Last night, I made my first batch of cold-brewed coffee based off of the first two links on a Google search of the term: Smitten Kitchen and I Need Coffee. This is seriously a simple procedure, though I'm already musing some variations to try, based mostly on time considerations.
Here's what you need:
- Glass/container for holding the coffee. I used my french press pot.
- Fine mesh strainer to strain the end result. Again, I just used my french press strainer and found I didn't need another line of defense against the grains, though there was a small amount of residue at the bottom of the cup. The websites I mentioned recommend cheesecloth or a small kitchen strainer to place over your drinking glass.
- Water. Cold or room temperature works fine. I used 3 cups.
- Coffee ground to medium thickness. I used two-thirds of a cup. You do not want fine grounds for this.
So the important part is keeping that ratio of coffee to water—one-third of a cup of grounds to a cup and a half of water. Pour them into your container/glass, give a little stir (might not even be necessary), then let sit for 12 hours on either your counter or in the fridge. Strain into your drinking glass and serve over ice. Ta-da!
It worked perfectly for me, and I just finished my first glass of homemade iced coffee. It's easier than making it hot even; you just have to plan ahead. Supposedly, this method reduces the amount of acidity and bitterness in the coffee, which are flavors that the hot water bring out more. Did I notice that? Nope. It was still acidic and bitter but that's okay by this black coffee drinker. I would need to do a side-by-side comparison to see if the two methods really taste differently or not.
More importantly, though, is that this might work just fine with letting the grinds soak for only 3 or so hours. I'm about to set up a new container to try out the smaller soaking time for my afternoon coffee and will report if all goes well!
UPDATED: I ended up soaking the second batch for four hours, and it worked great! It was not as strong as the twelve-hour batch, but I think that was a good thing. It was still plenty strong to stand up to ice, but the flavor difference between it and hot-brewed coffee was much more noticeable. The acidity and bitterness was mellower, which was a nice change for me as my tastebuds occasionally rebel against those elements of coffee. I think I'll likely stick with the shorter time for when I want iced coffee. Next attempt? Seeing how flavored coffee holds up!
