What's Different About Cold Brew Coffee?
Being that we’re a new company, we get asked a ton of questions. Surprisingly most of those questions don’t pertain to our CBD Cold Brew or the Cold Brewtini. Sure, people ask the standard questions about what CBD does and what kind of alcohol we put in our drinks, but we are consistently asked the same thing over and over. The one question that we get asked more so than any other is: “What’s different about Cold Brew Coffee?”
We have a feeling that even as you’re reading this, some of you may be wondering the same thing. That’s ok! For some reason, many people still don’t know about what makes cold brew, cold brew. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not just iced coffee. We’re here to break it down for you, step-by-step, benefit-by-benefit.
It's All About The Brew, Baby
As you make suspect from the name, cold brew is literally cold brewed coffee. Hot drop coffee, AKA “traditional” coffee is brewed with hot water. Let’s discuss the two different processes. Cold brew coffee is typically made with coarsely ground beans, steeped in cold water for 18-24 hours. Hot drip coffee is made with any number of grind levels, and the coffee is extracted almost instantly from the beans when piping hot water is pulled (or dripped) through the grounds. Believe it or not, these two different brewing processes create two almost entirely different products.
Different Brews, Different Babies
Cold Brew Coffee is significantly less acidic than traditional coffee. Since you’re not extracting the coffee with hot water, significantly less acid is extracted from the grounds. Since the extraction process is slower and less prone to oxidization, the coffee itself can be up to 66% less acidic than it’s hot brewed counterpart. This leads to a much smoother coffee that wont upset your stomach, throat, or impact allow acids to negatively impact the taste of the coffee.
Speaking of taste, the taste difference between the two methods can be noticed with jus one sip. Since less acid is extracted via cold brewing, the cold brew coffee is significantly less acidic tasting. This allows for more of the coffee notes to shine through. Much more of the flavor from the bean is imparted into a cold brew than traditional coffee. While cold brew coffee doesn’t have the aromatic experience associated with a hot coffee, you experience the same coffee oils in a different way. Rather than heating and evaporating into a vapor you can smell, you swallow those same oils via your retro-nasal passages and experience the aroma a whole new way.
Moving on to versatility, cold brew coffee can be enjoyed a number of ways. Since it is less volatile, its flavor degrades at a much slower rate and can survive many more conditions than its hot drip sibling. You may have noticed that hot coffee tastes gross after it’s sat out and gone cold. Not the case for cold brew! You can enjoy it cold, over ice, and even heat it up! The flavor won’t change, as it is a much more chemically stable product.
Do I get My Same Fix?
Finally, let’s talk caffeine content. It’s a myth that cold brew contains more caffeine per ounce. This may come from the fact that people can purchase cold brew CONCENTRATE, which you’re expected to cut with water. However, the cold brewing method does allow you to monitor caffeine levels, as longer steep calls for a higher caffeine level. Simply cut your steeping time if you wish to reduce caffeine content.
Questions? Bueller?
Hopefully this has cleared up many of your questions about what’s different about cold brew coffee. All coffee is good; we just like to enjoy it differently. Take a trip on over to our shop and pick up some NuRange Cold Brew Coffee to taste the difference. Have any other questions you want answered? DM us on Instagram, Collin’s been bored lately.