Basic Cold Drip Coffee Making Methods: Water-to-Coffee Ratio, How to Make Cold Drip, Coffee Grind Size

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Summer is here! A glass of ice-cold drip coffee with a clean, full-bodied texture is truly every coffee lover's dream coffee! Follow FrontStreet Coffee as we guide you step-by-step to make an incredibly delicious cold drip coffee.

Equipment for Making Cold Drip Coffee

1. Cold drip coffee maker 2. Freshly roasted coffee beans 3. Coffee grinder 4. Circular filter paper 5. Edible ice and drinking water

For making cold drip coffee, you must purchase a dedicated cold drip coffee maker. If you directly mix coffee grounds with water for steeping, that method is called cold brew coffee. Cold drip coffee makers vary in price and shape. Some have an upper chamber (the container holding the ice-water mixture) with a valve to adjust the dripping frequency, while others use hole size to control the drip rate. The term "cold drip" refers specifically to this dripping process.

By controlling the system, water drips evenly onto the coffee grounds in the filter cup (at this point, circular filter paper needs to be placed on the surface of the coffee grounds to ensure the dripping water spreads evenly). Through natural gravity, the water passes through the coffee grounds to extract their compounds, eventually flowing into the lower chamber (the coffee pot).

Important Notes for Making Cold Drip Coffee

1. Please be sure to rinse all parts of the cold drip maker thoroughly with clean water before and after use.

2. After pouring coffee grounds into the filter cup, gently shake to level them, ensuring the coffee surface is even (do not tap the filter cup forcefully or use tools to press the coffee surface flat).

3. Do not reuse the circular filter paper after use.

4. The entire process must use ice water for extraction.

Choose Freshly Roasted Coffee Beans for Cold Drip

The coffee bean factor is the most important - different coffee beans produce completely different coffee flavors when drip-brewed. Therefore, choosing suitable coffee beans is the top priority for making cold drip coffee.

The optimal tasting period for coffee beans is 5-35 days after roasting, when both aroma and flavor are at their best. Coffee made during this period will have richer, more full-bodied flavor. This is why FrontStreet Coffee ships all coffee beans within 5 days of roasting, ensuring that customers receive 100% freshly roasted coffee beans.

Generally, light-roasted coffee beans are preferred for making cold drip coffee, as the fruity acidity and sweetness are more refreshing at cold temperatures. Some coffee beans with more pronounced and distinctive flavors are also very suitable for cold drip coffee. Examples from FrontStreet Coffee's menu include FrontStreet Coffee's Honduras Sherry Coffee Beans, FrontStreet Coffee's Costa Rica Giant Boulder Blueberry, FrontStreet Coffee's Costa Rica Musician Series, FrontStreet Coffee's Colombia Rose Valley, FrontStreet Coffee's Colombia Flower Moon Night, and more.

Regardless of the brewing method, FrontStreet Coffee recommends grinding fresh and brewing immediately for optimal flavor and aroma. If you don't want to purchase a grinder, you can contact customer service and note "cold drip grind." However, keep in mind that the optimal tasting period shortens after coffee beans are ground into powder, and the flavor and aroma will dissipate more quickly.

Cold Drip Coffee Making Steps

The water-to-coffee ratio for cold drip coffee is approximately 1:8 to 1:10. For 100 grams of coffee grounds, the ice + water mixture in the upper chamber should weigh about 800-1000 grams (recommend ice:water ratio of 1:1). If there's a valve to control water flow, set the dripping frequency to 7-8 drops every 10 seconds.

When FrontStreet Coffee's baristas make cold drip coffee, they use 60 grams of coffee beans to extract about 600 milliliters of cold drip coffee, meaning a coffee-to-liquid ratio of 1:10. For the grind size, they choose a setting slightly finer than pour-over coffee, with about 85% passing through a 0.85mm standard sieve. The entire dripping process takes 6 hours.

It's worth noting that finer grinding and a lower water-to-coffee ratio produce more concentrated and full-bodied cold drip coffee. The purpose of this approach is that the final drink will be diluted with ice when served.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473