Iced coffee is the refreshing delight of summer, providing a cool and invigorating pick-me-up on a hot day. However, recreating the same deliciousness at home often results in disappointment. To help you understand why your homemade iced coffee falls short, we’ve gathered insights from baristas who have identified common mistakes made during at-home preparation.
For a truly delicious iced coffee experience, it’s important to use a method that involves brewing the coffee hot, cooling it, and then serving it over ice. Cold brew, on the other hand, involves steeping grounds in cold water over several hours and is a different process entirely. To ensure your iced coffee remains flavorful when poured over ice, you must start with exceptional beans, the correct grind, and a precise ratio.
Tuan Huynh, owner of Chicago’s Vietfive Coffee, emphasizes the importance of beans in Vietnamese iced coffee. He uses robusta beans, which have lower acidity and twice as much caffeine as arabica beans. Huynh describes robusta beans as bold with nutty and earthy tones. While you may prefer experimenting with different blends, experts suggest sourcing beans from specialty coffee roasters and using them when they’re at their freshest, ideally within one to three weeks of their roast date.
When it comes to grinding the beans, the experts discourage using pre-ground coffee. Instead, they recommend grinding the beans right before brewing using a superfine grinder setting. If you don’t have a good at-home grinder, investing in one will significantly improve your results. A high-quality flat burr grinder is ideal for achieving the best acidity and sweetness in your coffee. Check out the highly recommended Baratza Encore Conical Burr Coffee Grinder for a reliable option.
Careful measuring and allowing time for the coffee to bloom are critical steps often overlooked by at-home brewers. Huynh stresses the importance of precise ratios, recommending a secret ratio of one part coffee to 12 parts water for cold brew. Huynh suggests using a stainless steel phin coffee filter placed over a cup for an authentic Vietnamese method. Add ground coffee, pour over a splash of hot water, and wait for the 30-second bloom. Then add the rest of the hot water, cover, and let it brew for four to five minutes. Huynh provides a detailed recipe and step-by-step video to guide you further.
After brewing, it’s time to add milk and ice according to your preference. Vietfive offers sweetened condensed milk, oat milk, and coconut milk. The baristas at Vietfive use lots of ice, as iced coffee is meant to be savored, not quickly consumed. The presence of ice enhances the flavor rather than diluting it. So, if you typically request “light ice,” thinking you’re getting more value, you may unintentionally compromise the quality of your drink. Additionally, it’s important to shake your cup to distribute the ice before sipping. This action keeps everything mixed as you enjoy your drink.
As for the freshness of your coffee, baristas differ in opinion. Some, like Sandra Ventura of the Barista Guild Leadership Council, prefer making each cup fresh since storing coffee in the fridge, especially in non-airtight containers, can lead to oxidization and absorption of other odors. However, according to Jimmy Evans, cold drip or cold brew can be refrigerated for up to five days and still taste great, though it’s best to consume it as soon as possible for optimal flavor.
In conclusion, achieving the perfect iced coffee at home requires attention to detail, starting with exceptional beans, grinding them freshly, measuring carefully, allowing for blooming, and adding milk and ice to your preference. Don’t forget to shake your cup to distribute the ice before sipping for a consistently mixed flavor.
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