How To Make Refreshingly Clean Cold Brew Coffee

Iced coffee in Australia always comes with ice cream. It's near impossible to describe the American style to almost any barista. It normally results in judgement, reluctance and a hot coffee with ice. Which is disappointing given cold coffee, done correctly, is outrageously refreshing. Especially when it's warm outside. My barista conflicts has resulted in a DIY solution. Homemade cold brew. Which is easy, cheap, sophisticated and delicious.

So What's Cold Brew?

As the name suggests, we're using cold water to brew the coffee. The benefit of this style is it's healthier. Cold brew coffee has 50% less acidity which means it's gentler on your whole body, including your stomach.

How Do You Do It?

Cold brew is dead simple. All you need is coffee beans, water and a filter. I use nut milk bags to filter the beans out when I'm done. And that's the method I've recommended below but I've just discovered this awesome cold brew kit and sent myself a gift.

Even though the nut bag method is easy, this jug is next level. Removing every element of effort.

What About The Beans?

When it comes to the beans you can grind them up yourself. This is the grinder I have at home. Grind them course. You don't want fine coffee slipping through when you later strain it.

Or if that sounds too hard, then just buy them ground.

A clever lifehack for keeping ground coffee beans fresh is to store them in the freezer.

What Beans Do I Get?

It depends on the application. Coffee snobs will tell you that a single origin filter bean with a lighter roast will have the flavours talking more. And that works great if you're having the brew by itself. However, if you enjoy yours with a plant-based milk then you'll want something stronger. I find that an espresso bean roasted medium does the job best.

However, if any of this coffee jargon doesn't make sense then skip it. Pick up any bean and re-read this article in the future, when your coffee snobbery evolves.

Simple Cold Brew Coffee Recipe

Ingredients

Grinded coffee - 125g

Filtered water - 1000ml

Method

Place the two ingredients in a sealed container or jug

Stir once and let soak for 10-12 hours in the fridge

Strain off the coffee beans - we use a nut milk bag

Enjoy over ice - bonus points if you use some of the cold brew to form ice cubes so you don't water down your mix

We recommended making this combo before dinner and enjoying it first thing in the morning.

Also. You can recycle those coffee beans into a body scrub.

Now that you understand the blueprint, let's funk it up with a few alternatives.

Coconut Cold Brew Recipe

Ingredients

Grinded coffee - 125g

Coconut water - 1000ml

Hydration meets dehydration. This recipe is slightly sweeter and damn delicious.

New Orleans Cold Brew

Boom! Now this recipe is next, next level. Get your hands on chicory and make this outrageous combo.

Just make sure you buy chicory. When I first tried to make this combo I bought hickory instead! What a complete muppet. I didn't get very far with those wood chips :).

Ingredients

Grinded coffee - 150g

Chicory - 50g

Maple syrup - 2 tablespoons

Filtered water - 1000ml

Cold Brew w/ Homemade Almond Milk

Ingredients

Grinded coffee - 175g

Filtered water - 1000ml

We've made this one stronger to overcome the almond milk.

Buy handmade plant based milks from your organic grocer or make your own.