They are both iced coffee, why is cold brew more expensive than iced Americano?

In the hot summer, many people often drink a cup of iced coffee to cool down. People who often go to coffee shops may be confused. Iced Americano and cold brew look basically the same, but why are the prices different? Why is nearly 40 cold brew so expensive? Let's take a look today~

What is cold brew coffee and why is it so expensive?

Cold brew coffee, also known as iced coffee, cold brew coffee, and cold brew coffee. Cold brew is one of the ways to extract coffee. The extraction mentioned here is different from the chemical term. It is the process of dissolving flavor and aromatic substances from roasted and ground coffee powder .

Common coffee extraction methods are mainly divided into cold extraction and hot extraction, that is, extraction with cold water or hot water . Ice drip and cold brew are common methods of cold extraction. The iced Americano we usually drink is hot espresso + ice cubes, so it is essentially hot extraction coffee.

Because cold brew uses cold water, and the dissolution rate of coffee in cold water is lower than that in hot water, cold brew takes longer. Usually, you need to wait 6 to 8 hours for ice drip, and cold brew takes even longer, usually more than 8 hours. Therefore, the price of cold brew coffee in coffee shops is usually much higher than that of hot brew coffee .

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Why does cold brew coffee taste different?

During the coffee extraction process, the rate at which caffeine and various flavor compounds in coffee dissolve in water has a certain relationship with the temperature of the water, which directly leads to the taste difference between cold brew and other coffees. In the mouths of non-professionals, coffee is basically divided into sweet, sour, and bitter categories. If you don't like the bitterness and sourness of coffee, cold brew coffee is a good choice .

The sourness of coffee mainly comes from various fatty acids. Compared with hot water, fatty acids dissolve more slowly in cold water. And during the high-temperature extraction process, the compounds in the coffee will oxidize, making the coffee more bitter. The longer the cold brewing time, the fewer types of acid compounds in the coffee will be. Therefore, the acidity and bitterness of cold brewed coffee are lower, and the taste is smoother and milder .

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But at the same time, cold brewing reduces the dissolution rate of compounds, and some compounds cannot be extracted. Therefore , although cold brew coffee is smoother and sweeter, it usually lacks complex aroma, and it is more difficult to distinguish between coffee varieties .

How to make your own cold brew coffee?

Although cold brewing is a slow and meticulous process, it can be said to be a must-have coffee brewing method for clumsy people. Due to the oxidation problem mentioned above, hot water brewing coffee can easily lead to over-extraction if the time is not well controlled, and the coffee will become very bitter . Cold brewing coffee, on the other hand, takes several hours, during which the taste can be determined multiple times, which can effectively avoid the problem of over-extraction .

At the same time, cold brewing requires much fewer materials and tools than you might think. You don't need a dazzling variety of coffee brewing utensils. You can make a simple cup of cold brew coffee with a cup with a lid, a filter, a cup of ice water and coffee powder. The water-to-powder ratio is about 1:10. Pour the coffee powder and water into the cup, cover it and put it in the refrigerator. After 8 hours, you can taste it every hour. When you are satisfied with the taste, you can take it out and filter the coffee powder to drink.

It should be noted that the selection of coffee beans, the degree of roasting and the coarseness of the grind will affect the final taste of cold brew coffee . You can try various methods yourself or ask a professional barista for advice when purchasing. Of course, if making cold brew coffee yourself is too complicated for you, you can also choose to buy cold brew coffee liquid to easily achieve cold brew freedom.

Author: Hydra popular science creator

Review | Han Hongwei, Researcher at the National Food Safety Risk Assessment Center