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Cold brewed coffee?

Discussion in 'Drink, Smoke, and Fine Dining' started by tomc, Aug 5, 2019.

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  1. NbyNW

    NbyNW F1 Rookie
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    All this peer pressure is gonna make me try cold coffee. I've always done hot and black. Coarse grind and a French press.
     
  2. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Do it. And, if you want to be buzzing all day, use Jeremy's measurements above. I've been enjoying it for the past few days as my morning "cold espresso"!
    Two - 3 demitasse cups, straight, unless I'm driving the Cali, then it's 1 - 2 cups.
    T
     
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  3. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    You a science nerd?!? Amazon does sell it.
    T
     
  4. NbyNW

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    Yep, started as a chemistry lab rat, still involved but not in the lab any longer.
     
  5. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    My brother!
    That's why I love cooking. I'm too old to be screwing around with dangerous chemicals. Cooking helps me get my lab freak on!
    T
     
  6. NbyNW

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    Glad I’m not around those chemicals any longer either... but I need to do more cooking. The wife handles most of it. I run the grill, fry eggs, and make chili, that’s about it. Other than special projects like hot sauces.

    I’ll ask her about cold brewed coffee and maybe give it a try.
     
  7. wax

    wax Five Time F1 World Champ
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  8. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    ^Hmm. I may have to figure out where I hid my Aeropress...T
     
  9. wax

    wax Five Time F1 World Champ
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    Finally had a chance to Sun-Brew with French Press.

    It's twue! It's twue!

    Slightly more caramel & sweetness abounds - highly recommend you give it a shot.

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  10. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Details? Time, temp, amounts, etc.

    I brewed up a batch on Sunday for this morning. Same proportions as above. Got a bag of Guatemalan Antigua whole bean from Starbucks. Not as good as the Ethiopian Yergacheffe I got at Kroger IMO. People say Starbucks burns their coffee, so maybe that's the issue?!? Maybe I used too much/left it in to long. It did taste a tad more bitter than the Ethiopian.
    T
     
  11. wax

    wax Five Time F1 World Champ
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    #36 wax, Aug 19, 2019
    Last edited: Aug 20, 2019
    You'd need to use a SB's Blonde Espresso Bean to not get their signature char.
    ----

    4 Cups Purified Water
    @ 1/4+ Cup Coffee

    It's Heller than Hot & grind was rougher for this Test Run, so it only took an hour+ at 16:1 to believe it was equal color/strength to Drip. There was also a familiar slight foam on top as an indicator.

    Compared it to Cup from Drip. While Drip was slightly warmer, strength was indeed same, but Sunny French Press was Nuance City.

    In comparison to a regular French Press, I would also say it was Superior.

    However, a combination of Smaller Grind, Less Coffee, More Time should really make for a happy camper. I'll do that sometime between Thursday-Monday.



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  12. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Yeah, good point on the lighter roast. The Kroger Private Selection Yirgacheffe was listed on the package as "mild", which I am assuming means a lighter roast, and that was definitely better for the cold brew, at least by my taste buds. Oh well, live & learn...T
     
  13. wax

    wax Five Time F1 World Champ
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    #38 wax, Aug 19, 2019
    Last edited: Aug 20, 2019
    HEADS-UP!

    I edited my previous post to correct Water from incorrect 2 to correct 4 Cups & subsequently, ratio was standard 16:1.

    ---------

    Yeah, haven't roasted in forever, but Yirgacheffe is tricky to roast light & if you want to DIY, Sweet Maria's is a must to bring out the legendary flavors like Blueberry, Lemon, etc..

    I tried other suppliers & they needed more time, as they were otherwise weak & more like straw than lemon, which meant getting altogether different nuances with more time, etc.. May as well get other cheaper regions.

    Antigua is well-liked here, so I picked up a ground bag of "Guatemala" from Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. Hey, it was half-off at Safeway!

    This stuff today was something from Polly's, which we get loads of via Bride's contacts. She ground the last batch, hence coarse grind. Last week, another person gave her 2 more 4-oz. baggies of Kona & Maui Red & those are long gone. *weeps*

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  14. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    OK. Some further experiments. For Starbucks Guatemalan Antigua, I cut the above proportions by a third. Tastes less bitter, and still strong enough for the way I drink my coffee - straight. So, experiment with different ratios until you find your sweet spot, would be my advice. Up next, Sunatran Mandheeling.

    The blade grinder puts out a good bit of fine powder that the French press strainer won't catch. I saw online to use a ceramic burr grinder for a more consistent grind size and thus extraction. Makes sense, but my hand cranked Hario is a bit much when caffeine-deprived and b leary- eye in the AM. So, I bought cheese cloth to do a final filter after extraction.
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    Final results...
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    T
     
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  15. wax

    wax Five Time F1 World Champ
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  16. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Thanks, Wax. I'm a scientist, it's what we do!
    I think taking it off the grinds also keeps it "fresher" longer.
    T
     
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  17. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    I haven't been this excited to do a chemistry experiment since sophomore organic chemistry! I read a bunch of web pages that suggested Sumatran Mandheeling for cold brew. Cool.

