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Cold brew coffee is becoming more and more common nowadays. We are all busy every day, so busy that we don't even have a moment to go buy a cup of coffee. So, cold brew coffee is the fastest way to get a cup of coffee right now. At Starbucks, a cup of cold brew costs at least several dozen yuan, but if you make it at home yourself, it only costs a few yuan to easily make a delicious and refreshing version—why not do it~

The fermented aroma and refreshing coolness of cold brew make you feel instantly relaxed, and even in autumn and winter, it makes you recall its taste. You only need to spend a few minutes preparing the ingredients, then put it in the fridge, and you can drink it the next day! The key point is that if you can't finish it, you can put it back in the fridge, seal it, and keep it refrigerated to drink later! What needs to be noted is that the longer cold brew coffee sits, the stronger its fermented feel becomes. Therefore, the taste you drink each day will also differ. Front Street recommends finishing it within 3-4 days.

What is cold brew coffee?

Cold brew coffee is Cold Brew Coffee. Ground coffee powder is placed in a professional device, cold water is added in proportion, and then it is refrigerated in the fridge, generally for 12 hours. (If you want a fuller body, you can also extend the time to 24-48 hours); afterward, the coffee grounds are filtered out, and the resulting coffee liquid is cold brew coffee.

Low temperature and long extraction time are the two major characteristics of cold brew coffee. Compared with hot-brewed coffee, its flavor and mouthfeel are noticeably stronger, with less bitterness and astringency, and a smoother texture. This kind of coffee, which sounds quite labor-intensive, is actually much simpler to make than imagined. You can understand it this way: soak coffee grounds in cold water - put in the fridge to steep overnight - filter out the coffee grounds - done. To put it poetically, "What you drink is not just a cup of coffee, but also a long wait."

The characteristics of cold brew coffee

Because the cold brew process takes place under low-temperature conditions, the long contact between water and coffee grounds means that only small-molecule flavor substances are extracted; therefore, only small molecules such as fruit acids and floral aromas are dissolved, while larger-molecule flavor substances, such as smoky and roasted notes, are difficult to extract. As a result, cold brew coffee has lower acidity and astringency, and is generally welcomed by everyone.

What coffee beans are used to make cold brew coffee?

Front Street would recommend everyone try beans that are natural, washed, or specially processed. The reason is simple: the cold brew coffee made from them has greater distinctiveness and better sweetness~

African beans are characterized by intense floral aromas and alluring fruit acidity; the acidity is lively and delightful. But their body is often very thin. As for balanced American beans, such as coffees from Panama & Costa Rica, they have obvious floral and fruity aromas, excellent acidity, and are not lacking in body, especially honey-processed beans, whose fermented notes are even richer. Recommended are three coffee beans: Front Street Mozart, Front Street Strawberry Candy, and Front Street Baha.

tips:

The long extraction of cold brew coffee gives the coffee distinct layers and obvious sweet aftertaste;

While compensating for the thinness of African beans, it also suppresses the sharp acidity of African beans at low temperatures.

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee): Yirgacheffe Gedeb Dingding Coffee Beans

Country: Ethiopia   

Region: Yirgacheffe   

Altitude: 1850-2100m   

Processing method: Washed        

Grade: G1      

Variety: Heirloom

Flavor: White florals, citrus, red plum, medium acidity

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee): Honduras Sherry Coffee Beans

Country: Honduras    

Region: Marcala   

Estate: Mocha Estate    

Altitude: 1500-1700m       

Variety: Caturra, Catuai, Pacas   

Processing method: Refined washed whisky sherry barrel fermentation

Flavor: Vanilla, whisky aroma, honeydew, dark chocolate finish

FrontStreet Coffee: Colombia Papayo Coffee Beans

Region: Huila   

Estate: Diviso Estate   

Altitude: 1700m

Variety: Papayo 

Processing method: Double anaerobic natural

Flavor: Passion fruit, grape, dried apricot, citrus, fermented notes

FrontStreet Coffee: Panama Butterfly Coffee Beans

Region: Boquete, Panama   

Variety: 70% Geisha, Caturra, Catuai

Altitude: 1600-1650    

Processing: Natural

Flavor: Classic Geisha flavor, citrus, tea-like

Of course, you can also choose the following creative methods:

\Add sparkling water/

Front Street tried using soda water to make cold brew coffee and found that the concentration would be on the higher side. The reason is that before the soda water is put into the fridge, in soda water cold brew the coffee grounds float on the upper layer, and as the bubbles rise they "collide" with the coffee grounds. After reaching 13 hours, when taken out of the fridge, the coffee grounds have already sunk to the bottom of the bottle. During the soaking process, the coffee grounds moved from top to bottom, making it easier for substances to be extracted from the coffee grounds.

But the [Cold Brew Yirga] made by Front Street with soda water smells of richer berry aromas!

Observe the coffee liquid: although there are no bubbles, drinking it gives the feeling of bubbles colliding in the mouth~

\Add milk/

Generally, choosing light-roast beans means you want to drink floral and fruity aromas and a sweet-and-sour feel, so it is mostly drunk straight. If it is dark-roast beans, the taste is heavier, so this type of richer cold brew coffee made with dark roast can be mixed with milk to create a fragrant, pure, and smooth mouthfeel. However, different dairy products used for mixing also produce different mouthfeels.

They can be divided into two categories: one is fresh milk, and the other is creamer balls (cream type). Because fresh milk contains more water, the mouthfeel when mixed with fresh milk is more refreshing and the body is thinner; but if mixed with cream-type creamer balls, because the water content is lower, the overall mouthfeel is richer and the body is thicker. When Front Street makes cold brew coffee, adding milk without sugar makes it a cold brew coffee latte. It tastes naturally sweet with a pleasant aftertaste.

\Add alcohol/

Front Street thinks that if you can add a little Irish whiskey or brandy, it also has a distinctive flavor. Actually, of course you can add any alcohol, but Irish whiskey is made from grains, unlike Scotch whisky, which is mostly made from barley. Of course, if you want an alcohol-free drink with a boozy flavor, you can also try FrontStreet Coffee Honduras Sherry. This one is processed with whisky barrel fermentation and has rich flavors of whisky, cream, and vanilla, making it especially suitable for customers who want coffee with a boozy flavor.

Summary

This experiment used room-temperature water to make cold brew coffee, and the overall feeling was unexpectedly good! As for choosing coffee beans, it's still the same: everyone can just go by their own taste!

You can now purchase Front Street Coffee single-origin coffee beans and espresso blend coffee beans at the Tmall "Front Street Flagship Store." 60 kinds of coffee beans from around the world, freshly roasted and shipped within 24H.

Tmall link: https://qianjieshipin.tmall.com

Or you can directly search "Front Street Flagship Store" on Taobao

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.