Despite its name (and temperature), cold brew’s season extends far beyond summer’s last breath — especially when put to use behind the bar.
It is just as easy — if more time intensive — to make your own cold brew as it is to make hot coffee. On the other side of the time it takes lies the reward of a smooth, nuanced drink with less acidity and bitterness than its hot-brewed counterpart. And it’s possible without any special equipment: Even your French press will do, loaded with just coarsely ground beans and water. Ally Walsh, a founder and the creative director of Canyon Coffee, suggests using one part coffee to eight parts water — for example, a half cup of coarsely ground coffee beans, preferably a lighter roast, to four cups of room-temperature water for a cold brew that needs no further dilution. Or to make a stronger concentrate, use one part coffee to four parts water (a half cup ground beans to two cups water).
The amount of time you allow the mixture to steep also helps dictate the flavor and potency. “The longer you let it sit, the more it will extract and the stronger the coffee will be,” Ms. Walsh said. “Taste it after 24 hours and if you want it stronger, let it sit longer.” Seventy-two hours should be the maximum extraction time. The resulting cold brew should last for about a week.
But if it’s immediate gratification you’re looking for, opt for a can or bottle of quality premade cold brew concentrate, looking for those without added sweeteners.
Recipe: Coffee Tonic
In the mornings, make a coffee tonic, a play on an espresso tonic, which features a crisp, quinine-bittered combination of espresso and tonic water. The beverage first appeared in 2007 at Koppi Roasters in Helsingborg, Sweden and is now served over ice in many a specialty coffee shop. But in this coffee tonic variation, a quick pour of cold brew stands in for the drink’s classic shot of espresso.
Recipe: Caffè Amaro
Later in the day, add a few ounces of cold brew to your cocktail shaker. While you could opt to transition from daytime coffee to cocktail hour pick-me-up with an espresso martini, being caffeinated and spirited doesn’t always mean going full force. Make a caffè amaro by combining cold brew, amaro, vermouth and lemon. This shaken, caffeinated combination is also served up while delivering a lighter alcoholic punch. Or blur the line between Americano (the highball cocktail) and Americano (the coffee drink) by adding an ounce or so of cold brew to the former. Or mix a measure of amaro into your coffee tonic.
If you prefer your caffeinated cocktail hot, you’re not lacking in options, whether it’s an Irish coffee, a Café Brûlot or spiked Café de Olla. Otherwise simply look to the Italian tradition of caffè corretto (“corrected coffee”) and add a splash of amaro, brandy, cognac or grappa to your espresso cup.
That said, there’s no need to default to hot brews simply because temperatures are cooling. Rather than setting aside cold brew for the next six months, make a batch and stash it in the bar fridge for a caffeinated boost in drinks from morning to night, spring through winter.
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