Which one is better, iced drip coffee or cold brew coffee?
The barista on the front street will often be asked. At this time, the barista will first answer "all taste good". But in fact, the taste of the two coffees is different. It depends on whether you want to drink coffee with a refreshing taste or a smooth taste. This time Front Street will talk about the differences between the two coffees.
First, let’s understand what low-temperature extraction is
Our common Pour over(V60) coffee is a high-temperature extraction process. High-temperature extraction will quickly decompose the tannic acid in the coffee into pyroic acid, resulting in sweetness and sourness, which is the process of releasing the flavor of coffee that is often mentioned on the street. Excessive high-temperature water extraction of coffee can easily cause the coffee flavor to be completely released, and then begin to release the woody fiber flavor of the coffee beans, which is what we often call unpleasant flavors such as miscellaneous flavor and woody flavor.
Cold brew and ice-drip coffee are a low-temperature extraction process. Low-temperature extraction involves long-term contact between water and coffee powder at low temperatures. Only flavor substances with smaller molecules, such as floral and fruity aromas, are extracted. Flavor substances with larger molecules, such as smoked and roasted flavors, are difficult to extract. Therefore, cold brew/ice-drip coffee can better enjoy the flavor of the coffee beans themselves, with a smooth, layered and sweet aftertaste.
The flavor and taste of the two coffees are different
[Cold brew coffee] (Taste characteristics: mellow, smooth)
This is an extraction method. Cold brew coffee has an ancient history. It is first mixed with cold water, placed in the refrigerator, and soaked for at least 8 hours. Then filter and separate the coffee liquid from the coffee powder (or French press, or flannel filter paper, etc., just separate the coffee liquid) and then you can enjoy it. Because this type of coffee is steeped at low temperature for a long time, it has a higher alcohol content and can be stored for a long time, so it is loved by many coffee drinkers.
[Ice drip coffee] (Taste characteristics: clean, refreshing)
Ice-drip coffee is extracted at temperatures below 5 degrees Celsius throughout the whole process and for a long time, making the caffeine content of this coffee relatively low. The reason why a cup of real ice-drip coffee is of high quality is because the appropriate coffee beans are selected and dripped at low temperature and at a steady speed. The extracted coffee is clear and translucent, with a refreshing and mellow taste, a balanced and smooth taste, and a sweet aftertaste. The flavor essence in the coffee is fully reflected.
How to make iced drip coffee & cold brew coffee? This time, FrontStreet Coffee used Ethiopian sun-dried Oiran coffee beans that were recently put on the shelves to make two coffees for comparison.
Origin: Hambera, Ethiopia
Altitude: 1900-2200m
Treatment method: Sun treatment
Variety: Local native species
How to make Front Street Cold Brew Coffee
1. Pour the coffee powder into a clean container, and then pour in the appropriate amount of water according to personal preference. (If you want to drink the original coffee solution directly after the extraction, you can use a powder to water ratio of 1:12. If you want to add other ingredients to the coffee solution after the extraction, such as sparkling water, ice water, soda water, milk, etc., you can use a powder to water ratio of 1:5/1:6)
*Grinding tips: The thickness of the coffee powder can be thicker than the usual coffee powder for Pour over(V60) coffee, because fine powder is prone to over-extraction and extracts some bad flavors (burnt, bitter, astringent).
2. Put it in the refrigerator for extraction for 8-12 hours, allowing the coffee powder to fully contact with the cold water.
3. After the extraction is completed, use filter cloth or filter paper to filter out the coffee liquid.
4. Pour it into your favorite container and enjoy~
How to make Front Street iced drip coffee
1. The water to powder ratio used in FrontStreet Coffee ice drip is 1:10, that is, 60 grams of coffee powder extracts 600 ml of coffee liquid. If the small domestic ice dripping pot does not have such a large capacity, remember to put less coffee powder in proportion~
2. Place a round filter paper at the bottom of the cup, wet it with water and fit it to the wall of the cup. Add 60g of ground coffee powder (the thickness is about the same as grinding for Pour over(V60) coffee~), and then smooth the surface of the coffee. You can also use the weight of the powder hammer to lightly press the powder layer to make the surface smooth.
3. Remember to put a piece of filter paper on the noodles. Because the tension of the filter paper can make the water evenly distributed, if there is no filter paper, long-term water droplets will make a pit in the powder bed.
4. Use ice water to "pre-soak" all the coffee powder. You don't need too much water, just make sure the coffee powder is moistened. In fact, this is similar to the steaming process in hand brewing, which can improve the extraction effect and the consistency of the finished product. Direct ice dripping may cause the powder layer to be unevenly moistened. Some of the coffee powder will be over-extracted while other parts of the coffee powder will not participate in the extraction.
5. Put a 1:1 mixture of ice and water into the water bottle, and adjust the regulating valve for about 10 seconds to make 7 drops of water.
6. After making, pour the coffee liquid into a sealed glass bottle and put it in the refrigerator to ferment overnight. This will allow the flavors of the coffee to blend together, making it taste better and easier to drink.
Flavor descriptions of the two iced coffees produced by Qian Street Sunshine Courtesan:
Cold brew coffee: floral aroma, rich and full berry juice, sweet and sour berry fruits, obvious fermentation, smooth taste, and honey aftertaste.
Iced coffee: light floral aroma, acidity of berries, light fermentation, refreshing and clean taste, with aftertaste of nectarine and mango.
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
