Cold Brew

[hammondc]

I have come to absolutely LOVE cold brew. Not iced coffee......cold brew. It is the only way I have ever liked it black with absolutely nothing added. Starbucks (yeah..I know) medium roast cold brew is my favorite. Does anyone have some tips on doing it at home so I can quit paying $5+ per container at Publix?

I have:
A decent grinder: Baratza Encore
a 30 oz French Press.

I have read that when you brew, it should be 1cup ground beans to 4 cups water. This will make a cold brew concentrate that should then be cut 50% with water to consume.

[markem]

I have the Takeya pitcher. It works well and the grounds are removed after brewing so that the pitcher can be used for storage.

I like it, but also like iced coffee that I can make quickly with my aeropress. The aeropress is what I typically use unless I am expecting company.

[hammondc]

OK...I think I need that pitcher. What coffee beans do you use?

[markem]

Originally Posted by hammondc

OK...I think I need that pitcher. What coffee beans do you use?

I get my beans from Ninja Warrior Coffee Roasters, https://ninjawarrior.coffee/

The roaster is known here as techninja, but he isn't on much these days due to his day job and helping run his wife's coffee shop / roastery.

[bonjing]

Try the onyx cold brew, if you go to their site they also have a video on their cold brew page on recommended ratio. One of the cold brews I have enjoyed.

[Wharf Rat]

I’ve got the sorta typical 1 liter Bodum French press. I use 8 scoops (unground) of beans, coarsely ground in a cheap Cuisinart grinder. Fill with filtered water and steep in the fridge for a day or two. I do not dilute this, but I probably drink a little less than traditionally brewed.

I use different beans but mostly prefer medium or light roast. If they are in your area, try the Lidl Breakfast Blend, medium roast.

[T.G]

Half gallon mason jar. Dump the ground coffee in, pour water on top, stick it in the fridge overnight. Grinds will have sunk by then, so decant the coffee off and when the sludge starts to creep up, do not set the mason jar upright, you must keep it tilted and keep the slow deliberate pour but now its going into a prepped chemex. I don't worry about the last 30% of the grinds at the bottom. Nor will press the grinds, as it releases a lot of bitter tannins. What drips, drips. Also, I found a seep longer than around 14 hours to be bitter and have off tastes.

[hammondc]

Originally Posted by T.G

Half gallon mason jar. Dump the ground coffee in, pour water on top, stick it in the fridge overnight. Grinds will have sunk by then, so decant the coffee off and when the sludge starts to creep up, do not set the mason jar upright, you must keep it tilted and keep the slow deliberate pour but now its going into a prepped chemex. I don't worry about the last 30% of the grinds at the bottom. Nor will press the grinds, as it releases a lot of bitter tannins. What drips, drips. Also, I found a seep longer than around 14 hours to be bitter and have off tastes.

so you use the chemex to strain it?

[T.G]

Originally Posted by hammondc

so you use the chemex to strain it?

Gently decant as much as possible and then right as the grinds make it up to the neck of the jar then start pouring into the chemex.

Could certainly pour the entire brewing container though the chemex, the problem is, that once you tilt the container and start decanting, you really can't put it down, it has to stay at an angle. As slow as a chemex filter runs, that would be a long time holding the jar at an angle.

[mosesbotbol]

Why not just brew it in a gallon and when it comes time to pour, pour into a french press and then strain it? Or strain through a regular sieve?

[T.G]

Originally Posted by mosesbotbol

Why not just brew it in a gallon and when it comes time to pour, pour into a french press and then strain it? Or strain through a regular sieve?

I would have thought a wine guy would understand the concept and reason for decanting.

I was obviously mistaken.

[physiognomy]

Fwiw, I’m a big fan of the Filtron system. 1lb fresh-roast to 64oz water makes a great concentrate.

https://www.filtron.com/

[mosesbotbol]

Originally Posted by T.G

I would have thought a wine guy would understand the concept and reason for decanting.

I was obviously mistaken.

Decant through a strainer unless you don't care about bit of coffee left over in the jug.

[AdamJoshua]

Originally Posted by physiognomy

Fwiw, I’m a big fan of the Filtron system. 1lb fresh-roast to 64oz water makes a great concentrate.

https://www.filtron.com/

How long do you let it sit? Just ordered the Fliltron

[T.G]

Originally Posted by mosesbotbol

Decant through a strainer unless you don't care about bit of coffee left over in the jug.

That's what I said to do...

I don't personally care if I get all the coffee out of the brew vessel. I'd rather leave a bit behind than get the crap that comes along with grinds and end runnings.

You should see how much we send out as bio-waste from the bottom of a fermenter after we crash it. Or the dregs of the lagering tanks. And then we still run most of them through a filter afterwards.

[physiognomy]

Originally Posted by AdamJoshua

How long do you let it sit? Just ordered the Fliltron

Cool. You’ll like it. I generally steep twice for ~24hrs each. Second time with half the water (32oz), then mix both batches. It takes a little strength off the concentrate, but not too bad. I inevitably share with family/friends, so it keeps me from running through multiple pounds of fresh-roast each week.

[AdamJoshua]

So did 16 oz of coffee, regular grind from the store, so not as much coffee output, but wow it doesn't take a lot of make a glass of cold brew, doing the half water and re-use that batch and will mix them.

Bought some course ground today, that will be the next batch, luckily our local grocery does a lot of 2 for 1 coffee special so it's even cheaper, either way it's better and cheaper then hitting up dunking and paying 3.73 for a large cold brew.