What is Ice Brick Latte? Detailed Steps for Making Ice Brick Americano Shared

Being lazy could be considered the nature of modern workers. If you want to know just how "lazy" people are today, their actions will tell you: if it can fit in one bowl, they'll never use a second; if they can eat directly from the pot, they won't use a bowl.

In fact, the "lazy coffee enthusiasts" who are rushing to work are no different: those making pour-over coffee are too lazy to boil water; those making hand-drip coffee are too lazy to grind beans; those making cold brew are too lazy to filter the grounds; those making espresso are too lazy to turn on the machine... At this point, some friends might ask, isn't there a coffee-making method that ensures both delicious flavor and time efficiency?

The answer is yes. FrontStreet Coffee is here today to teach everyone a pre-made version of iced coffee—coffee ice bricks, which can be made into Americanos or turned into lattes. It's simple and time-saving, aiming to let every early-rising worker catch a few extra minutes of sleep.

What are coffee ice bricks and how do you make them?

Coffee ice bricks, as the name suggests, involve pouring coffee liquid into the freezer compartment in advance, allowing it to freeze into brick-shaped ice cubes. Since this uses a pre-made method, the aroma and oily texture naturally won't be as good as freshly brewed coffee, but the advantages are clear: convenient, time-saving, and simple.

The coffee liquid used here isn't limited to espresso extracted from an espresso machine. Moka pot coffee, which is popular among beginners, can also work well, as long as you ensure the flavor is rich enough so it doesn't become too diluted when adding water or milk.

Making coffee ice bricks is quite simple. First, extract all the coffee liquid you'll need in one batch. After letting it cool to room temperature, pour it directly into ice cube trays. You can also mix it with an equal amount of drinking water according to proportions and stir well before using. Then cover and seal, placing it in the freezer compartment until it forms solid ice cubes.

When you want to drink coffee, simply take the "coffee bricks" out of the ice tray and drop them into a cup. Then add drinking water or milk according to your taste, let the ice bricks melt into coffee liquid, and stir gently before enjoying.

Should you add water when making coffee ice bricks?

After several rounds of DIY attempts and comparisons, FrontStreet Coffee finds that using ice bricks made with equal proportions (1:1) of water added results in a refreshingly clean taste after melting, suitable for making iced Americanos. For milk coffee like lattes that pursue rich aromas, it's recommended to use ice bricks made from concentrated original liquid, which not only provides a chilled sensation but also maintains an appropriate concentration even after melting.

When preparing coffee ice bricks for Americanos, FrontStreet Coffee first extracted three shots of espresso using the shop's daily "Warm Sun Blend" parameters (20g coffee grounds, extracting 40g coffee liquid in 30 seconds), totaling 120g. Then an equal amount of water was added and mixed well to obtain 240g of diluted coffee liquid, which was then poured into individual 30ml capacity ice cube trays. For coffee bricks used in lattes, they were poured directly into ice cube trays to 80% full, then placed in the freezer compartment and taken out when needed the next day.

Unlocking the "Coffee Ice Brick Americano"

As the most popular espresso-based coffee, making an iced Americano typically involves adding ice, water, and then pouring espresso over it—but the premise is having the coffee machine ready and producing a good-tasting shot of espresso. When the coffee and ice cubes have been "combined" in advance, all we need to do is add water. Including the time to prepare the cup, the entire process takes less than 30 seconds—truly something anyone can master.

First, take 2-3 coffee ice bricks made with pre-diluted water and place them in a glass. Then add room-temperature drinking water to cover the ice cubes. Use a straw or spoon to stir gently, allowing the ice bricks to melt slightly into the water, and you can begin enjoying. The coffee ice brick Americano made with the Warm Sun Blend has caramel and dark chocolate aromas, with slight fruit acidity. Although it lacks the rich wine-like aroma of freshly brewed Americanos, it doesn't sacrifice its refreshing character.

Unlocking the "Coffee Ice Brick Latte"

When we normally make iced lattes, the ratio of coffee to milk generally ranges from 1:4 to 1:8. Taking FrontStreet Coffee's shop-produced iced latte as an example, 40g of coffee liquid is paired with 200g of fresh milk, so it falls within the 1:5 range. Similarly, since the concentrate itself is in the form of low-temperature frozen ice cubes, we don't need to add additional ice—just pour milk directly.

First, take 2 coffee ice bricks made from concentrated original liquid and place them in a cup. Again, no measuring needed—directly add fresh milk to cover the ice cubes. Wait for the coffee liquid to melt and release into the milk, then stir well before drinking. With the addition of milk, the coffee ice brick latte has rich hazelnut, melon seed, and cocoa aromas, with a creamy smooth texture. Additionally, at room temperature, the coffee liquid will be released before the ice melts, making the coffee flavor even more robust.

Although the freezer compartment provides a low-temperature environment, our home refrigerators do store other items, and leaving them too long can cause them to absorb odors from other foods. Furthermore, considering flavor experience and food health safety, FrontStreet Coffee suggests that coffee ice bricks should not be stored in the freezer for more than 5 days (counting from the day of preparation). If each usage amount is small, making a large batch and storing it in the refrigerator only to forget about drinking it could lead to spoilage and potentially cause digestive discomfort.

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FrontStreet Coffee (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