Why does nobody talk about the ice cube method for cold brew?

I used to think cold brew had to steep in the fridge for 18 hours... then my buddy at the shop in Portland showed me his trick. He pours hot water over the grounds for 4 minutes, then adds a handful of ice cubes right after. It filters out the bitterness way faster and I can have cold brew in under 30 minutes now. Anyone else tried this shortcut and had it work?

2 comments

2 Comments

blairstone12d agoMost Upvoted

I had a bag of beans from a roaster in Seattle that cost about $24 for 12 ounces, and I was scared to waste it on a new method. Tried the ice cube trick last week with a 1:12 ratio, hot water for exactly 4 minutes, then a handful of cubes. It came out surprisingly clean and not sour at all, which I didn't expect since I always thought heat would wreck the flavor. The trade-off is you lose a bit of the deep, syrupy body you get from an overnight steep, but for a Wednesday morning when I overslept, it works fine. I'd say it's good for quick batches but not a replacement for the real cold brew process.

the_beth11d ago

Yeah my buddy Tom tried this after some barista showed him at a coffee fest and he was bragging about it for weeks. He made a batch with some Ethiopian beans he was saving for a special pour over, and @blairstone is totally right about the body not being as thick. Tom said it came out bright and clean but not flat, which surprised him because he was sure the hot water would wreck it. He even timed the ice addition to the second, like 10 cubes dropped in after exactly 4 minutes of the hot water hitting the grounds. It worked fine for him as a quick fix before work, but he still keeps a proper 18 hour batch going in the fridge for weekends.