{"id":112455,"date":"2020-04-23T15:27:46","date_gmt":"2020-04-23T20:27:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/?p=112455"},"modified":"2025-10-28T10:04:06","modified_gmt":"2025-10-28T15:04:06","slug":"how-to-make-cold-brew-coffee-at-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/leisure\/food-drink\/how-to-make-cold-brew-coffee-at-home\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Make Cold Brew Coffee at Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"A<\/p>\n

No matter the season, I like to start my day with a hot cup of coffee. Even in the summer, mornings in Colorado can be nippy and sipping a cozy mug of joe perennially remains a welcome a.m. ritual.<\/p>\n

But in the warm weather months, the temperature can get toasty as the day wears on, and I often get my afternoon caffeine fix with a cup of cold brew coffee. Chilled and less acidic than its hot counterpart, it’s a great alternative to water or soda, and quite refreshing. <\/p>\n

You may have noticed that in recent years, cold coffee has become an ubiquitous menu item at American cafes. But it’s actually been around a long time, and while you\u2019d be forgiven for thinking there\u2019s some sort of alchemy involved in creating a drink that\u2019s definitely coffee, and yet decidedly different from your average joe, it’s very easy to make at home. Even easier than most hot coffee-making methods, in fact.<\/p>\n

When cold brew coffee is prepared ahead in a pitcher or mason jar in your fridge, having a glass is as convenient as pouring it out over ice and adding some water (also milk and\/or sugar if that\u2019s your thing). Refreshing, easy, fast, caffeinated \u2014 it might be the best thing to happen to your morning (or afternoon) coffee routine<\/a>. Here’s how to make a glass, or several, yourself. (Here’s a review of an instant iced coffee that tastes pretty darn good!<\/a>)<\/p>\n

1. Gather Your Ingredients\/Supplies <\/h3>\n

\"Coffee<\/p>\n

All you need to make cold brew coffee is water, coffee grounds, a storage vessel, and some sort of straining system. A few notes on these things: <\/p>\n

Coffee.<\/strong> For the coffee itself, it\u2019s best to use a darker roast. Whole bean, freshly and coarsely ground, is always preferred, but any will do. While you\u2019d think my home-roasted coffee<\/a> would be great here, I\u2019ve found it\u2019s actually too light and there isn\u2019t quite enough flavor. Something store-bought and dark is actually better. (The same holds true for using coffee in cocktails.) <\/p>\n

Storage.<\/strong> A large mason jar or small pitcher is perfect; it just depends on how much you want to make. I\u2019ve found a 3-cup mason jar to be the perfect vessel. <\/p>\n

Straining.<\/strong> You\u2019ll want some sort of option for straining that will provide a clean final product with no sediment. I use a cheesecloth placed inside a mesh strainer. You can also use paper coffee filters. In a pinch, paper towels can even work. <\/p>\n

2. Combine Coffee and Water <\/h3>\n
\"Coffee

So easy even your 4-year-old can do it.<\/p><\/div>\n

In your container, use a ratio or 1\/3-1\/2 cup coffee grounds with 1 1\/2 cups water. I double this for my 3-cup mason jar. Stir well. <\/p>\n

When making cold brew at home, you\u2019re actually making a concentrate that should be mixed with water (and possibly some creamer\/milk) when served. So how much coffee you add to the water here at this initial phase determines the strength of the concentrate and how much additional liquid you\u2019ll want\/need to add come serving time. <\/p>\n

3. Steep 12-18 Hours <\/h3>\n

\"Coffee<\/p>\n

Let the container sit at room temperature for 12-18 hours. Less than that, and the concentrate isn\u2019t quite flavorful enough. Beyond that time frame, it\u2019s a little too acidic. There is definitely a sweet spot here that should be mostly adhered to.<\/p>\n

4. Strain <\/h3>\n
\"Couple

The straining setup I use. It’s a couple layers of cheesecloth inside a mesh strainer. Once strained, I rinse out the mason jar and put the final product back in.<\/p><\/div>\n

After the steeping period, strain the mixture through the cheesecloth or paper filter. Doing it twice will get even more impurities out, though it\u2019s not strictly necessary. <\/p>\n

Now you have your final product! Store in the same container and it should keep for however long it takes you to finish it. <\/p>\n

5. Serve<\/h3>\n

\"Cold<\/p>\n

As noted, this is a concentrate that you\u2019re making — sort of the espresso version of cold brew. Most folks will want to add additional liquid in the form of water (and\/or some milk, and\/or a dash of simple syrup). For the sake of keeping it cool, it\u2019s also good to serve it over ice. It gets a hair watered down by the end, but if you start with a full glass of ice it won’t become too diluted. <\/p>\n

Finding your own preference will take some experimenting, but the standard ratio is 1:1 concentrate to water. Start with a couple ounces each to see if you like that ratio, then fill your glass. Add a splash of creamer\/milk and even some syrup if you\u2019re feeling crazy. <\/p>\n

Since I like my coffee strong, I do more of a 2:1 mix of concentrate to water. I also enjoy it \u201craw\u201d on some occasions; it provides a nice blast of flavor and energy in the size of an espresso shot. Give it a try. <\/p>\n

Don\u2019t spend the hot afternoons of spring and summer beholden to a sugary soda or energy drink to keep you refreshed and caffeinated. Make cold brew coffee at home with minimal active prep time, and you\u2019ll be set until the fall. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

No matter the season, I like to start my day with a hot cup of coffee. Even in the summer, mornings in Colorado can be nippy and sipping a cozy mug of joe perennially remains a welcome a.m. ritual. But in the warm weather months, the temperature can get toasty as the day wears on, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":112488,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[222,42273],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-112455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-drink","category-living"],"featured_image_urls":{"large":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2020\/04\/final-4-538x280.jpg","aom":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2020\/04\/final-4-372x230.jpg","reactor-320":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2020\/04\/final-4-320x213.jpg","reactor-640":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2020\/04\/final-4-640x427.jpg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112455"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112455\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":139774,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112455\/revisions\/139774"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/112488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112455"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=112455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}