How to Brew Iced Pour-Over Coffee? What's the Ice Ratio and Parameters for Iced Pour-Over?

Iced pour over coffee, more accurately described as "rapid cooling pour over," involves brewing hot coffee normally and then rapidly cooling the coffee liquid from hot to cold using ice cubes (rapid cooling with ice).

Of course, just as observing a barista's process while drinking coffee at a café makes it difficult to replicate the exact same flavor, the challenge lies in the parameters. Regardless of the coffee extraction method, the essential parameters always include grind size, water temperature, coffee-to-water ratio, and time. If you directly apply the brewing parameters for hot pour over coffee to iced pour over coffee, the final coffee will become very weak and lack flavor.

Therefore, the first parameter to adjust is the coffee-to-water ratio. Based on the principle that pour over coffee starts strong and becomes weaker toward the end, using less water will result in more concentrated coffee liquid, so it won't become too diluted after adding ice. However, this creates a second problem: with less water, the substances that should be extracted in the later stages aren't extracted, leading to insufficient extraction rate. This way, the concentration is adequate, but the flavor is lacking.

At this point, two parameters can be adjusted: grind size and water temperature. A finer grind allows coffee particles to release coffee substances more easily; increasing water temperature can also improve extraction efficiency. You can choose to adjust the grind size based on the actual situation, or choose to adjust the water temperature, or both. FrontStreet Coffee suggests adjusting the grind finer first, as this will affect another passive parameter—extended extraction time, which aligns with our purpose.

The principles have been explained fairly well. As for how much to reduce the ratio, how much finer to grind the coffee, and how much ice to add, there's no standard answer, but you can refer to FrontStreet Coffee's approach. When we have the same coffee beans, we don't necessarily need to "copy" all the parameters back home. To make iced pour over coffee like what you drink in the shop, you only need to learn one "universal formula":

Iced Pour Over = Coffee powder (fine grind) + 10x hot water + 5x ice cubes.

Regarding filter cones, if you prefer rich and bright fruit acidity, you can first choose conical filter cones like V60; if you prefer rounded and balanced coffee characteristics, you can prioritize flat-bottom cake filter cones to enhance the immersion extraction effect. Additionally, try to choose larger ice cubes, as they won't melt too quickly in hot coffee.

Choosing the Right Coffee Beans

As the saying goes, choosing the right coffee beans means half the battle is won. For iced pour over, FrontStreet Coffee tends to prefer light to medium roasted coffee with fruity acidity, prioritizing origins from Ethiopia, Panama, Colombia, and Costa Rica. These coffees are often processed using natural, honey, or anaerobic fermentation methods, and when made into iced coffee, they often exhibit excellent aroma while maintaining a refreshing mouthfeel.

Today's Demonstration

For today's demonstration, FrontStreet Coffee has selected the recently popular FrontStreet Coffee Alo Hattesa. This bean originates from the Bensa town in Ethiopia and is naturally processed. Whether served hot or cold, it always presents elegant magnolia flower notes, tropical juice sensations, and a candy-like aftertaste. FrontStreet Coffee's light roast iced pour over coffee uses the following parameters:

Coffee amount: 15 grams
Water amount: 150 milliliters
Ice cubes: 100 grams
Grind size: EK43s setting 9.5 (85% pass-through rate on #20 sieve)
Water temperature: 92 degrees Celsius
Filter cone: V60

First, place the ice cubes in the server, then place the filter cone and filter paper, and pour in the coffee powder. First, inject 30ml of water for a 30-second bloom.

For the second pour, inject 60ml of water using a center-outward spiral pattern returning to the center. When the water level in the coffee bed is almost finished dripping, start the third pour, injecting 60ml with the same pouring technique. The extraction time is 1 minute 30 seconds to 1 minute 50 seconds.

Through a shaking motion, thoroughly mix the ice cubes with the coffee liquid while feeling its temperature with your hand. When it's sufficiently cold, you can begin to enjoy it.

This brewing method produces FrontStreet Coffee's natural Alo that initially presents mouthwatering sweet and sour notes reminiscent of yellow peach, sweet orange, preserved fruit, and dried mango, with an overall tendency toward yellow drupe fruit characteristics. Due to the stirring motion, the coffee not only has rich fruit acidity but also carries a refreshing sweetness. Under the cooling effect of the ice cubes, it's like drinking a glass of refreshing grape juice.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473