Cold brew is slow coffee — deliberately, unapologetically slow. Where most methods take minutes, cold brew takes hours. What you get in return is a concentrate of exceptional smoothness: low acidity, pronounced sweetness, and a depth that hot extraction simply cannot produce. It is the method we recommend for summer, for long evenings, and for customers who find regular espresso too aggressive but do not want to sacrifice complexity.
What you need
- Large jar or cold brew vessel (1L minimum)
- Fine-mesh sieve or cloth filter
- Digital scale
- 100g coarsely ground coffee
- 800ml cold, filtered water
- Refrigerator
Step 1 — Grind coarse
Grind 100g of coffee coarsely — think breadcrumb texture, not sea salt. A coarser grind prevents over-extraction during the long steep and keeps the final concentrate clean and sweet rather than bitter or harsh.
Step 2 — Combine coffee and water
Add the ground coffee to your vessel. Pour over 800ml of cold, filtered water. Stir gently to ensure all grounds are evenly saturated. There should be no dry pockets — every gram of coffee should have contact with water from the start.
Step 3 — Cover and refrigerate
Seal or cover your vessel and place it in the refrigerator. Cold extraction suppresses acidity and slows oxidation — this is why cold brew keeps better than hot-brewed coffee and why it tastes so different. Leave it for a minimum of 12 hours. 16–18 hours is our preferred window. Beyond 24 hours, over-extraction becomes a risk.
Step 4 — Filter the concentrate
Once steeped, pass the concentrate through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the grounds. For a cleaner cup, follow with a paper filter or cloth filter. Take your time here — rushing this step clouds the concentrate and affects texture.
Step 5 — Dilute and serve
Cold brew is brewed as a concentrate. For drinking over ice, dilute 1:1 with cold water or cold milk. For a stronger, more espresso-like result, drink it at 1:0.5. Experiment — the ratio depends on the coffee and your preference. Serve over plenty of ice or keep chilled and drink within 7 days.
Which coffee works best?
Cold brew is forgiving of medium and dark roasts — the long extraction pulls out chocolate, caramel, and stone fruit notes beautifully. Our espresso blends work particularly well, especially MADDOG and Brazil Minas. The lower acidity of cold extraction actually makes the richness of these coffees more approachable, not less interesting.
