What's the Difference Between Quicksand Iced Americano and Regular Iced Americano?

To this day, the quicksand iced Americano still holds a place in creative coffee thanks to its outstanding appearance.

Through the transparent cup wall, we can see many sand-like substances continuously falling, just like quicksand. It's mainly made using espresso + water, which is why people call it "quicksand iced Americano"!

Its preparation method is quite simple—just inject air into the coffee! Additionally, the "quicksand" preparation isn't necessarily limited to espresso options; pour-over coffee can also work. So next, FrontStreet Coffee will analyze how this "quicksand" should be made!

The Principle of Coffee "Quicksand"

Actually, its principle is similar to frothing milk foam. By injecting air into the coffee liquid, the proteins in the liquid envelop the air, forming larger bubbles! Then through repeated frothing, these large bubbles are cut and decomposed into many tiny bubbles. The proteins on the surface of these bubbles bond with each other due to mutual adhesion, becoming a foam structure mixed into the liquid. Then, when we pour it into the cup, these lightweight small bubbles inside the liquid are shaken, causing displacement between each other or creating larger gaps due to breakage. As a result, these bubbles at the bottom begin to float upward through these gaps, while water molecules sink downward, ultimately creating the "quicksand" landscape we see!

So we know that "quicksand" isn't something only espresso with crema can create—pour-over coffee can also do it, though there's not much need to~ Despite this, FrontStreet Coffee still made it specially, please enjoy~

(Good kids shouldn't learn from this, so FrontStreet Coffee won't provide parameters~)

How to Make Quicksand Iced Americano?

As we mentioned earlier, the "quicksand" effect is created by injecting air into the coffee liquid to form small bubbles. So among the tools we use daily, there are quite a few that can inject air. But before learning, let's first understand the ratio of espresso to ice and water. Only by choosing the right ratio can the resulting quicksand iced Americano avoid being warm (due to insufficient ice) or a tasteless coffee (due to excessive dilution).

The quicksand iced Americano evolved from the regular iced Americano, so we just need to adjust based on the regular iced Americano! FrontStreet Coffee's iced Americano is made by extracting 40ml of liquid from 20g coffee beans over 30 seconds, then combined with 100g of ice and 140ml of room temperature water! For the quicksand iced Americano, it's 70ml of room temperature water, 40ml of espresso, and 170g of ice! Basically, replace about half of the original room temperature water with ice to use during frothing!

Methods to Make Quicksand Iced Americano

1. Coffee Machine Steam Wand

This is the simplest and most convenient method. First, prepare a 300ml transparent glass cup with 100g of ice as backup. Then pour espresso, 70ml of room temperature water, and 70g of ice into the frothing pitcher, and froth like making milk foam: first inject air to form large bubbles, then immerse the steam wand into the coffee liquid to create a vortex for cutting and smoothing. Stop frothing once all the ice has melted, then pour into the cup and you're done~

2. French Press

The French press is truly a wonderful tool—it can brew coffee, froth milk foam, and do so many things~ Use the same ratio to fill the glass cup and French press separately, then start frothing the bubbles!

One point to note: the French press frothing method is quite different from the steam wand frothing method! But the principle is the same. When we start frothing, first press slowly with large amplitude several times to inject air and form large bubbles. After the bubbles form, change the speed and amplitude, using fast, small-amplitude, high-intensity pressing to cut the large bubbles. You can stop pressing when the ice is almost melted, then pour into the glass cup and you're done!

3. Manual/Electric Frother

Use the same ratio to fill the glass cup and any container separately, then you can start the frothing process! The operation is very similar to the French press frothing method—first slowly inject air to create large bubbles, then slightly immerse the frother head into the coffee liquid to create a vortex, increase speed to cut the large bubbles, and the frothing is complete when the ice is about to melt!

Tasting Notes and Final Tips

Regardless of which preparation method you use, the quicksand iced Americano has a very smooth and delicate texture, giving people the pleasure of drinking foamy beer! Compared to regular iced Americano, besides the difference in appearance, it's this layer of smoothness. Although it loses a bit of refreshing quality, it's still very comfortable~ The ratios can also be adjusted according to your own taste and equipment. FrontStreet Coffee is just providing a reference here~ Finally, one important note: FrontStreet Coffee stores don't offer quicksand iced Americano products~~~

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FrontStreet Coffee

No. 10, Bao'an Qianjie, Yandun Road, Dongshankou, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473