WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH COLD COFFEE?

Coffee over ice has become increasingly popular over the years, even in the dead of winter.

At the coffeehouse we serve three types of cold coffee: iced coffee, cold-brew, and nitro coffee.

The classic iced coffee is brewed coffee that has been iced down, or put in the fridge to cool. This form of iced coffee is popular and easy to make at home. If you want your coffee iced immediately, it is best to brew it a bit stronger so it can hold up to the diluted ice. If you can plan ahead (lucky you!), make your coffee at normal strength and just chill.

Cold brew is just a different extraction method to make coffee. You can extract coffee with pressure like we do with our espresso machines, you can also extract coffee using hot water (our drip, your coffee machine) and you can extract coffee using cold water. In each extraction method, different flavor compounds are extracted, giving each method of coffee a different taste with the same bean.

Cold brew is made by coarsely grinding the coffee bean and letting it steep in cold water for 12 to 16 hours depending on the amount of coffee being used and your taste preference.

This way of extracting coffee offers a less acidic and smoother cup of coffee, since the grounds are not subjected to the intense heat of boiling water as with the drip method. This lower acidic taste gives the coffee a sweeter taste and allows more of the smoother-flavor compounds of the bean come to life.

With nitro coffee, you are introducing a gas into the process. It is similar to carbonating a beverage. Carbon dioxide makes the big bubbles (i.e. soda) and nitrogen makes the small ones. The nitrogen gas gives the coffee a creamier texture and the impression of being sweeter than cold brew. It's a trick on the tongue. Have you ever drank a soda with carbonation, and then without? It just tastes different. Nitro gives the sensation of drinking a Guinness stout.

We infuse our cold brew with nitro - as do most coffeehouses. Although in theory, you could use iced coffee.

So if you haven't tried ours yet, we are always pouring cold!