Can You Use Stainless Steel Ice Cubes Instead of Regular Ice for Iced Pour-Over Coffee? Iced Pour-Over Coffee Brewing Methods!

Can Stainless Steel Ice Cubes Replace Regular Ice in Cold Pour-Over Coffee?

"Can stainless steel ice cubes replace regular ice in cold pour-over coffee?" This is the question that FrontStreet Coffee has received most frequently in our stores recently.

As everyone knows, if you want to experience the most complete coffee flavor in pour-over, hot brewing is undoubtedly the optimal choice. Because hot brewing uses more hot water, which allows the high-quality flavor compounds in coffee to be fully extracted. However, the extraction efficiency of cold brewing is somewhat lower, as we need to reduce the water amount to increase coffee concentration, thereby counteracting the dilution effect caused by rapid cooling with ice cubes. But because of this, even with the most "aggressive" extraction, it's difficult for cold brew coffee to achieve the same complete flavor profile as hot brew. This has led a group of friends who don't want to drink hot coffee in hot weather but also don't want to compromise on flavor to come up with a "best of both worlds" solution: "If we use stainless steel ice cubes to cool hot pour-over coffee, wouldn't we be able to enjoy cold pour-over with complete flavor?"

What Are Stainless Steel Ice Cubes?

Stainless steel ice cubes refer to cube-shaped particles made from 304 or 316 stainless steel on the exterior. The interior is neither solid nor hollow, but filled with a colorless and odorless cooling liquid! This is a mixture of water and alcohol/glycerin, and when you shake the ice cubes at room temperature, you can feel the liquid sloshing inside. With minimal freezing, they can produce effects similar to regular ice cubes.

Theoretical vs. Practical Application

Indeed! Theoretically, non-melting stainless steel ice cubes can cool coffee without changing its concentration, thereby preserving complete flavor and concentration while cooling the coffee. However, while the idea is appealing, reality... often has some discrepancies. In fact, FrontStreet Coffee already conducted relevant tests last year, and although the results did prove that stainless steel ice cubes can provide some degree of effectiveness, they can hardly replace regular ice cubes. Why? You might want to look at the experimental comparison conducted by FrontStreet Coffee:

Experimental Comparison

Regular Cold Brew Experiment:
Coffee amount: 15g
Grind setting: EK43 9.5
Water ratio: 1:10 (150ml)
Water temperature: 92°C
Brewing method: Three-stage pour
Dripper: V60
Ice cubes used: 120g (4 cubes)

Stainless Steel Ice Cube Experiment:
Coffee amount: 15g
Grind setting: EK43 10
Water ratio: 1:15 (225ml)
Water temperature: 92°C
Brewing method: Three-stage pour
Dripper: V60
Stainless steel ice cubes used: 6 cubes

FrontStreet Coffee brewed two pots of cold pour-over coffee—one using the regular cold brew method, and another first brewed with hot water, then cooled with stainless steel ice cubes. The parameters are as shown above. After brewing, FrontStreet Coffee stirred both pots to ensure the ice cubes completely cooled the coffee, then measured the temperatures of both pots with a thermometer! The final results were 6°C and 16°C respectively. The coffee beans used in FrontStreet Coffee's experiment were Panama Boquete Geisha, which exhibited citrus, white floral, and green tea flavors when brewed with regular cold brew; while the flavor profile with stainless steel ice cubes + hot brew was more prominent and had distinct coffee aftertaste. However, this doesn't necessarily mean that cold coffee made with stainless steel ice cubes is superior, because its performance in aspects other than flavor is not impressive, especially in terms of mouthfeel.

Temperature and Mouthfeel Differences

Although there was only a 10°C difference, the mouthfeel distinction between the coffees was very significant. The pot of coffee using stainless steel ice cubes didn't taste as cold as the cold pour-over made with regular ice cubes, having only a slight coolness. Despite its complete flavor, the drinking experience was not outstanding, somewhat similar to room temperature Americano. Furthermore, stainless steel ice cubes have another drawback—their cooling speed is relatively slow. FrontStreet Coffee used more time stirring than regular cold brew to bring this pot of hot coffee down to 16°C. The reason is simple: because the quantity of stainless steel ice cubes was insufficient and they lack phase change, they rely on the low temperature of the internal cooling liquid to slowly release cold energy. Therefore, their heat absorption speed is much lower than regular ice cubes, making their cooling effect less remarkable.

Understanding the Limitations

But this can't be blamed on them, after all, the main function of stainless steel ice cubes is to preserve cold rather than to cool, so their inability to cool quickly is reasonable~ In summary, everyone can understand that the disadvantages of using stainless steel ice cubes to cool coffee are that they're not cold enough and their cooling speed is not fast enough. These two problems are also easy to solve! We just need to increase the quantity of stainless steel ice cubes, winning through volume, to improve both cooling speed and intensity.

Practical Considerations

However, it should be noted that the improvement gained by increasing quantity won't be as significant as everyone might imagine—again, the main function of stainless steel ice cubes is to preserve cold rather than to cool. This is also why, to this day, few coffee shops use stainless steel ice cubes for cold pour-over. Overall, if everyone wants to experience complete coffee flavor in cold pour-over and doesn't fear complexity, and can overlook the less impressive mouthfeel, then stainless steel ice cubes can indeed be put to use. If not, then using traditional ice cubes for cold pour-over remains the most appropriate choice—sacrificing only a little flavor to achieve the desired temperature and mouthfeel, without so much trouble~

You can't have both fish and bear's paw—how to choose depends on you~ Finally and most importantly, FrontStreet Coffee needs to remind all friends: if you decide to use stainless steel ice cubes for cooling, then after brewing the coffee, when you're ready to stir to accelerate cooling, be sure to "stir it slowly." Otherwise, the seemingly sturdy stainless steel ice cubes will most likely create a large hole in your glass container, which would be a case of losing more than gaining.

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Tel:020 38364473