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Cold-Brewed Coffee


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1 hour ago, funkyfood said:

I agree. Much better than compass, which I find to have a bitter taste.  Vigilante's is the only one I prefer.  Only thing with LC is rarely, but sometimes you'll get a sour cup of the cold brew.

Am I alone in thinking that "cold brew," i.e., bottled iced-coffee, is as much of a scam as bottled water?

Is there something about cold brew that I'm missing? Because to me, it tastes like coffee that I leave overnight in my refrigerator, tightly sealed so it doesn't get off-the-charts disgusting - and they sell it for about $3 for 12 ounces. 

Until convinced otherwise, I think coffee companies have done nothing more than elbow their way into the grab-n-go beverage field, carving out a niche in an already-full market.

I mean, good for them, but this has about as much appeal to me as spending $3 on 12 ounces of Perrier, or for 6 ounces of lousy, industrial, coconut water.

Oh, I have no doubt that there's some sort of "process" where making the coffee takes longer, because cold water doesn't leech the beans as quickly as hot water does, but ... so what? I see absolutely nothing of virtue in this - convince me that I'm wrong, and I might buy into it, but in the entire history of bottled beverages, why hasn't this happened until recently? And why has every single Tom, Dick, and Harry jumped aboard the speeding locomotive?

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I can't say I have much interest in seeking out cold brew coffee, but the cold brew they send home with you after a meal at Pineapple and Pearls is pretty special. It holds up well enough that I drink it two straight days with no noticeable (to me) degradation, since my husband doesn't really like coffee and I get his bottle too.  (I realize that is a different beast than cold brew sold by a massive commercial operation.)

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Don, you're missing something. Cold brew doesn't have to be bottled and in fact I've never found a bottled version I like. Cold brew refers to how it is made: instead of just chilling hot coffee, it's cold the entire brewing process, which requires more beans and 12-24 hours instead of a few minutes, and is therefore more expensive.

Cold brew tastes much different from regular iced coffee maker. None of the burnt bitter taste, much more natural sweet chocolately notes 

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I make my own cold brew with this coffee maker.

It does take a little planning but one pitcher lasts me the week. It is a lot smoother than regular brew iced coffee and easy for me since I only drink coffee cold anyway.  I have never loved the bottled stuff.

I make mine with Zeke's Balinese beans usually.

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I've been doing the Toddy cold brew thing for about 5 years. Pound of coarsely ground beans soak overnight in 9 cups of water resulting in about 6 cups of concentrate that lasts a week for the two of us.

I put 3 ounces of the concentrate in a 16 ounce mug, add cream and boiling water to fill, so morning routine is faster then brewing coffee. Makes coffee much less acidic -- my wife could not tolerate coffee but drinks this every day with no problem. Flavor is good but I buy different beans almost every time I make it looking for the "one."  I've even tried beans allegedly roasted specifically for cold brewing but couldn't detect any difference.

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So I drink a lot of espresso - love a good cup vs an average cup.  The cold-brew process (lengthy) helps remove a lot of the acidity and as funkyfood noted creates a sweeter brew, I believe the caffeine concentration increases as much as twofold.  There is a big push in the cold brew process, with Nitro-brew which infuses cold brew with Nitrogen - the result is almost a Guiness-like coffee.  If you are so inclined to try, it is worth it.  

Oct 13, 2016 - "Nitro Cold-Brew Coffee Is Suddenly Everywhere" by Jessica Sidman on washingtonian.com

Trader Joe's offers a cold brew concentrate that is pretty good in a pinch.  When our espresso machine went in for repairs I supplemented with the TJ's Cold Brew - it was decent.

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On 6/19/2017 at 3:55 PM, tfbrennan said:

I've been doing the Toddy cold brew thing for about 5 years. Pound of coarsely ground beans soak overnight in 9 cups of water resulting in about 6 cups of concentrate that lasts a week for the two of us.

I put 3 ounces of the concentrate in a 16 ounce mug, add cream and boiling water to fill, so morning routine is faster then brewing coffee. Makes coffee much less acidic -- my wife could not tolerate coffee but drinks this every day with no problem. Flavor is good but I buy different beans almost every time I make it looking for the "one."  I've even tried beans allegedly roasted specifically for cold brewing but couldn't detect any difference.

I just ordered my Toddy yesterday. Anxious to give it a try!

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On 6/19/2017 at 4:46 PM, Ferris Bueller said:

I believe the caffeine concentration increases as much as twofold. 

That would explain the amazing concentration I have when I drink it. seriously.

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13 hours ago, funkyfood said:

Don, you're missing something. Cold brew doesn't have to be bottled and in fact I've never found a bottled version I like. Cold brew refers to how it is made: instead of just chilling hot coffee, it's cold the entire brewing process, which requires more beans and 12-24 hours instead of a few minutes, and is therefore more expensive.

Cold brew tastes much different from regular iced coffee maker. None of the burnt bitter taste, much more natural sweet chocolately notes 

Got it - when I've had it at real coffee shops, it's different; I guess I should have put this in Shopping & Cooking since I was originally talking about the store-bought versions; but this is turning into a good conversation on its own.

God I'm tired - tired enough where I chose to spend $200 on a hotel instead of driving an hour.

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What you get from coffee shops should be either from a keg or from a pitcher, not from a bottle, ideally.

@ALB i had a brewer just like that but just broke the glass, so i got a toddy. the first batch is brewing as we speak.  dear god does it use a lot of coffee.  @tfbrennan i noticed that you said you use 9 cups of water, instead of the recommended 7, why is that? also, do you brew it in the fridge or room temp? i'm surprised it doesnt come with a lid to put on while brewing too.

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10 minutes ago, funkyfood said:

What you get from coffee shops should be either from a keg or from a pitcher, not from a bottle, ideally.

I suspect this is a lot like cold-macerating grapes before making wine - it really does make a difference, and is a much more gentle (and controlled, and expensive) way of extracting the must before fermentation.

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@funkyfood, it does use a lot of coffee!! but still cheaper to use good beans in that, than picking up coffee on the way in to work. but yeah, a lot of coffee... 

For those who are considering it, I use 14 T for 4-5 days of coffee I think. It makes a concentrate and then you add ice/water/milk as you see fit. It is a lot, but I drink one cup a day. If you drink many cups a day, then this may fail the cost/benefit.

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On 6/19/2017 at 10:33 PM, funkyfood said:

What you get from coffee shops should be either from a keg or from a pitcher, not from a bottle, ideally.

@ALB i had a brewer just like that but just broke the glass, so i got a toddy. the first batch is brewing as we speak.  dear god does it use a lot of coffee.  @tfbrennan i noticed that you said you use 9 cups of water, instead of the recommended 7, why is that? also, do you brew it in the fridge or room temp? i'm surprised it doesnt come with a lid to put on while brewing too.

My original directions are for a pound of coffee and 9 cups of water. I see the Toddy instructions on their site now call for 12 ounces of coffee and 7 cups of water.  Maybe because 12 ounce bags of coffee predominate? Here is a 2013 site from someplace else that has my directions: 

Mar 9, 2013 - "Brewing Methods: Toddy Cold Brew Coffee Maker" by Cafe Moto on cafemoto.com

My container sits out on the counter overnight, uncovered. Concentrate empties through the bottom via a filter, so I assume anything that may land on the grounds would have to fight its way through the grounds and filter to get into the concentrate. The water/coffee grounds mixture is so thick that there is no equivalent of standing water.

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