Love Cold Brew? Learn the Best Coffee For Cold Brew
Best Coffee For Cold Brew
Coffee at its simplest…that’s cold brew coffee. It is perfect for coffee lovers in the hot summer months and a great way to get new flavor profiles out of your favorite coffee roasts. So, what is the best coffee for cold brew?
The best coffee for cold brew is a medium or dark roast. The lower acidity and tendency toward chocolate and hazelnut flavors in darker roasts gives a cold brew a more rounded taste. Light roasts should be avoided as they extract too much acidity.
Even though cold brew coffee is simple to make with no specialist equipment, there are still a few top tips and tricks to keep in mind. Keep reading to brew up your knowledge of cold brew coffee!
What Is The Best Coffee For Making Cold Brew?
While you can use any coffee to brew a cold brew coffee, some coffees will give you a better flavor and drinking experience than others.
At the top of the list of the best coffee for cold brew are blends or single origins that are low in acidity.
As mentioned earlier, the darker the roast of coffee, the less acidic the beans are. Because of this, medium to dark roast coffee is usually the best choice.
But many people find their favorite hot brew coffee isn’t their favorite cold brew coffee. The good news is that this gives you an excuse to try new coffees you wouldn’t have tried before.
Does Grind Size Matter For Cold Brew Coffee?
Coarse ground coffee is best for a cold brew. Your cold brew will need to fully steep to get the best and smoothest flavors out of the coffee. A coarse grind will allow the water to penetrate the coffee and circulate through it.
A very fine grind can trap air pockets so that no water gets to some of the coffee and will sometimes make a ‘coffee mud’ at the bottom of the brewing container. Neither of these is what you want in your cold brew.
A fine grind of coffee may also extract too much flavor because a fine grind has a greater surface area. While this may sound like a good thing, it is more likely to produce a bitter brew that overpowers the flavors you want in a cold brew coffee.
The best way to work out what grind you should use is to experiment with small batches of coffee until you have found the perfect grind size.
Is Cold Brew And Iced Coffee The Same Thing?
They most certainly are not the same!
Many people will use the two terms interchangeably, but iced coffee is hot brewed coffee that is cooled and poured over ice to make it cold. People often then add milk and sugar to iced coffee and many times even flavored syrups.
On the other hand, cold brew coffee is slow-brewed using only cold water and is almost always enjoyed without milk or sugar, letting the flavor of the coffee speak for itself.
Other Tips For a Great Cold Brew Coffee
Play around with the length of time you let your cold brew steep. Some coffees may require 14 hours to get the perfect flavor, while others will require as much as 24. A cold brew should be steeped typically for a minimum of 12 hours and usually no longer than 24 hours.
Use the best water you can, preferably filtered water. Removing the harsh chemicals from the water before a cold brew will give the flavor of the coffee space shine without competing with chemical tastes.
Experiment with room temperature water and cold water. Some argue that cold water is best so try the same cold brew in each and find the result that works best for you.
Conclusion
Cold brew coffee is simple to make and produces some of the best-tasting coffee. The best coffee for cold brew (or at least the most recommended) is a medium to dark roast coffee with chocolate and nut flavors. Make sure your grind is coarse, and keep experimenting!