How to Make Pour-Over Coffee with Brazilian Cold-Water Processed Coffee Beans_How to Make Iced Brazilian Pour-Over Coffee?

About Brazil Cold Water Process Coffee

Country of Origin: Brazil

Region: Paraná

Estate: Fazenda California

Altitude: 800 meters

Variety: Yellow Catuai

Processing Method: Cold Water Fermentation

The wine-like mouthfeel is the defining trait of this coffee. The estate owner crafted it from fully ripe cherries picked late in the harvest and processed by cold-water immersion—defying the common disdain for low-altitude Brazilian beans. As a custom micro-lot with an innovative process, it presents flavors of strawberry, blueberry, cream, and wine. The pronounced sweet-tart berry-wine character comes from the interplay of citric acid, tartaric acid, and fructose. The lively, layered acidity, the faint tannic grip, and a thick yet smooth texture can easily be mistaken for wine in the cup.

Estate Introduction: Fazenda California

Fazenda California was first established in the 19th century in Jacarezinho, Paraná State, Brazil, at 23 degrees south latitude. As one of the largest coffee producers of its era, the estate accumulated deep growing experience and advanced field-management techniques, and it works with both traditional and innovative processing methods. Its management team includes one PhD in coffee cultivation and two Q-graders.

Fazenda California earned UTZ and Rainforest Alliance certification in 2004. The main varieties planted are Catuai, Mundo Novo, and Obata, processed in a range of ways: natural, pulped natural, double fermentation, washed, and honey. The estate was a finalist in the Brazil Cup of Excellence international auction in 2010 and 2015.

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Parameter Recommendations

How to Brew Brazil Cold Water Process Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee pour-over reference: weigh out 15 g of Cold Water Process coffee, grind to a medium grind—slightly coarser than table salt. We use a BG grinder at setting 6A (about 50% pass through a standard sieve). Water temperature: 88°C, brewed on a Kono or Kalita dripper, with a recommended coffee-to-water ratio of about 1:14.

Pour hot water from the kettle in clockwise circles centered on the middle of the dripper, starting your timer as you begin. Pour to 30 g within 15 seconds, then stop. At the 1-minute mark, pour again, using the same clockwise motion around the center. Keep the stream away from the edge where the coffee bed meets the filter paper to avoid channeling.

Leave one ring clear when the water reaches the outermost circle, then work back toward the center ring by ring. At 2 minutes 10 seconds the coffee should have reached 210 g, completing the brew.

Japanese-Style Iced Pour-Over [Cold Water Process]

FrontStreet Coffee iced pour-over reference for the Brazil Cold Water Process: use a medium-dark roast, BG grinder setting 5R (about 60% sieve pass rate).

Dose 20 g of coffee, 150 g of ice, and 150 g of hot water. Set the water temperature 1°C higher than the standard recommendation of 88°C. For regular brewing we grind on a Fuji roaster grinder at setting 3.5; for iced pour-over, go half a notch finer at setting 3. The recommended ratio of coffee to (water + ice) is 1:15.

Bloom with 40 g of water for 30 seconds.

Then pour in segments: 60 g of water in the first segment, 40 g in the second. Use a relatively thin but tall water column to stir and agitate the coffee bed vigorously so the grounds roll fully. Be careful not to let the liquid level rise too high, and avoid hitting the filter paper at the edge.

Total extraction time is approximately 2.5 minutes—similar to the normal extraction time for a 20 g dose.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If this wine-like Brazilian micro-lot intrigues you, the FrontStreet Semi-Washed Cerrado Red Bourbon is a classic starting point for exploring Brazil. Cerrado is one of the country's best-known quality regions, and this medium-roasted red Bourbon delivers aromas of creamy peanut, toast, caramel, and hazelnut with a round, balanced cup—only a touch of bitterness and very little acidity.

Beyond pour-over, it also shines through a moka pot, as an espresso SOE, in a siphon, or in a French press. For a rarer take on Brazilian flavor, the FrontStreet Fazenda Rainha Yellow Bourbon from Mogiana adds a distinctive sugarcane sweetness alongside fruit and chocolate notes.