What is Cold Brew Coffee? Is All Cold Brew Coffee Served Cold? Flavor Profile of Cold Brew Coffee

What Is Cold Brew Coffee?

Cold brew coffee, also known as cold brew, refers to the process of steeping coffee grounds in cold water below 5°C for an extended period of time, allowing fermentation to occur, which typically takes 8-12 hours, after which the coffee grounds are filtered out. This method can be done at home without the need for professional equipment, yielding a texture similar to cold brew, making it very simple and easy to operate. It is also one of FrontStreet Coffee's favorite iced coffees.

Cold brew coffee increases in sweetness and smoothness while reducing acidity. Essentially, cold brew is a brewing method, not a serving method.

Are All Iced Coffees or Cold Coffees Considered "Cold Brew"?

Coffee brewed using hot water extraction methods, whether served hot or cold, is not cold brew coffee. Cold brew can also be understood as a marketing term. First, it is not coffee extracted with hot water and then refrigerated before sale. Instead, it refers to coffee extracted at ambient or lower temperatures. The resulting product can then be refrigerated or served over ice.

Is All Cold Brew Coffee Served Cold?

Cold brew refers to a brewing method, not a serving method. It can even be consumed warm: in American history, concentrated cold brew was diluted with boiling water and primarily used as a hot beverage (this was before iced coffee became popular). Cold brew is also an ingredient in many recipes.

How Does Cold Brew Extraction Work?

Compared to traditional hot water extraction, cold brew extracts are typically steeped for longer periods at lower temperatures. This combination of lower temperature and longer contact time can produce unique sensory and quality characteristics.

What Are the Sensory and Flavor Characteristics of Cold Brew?

The flavor profile of cold brew coffee can be significantly different from coffee brewed at higher temperatures. When evaluated side by side, the same beans brewed using cold or hot methods may taste the same or dramatically different. Typical cold brew characteristics include: less bitterness, smoother texture, and more delicate flavors.

How to Grind Coffee for Making Cold Brew?

If you are buying coffee beans from a coffee shop, you can have the barista grind the beans for you first, provided you tell them you are making cold brew coffee. If you want to experience the complete aroma and flavor of coffee, FrontStreet Coffee suggests using a home grinder to grind your own beans, choosing a consistency similar to raw sugar. When using a China No. 20 standard sieve with an 80% pass rate, the resulting cold brew coffee will have the fullest flavor.

Coffee Bean Recommendations for Cold Brew

Since cold brew coffee is made using low-temperature steeping, which effectively suppresses the release of bitterness, there are not many restrictions when selecting coffee beans.

If you prefer sweet and sour flavored cold brew, FrontStreet Coffee recommends FrontStreet Coffee's Fruit Candy, FrontStreet Coffee's Strawberry Candy, and FrontStreet Coffee's Flower Queen, three premium coffee beans that are not only rich in fruit aroma but also present delicate sweet and sour flavors under low-temperature extraction. If you prefer balanced flavors, FrontStreet Coffee recommends Diamond Mountain, FrontStreet Coffee's Kaffa Forest, and FrontStreet Coffee's Geisha Village Chaka, which have an excellent balance of sweet, sour, bitter, and aftertaste. And if you only love rich, dark-roasted coffee, start with FrontStreet Coffee's Queen's Manor, FrontStreet Coffee's Bird of Paradise, FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling, and FrontStreet Coffee's Huilan, all single-origin coffees.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

For cold brew, FrontStreet suggests starting with beans that hold their fruit under low-temperature steeping. FrontStreet's Strawberry Candy blends a Panamanian Geisha with a Costa Rican honey-processed coffee, giving rose and orange notes on one side and grape, raisin, and strawberry-fudge sweetness on the other. Served cold it is sweet and lively, and if left to settle it can even taste like fruit wine.

If you want a floral, juice-forward cold brew, FrontStreet's natural Hambela from Ethiopia absorbs plenty of sweetness from the fruit during drying. Steeped cold, it shows magnolia, creamy strawberry, dried mango, guava, and black tea. For a fuller juice-bomb character, FrontStreet's Kenya Tomato, from the Sika region at 1550-1750 meters, brings bright cherry tomato, smoked plum, snow pear, and black plum notes that shine at low temperature, and its K72 double-washed processing keeps the cup clean.

For a lighter everyday cold brew, FrontStreet's washed Gedeb cooperative coffee, with its clear citrus and floral character and honeyed sweetness, is a natural for the method, showing sweet berry and honeyed layers when steeped cold.