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    Brought this back from Ralph's in Cali on my last trip there 3 weeks ago.

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    Hario ceramic grinder. I saw a YouTube know-it-all say that a consistent grind size was key. And, he recommended this. Just so happens that I have a Hario!

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    These beans smell fantastic. This bowl is about 8 oz.

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    Coarse setting. My gut tells me it's too coarse, but that's why it's called an experiment.

    Steeped them in about a quart of water. Now, to wait.

    T
     
  18. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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  19. Continental AutoSports

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    That grind looks fantastic. How long did you let it steep?
     
  20. tomc

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    Thanks. It smelled awesome too. It steeped around 18 hours. Got a batch of Malawi Sable Farms from the Starbucks Reserve brewing in the fridge tonight.
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    T
     
  21. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Malawi Sable Farms - very good. Not great. Positioning it as my #2 behind Ethiopian Yergacheffe and Sumatran Mandheling, which are my # 1a and 1b.

    Bought one of these yesterday, ostensibly for the wife's morning mochas. Hand held milk frother. I'm a scientist, so gotta experiment!

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    Little dude whips the heck outta milk - even skim! - and cream.

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    Upside-down cold brew mocha. The froth is half and half. Put a little cocoa powder, cinnamon and sugar before frothing it for the missus.

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    I'm not sure I could have taken a worse pic. Upside-down cold brew macchiato. That's skim milk all frothy. Impressive!

    T
     
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  22. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Some more cold brew experiments before things cool off. Coffee purists may wish to avert their eyes before reading the next sentences.

    Tried decaf cold brew. Columbian decaf. Medium - dark roast.
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    Very strong hints of cocoa. I've been chugging it after dinner the last few night.

    Now, for the ugly. Had some leftover Lavazza espresso grind. I knew it was a mistake but I tried to make cold brew from it anyway. Blech.
    It's going to be fertilizing our roses.

    Up next, Costa Rica Tirrazu. Wife and I drank a lot of this when we were in CR earlier this year. Very much looking forward to seeing how it turns out as a cold brew.

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    T
     
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  23. sct4a

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    All those fancy and branded "cold brew" setups are designed to take advantage of home consumers and don't really make the best product. If you want the best quality cold brew system that is speciality coffee shop level quality get a home Toddy system - https://toddycafe.com/toddy-cold-brew-system its dirt cheap and is the smaller version of the larger toddy used in speciality shops. Super easy to use and easy to clean/maintain.

    Directions for it are simple. Get 12 oz bag of coffee and grind at coarse setting. Wet the felt filter, put it in, add 1 cup water, add half the bag (6 oz) of coarse grounds, add 2 cups of water in a circular motion, wait 5-10 min, add remaining 6 oz of coffee, then add 2 more cups of water in circular motion. Don't stir it up but you can use a spoon to ensure the top layer of grounds are wet. Put saran wrap on top and leave on counter at room temp for 24 hrs. Drain into the included glass container by pulling the plug on bottom. You'll then have a concentrate. General proportions in speciality shops for cold brew is 3rds. 1/3rd concentrate, 1/3rd water, and 1/3rd ice. For individual bottled cold brew in the shops we use 2.5oz concentrate and 7.5oz water. Similar proportions if you're making a cold brew latte with regular or nut milks with slight increase in concentrate.

    Couple tips. Home grinders are absolutely terrible. Get the coffee ground by a speciality shop that has a proper grinder like a Mahlkonig EK or Guatamala Lab. It makes a big difference and we've tested a ton of home grinders and all produce similar poor results. Coffee quality and roast dates also matter. Grocery store coffee is some of the worst to use its typically older than you. They let the coffee sit there for months and years. You can normally find the roast date on the bag.

    Some higher end speciality roasters that make great coffee for cold brew and roast fresh and ship weekly - https://sweetbloomcoffee.com or https://meritcoffee.com would recommend only single origins not blends.
     
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  24. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    With a few days above 90 F (35 C), it's time for cold caffeine. First experiment of the season pictured above. Along with some experiments for the garden. Bought Ethiopian Sidamo pre-quarantine. Disappointing in the espresso machine, perhaps not surprising. Awesome in cold brew. Recipe and proportions as above.

    Papua New Guinea Ulya and Rwandan Abakundakawa on tap for cold brewing!

    T
     
  25. tomc

    tomc Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Just checking in to say if you like a little decaf or half caf in the evening with your dolce, look into this stuff. Makes a very nice cold brew. Sold by Amazon.
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    1 cup of whole beans, coarse grind, 3 cups of water, steep overnight, decant. Enjoy with a cookie or so.
    T
     

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