewed coffee. The coffee is extracted using the immersion process. The coffee grounds are covered with cold water and macerated for several hours, sometimes days. Depending on the preparation, the result is a particularly low acid, mild and round coffee.
As a rule, a distinction is made between a concentrate and cold coffee, whereby the amount of coffee in the first case is increased in proportion to the water.
Preparation:
Probably the most frequently asked question is how I prepare a Cold Brew.
Let's start from scratch.
Apart from the different beans and varieties, coffee is basically divided into filter roasts (lighter) and espresso roasts (darker). For a cold brew it is recommended to use a filter roast.
Filtet roasts are generally lightr than espresso roast.
There are several reasons for this, but one of the most important is that espresso roasts are usually much more bitter. There are exceptions here, too, as there are now many espressos that are roasted much lighter than some filter coffees. As a rule, however, it won't work if you go to your mill at the bar and get a few portions of coffee there.
Once you have found the right beans, you should think about the grind. It should be much coarser than what comes out of your espresso grinder. Here you can orientate yourself roughly on the particle size of refined sugar.
If it is ground too finely, the coffee grounds compact to form a thick layer of sludge at the bottom of the container and can no longer be extracted by the water. The result is an under-extracted and, despite a fine grinding degree, thin coffee.
If the coffee is ground too coarsely, the water does not have enough surface to dissolve the substances. The coffee also becomes thin and the brewing time is significantly extended.
Next, ratio is interesting!
Here one can orient oneself, both for Cold Brew, and for normal filter coffee, at the following guideline value:
6 gr Kaffee / 100 ml Wasser
Once this is done, the coffee is poured with cold water and left to stand at room temperature. The longer, the stronger the aroma. This is called an immersion brew, which is the simplest method.
There are special jugs for this (e.g. Mizudashi jug from Hario, or the Toddy Brewer for those who have big plans). These have partly already integrated filters. For the beginning however each coverable container is sufficient.
After brewing, the coffee can be poured through a coffee filter. This filter should be rinsed with hot water to avoid a paper taste.
You can now adjust the amount and grind of the coffee and the brewing time to your taste.
This is how you can adjust the taste of your cold brew:
- more coffee -> strong concentrate
- Grindind setting finer = more surface -> stronger taste in shorter time
- more time -> more aromas can be dissolved = more intense aroma
What matters now is what the finished coffee is to be used for.
At Standl20 we mostly offered Cold Brew for pure enjoyment. For this you choose the same amount of coffee as for a hot brewed one: 6 gr / 100 ml water.
In order to obtain the required aroma, we leave it to steep for 24 hours before filtering it.
However, it is also possible to brew a concentrate with, for example, 12 gr / 100 ml and 12 hours and then dilute this again with ice cubes, water or milk before consumption. In terms of taste, however, it will give a different result.
For use in cocktails, I tend in most cases to use a concentrate to avoid unnecessary dilution of the drink. Unless the Cold Brew serves as a filler.
The bottom line is that by adjusting the individual variables, you can adjust the coffee to suit your needs. Which makes it very interesting.
In this sense...have fun experimenting!
Cheers!
quelle: brewing bartender
