How To Make Cold Brew

Because life doesn’t come with an instruction manual — and if it did, men wouldn’t read it anyway — we present Gimme Three Steps, an occasional series of how-to illustrations that has nothing to do with Lynyrd Skynyrd and everything to do with helping you manage challenging situations with aplomb.

Used to be “iced coffee” meant throwing a couple cubes and a twisty straw in yesterday’s leftover joe.

There is a better way, people:

Cold Brew.

Otherwise known as the art of making an ice-cold cuppa that doesn’t suck.

Thusly, we present: How to Make Cold Brew Coffee, a practical guide (with pictures!) on making a most perfect iced coffee in the comfort of your own abode.

Now, let it be known that before your correspondent took pen to paper, he was a barista.

A question baristas always get: “Why’s cold brew better?”

Answer’s simple: science.

What you want: a thick black solution, acute in its “coffeeness.” Read: Not bitter. Not brown water further diluting by the minute.

And since it’s incredibly easy to make, there’s no reason for you to drink anything less.

To aid in your quest for the perfect cup, we even included a list of coffee roasters doing the beans for cold brew the best.

Take note. Buy beans. Then get to brewing.

You Will Need:
1 pound of coffee
10 cups of cold, filtered water
Fine-Mesh Bag
Large Pitcher

Step One: Grind and Brew
Important: Grind coffee coarse. Place grounds in fine-mesh bag. Place bag in pitcher. Run cold water through coffee and completely saturate the grinds. Cover. Twirl barista ‘stache.

Step Two: Relax and Wait
Allow coffee to brew at room temperature 12-15 hours. Read a book. Crochet. Whittle. Dream sweet, over-caffeinated dreams. As baristas do.

Step Three: Consume and Enjoy
Once brewed, lift fine-mesh bag from pitcher and discard. Congratulations, you just made cold-brew concentrate. Fill glass with ice. Cut cold brew with water to taste. Stir in milk. Never hit the coffee shop again.

WHERE TO GET YOUR COFFEE BEAN FIX

Intelligentsia — Chicago, IL
Blue Bottle Coffee — Oakland, CA
Gimme Coffee! — New York, NY
Onyx Coffee — Springdale, AR
Front SF — San Francisco, CA
Stumptown Coffee Roasters — Portland, OR
Counter Culture — Durham, NC

Nota bene: If it holds water it’ll make cold brew, but if you want a dedicated contraption that looks nice on the kitchen counter, we highly recommend the Cold Bruer. Happy brewing.