Real Simple Immersion Cold Brew Coffee in 4 Easy Steps

Cold brew coffee has grown in popularity over the past few years, mostly thanks to the decreased acidity, refreshing coolness and vibrant flavors. But cold brew isn’t just limited to your local coffee house … It’s actually really simple and cost-effective to brew all on your own. With the right tools, the only things you will ever need to brew some cold coffee, is fresh water and your coffee of choice.

For this guide, I will show you a primary method and an alternate method, both of which are really simple and really easy. The only difference between the two methods is that one uses 2 containers and a sieve for filtration while the other uses one container and a cheese cloth for filtration. Each method will net you roughly 64 oz of cold brew coffee concentrate that can make anywhere from 16-32 cups of cold coffee, depending on how strong you want your cup of joe. Cold brew concentrate can stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Let’s get started!

Required Items:

To make some cold-brew coffee, you will need a few items. Almost all of these can last you a lifetime if you take care of them and maintain them properly, making them a very sound investment for the coffee connoisseur.

• 2 Large Brewing Containers
• 1 Coffee Concentrate Storage Container
• Sieve OR Cheesecloth
• Filtered Water
• Whole Bean Coffee of Choice
• Coffee Grinder
• Funnel
• Digital Kitchen Scale

Optional Item(s):

For those who have tried or want to try nitro cold brew you can pick up one of these and store nitrogen infused cold brew concentrate. The nitrogen changes the coffee, giving it a sweeter taste and more frothy texture. Also, I personally dislike smaller chunks of ice in my cold brew, as they melt faster and I seem to always drink them on accident. I prefer to use a large ball of ice instead!

• Pressurized Growler Tap System
• Clear Ice Ball Maker

All of these tools (required & optional) are great investments, as they are built to last and have more uses beyond just coffee. Money spent here will save you money over the long-term, as our brewing methods do not expensive replacement filters that are one-time use. Let us begin!

The Primary Process of Immersion Cold Brew

First things first, you will need to select the right coffee bean for you. I am personally a medium roast guy that prefers a smooth taste. My favorite coffee lately has been the Eight O’Clock Whole Bean Coffee, Original . Just make sure it’s a coffee that you enjoy and that it is whole bean. Once you’ve selected your coffee, it’s time to begin the process.

1. Grind your coffee

Cold brew is best made when using coarsely ground coffee. The coarse grind allows more of the flavors to pour out of the coffee and into the water that we will become our concentrate. This creates a stronger, more balanced flavor. It also makes filtering our the coffee particles much easier since the grounds will be larger, making our sieve filtering process more effective.

For our particular recipe, we will be using a coffee to water ratio of 1:6. This means we will use 10.5 ounces of coffee to 64 ounces of water in order for things to fit into our 64 oz container. Do note that some of the water will be absorbed by the grounds. Also note, that you will need at least a 64 oz storage container for this method. If you want to make a smaller amount, you can simply use the 1:6 ratio and scale up. I’ve made a simple table that illustrates the 1:6 ratio in different output sizes.

2. Mix Ingredients

Once you’ve got your ground coffee, it’s time to add it with water. I recommend pouring the coffee into our glass container first using a funnel and then adding the remaining water. This allows the coffee to be mixed while the water is pouring. Once the water and the coffee has been mixed, you can add a half teaspoon of granulated salt (optional). This helps reduce the remaining bitterness, leaving you with a smooth cup of cold joe!

3. Let the Coffee Brew

It takes anywhere from 12-24 hours for our coffee to brew. The longer it brews the stronger the coffee becomes. I usually let my coffee brew between 14-16 hours, with 15 being ideal. Planning your brewing time ahead can really save you from worrying about over/under steeping your coffee. If I start my coffee brew at 6 pm, I know it will be done the next day around 9 am. It is more difficult to brew during the weekdays as it can conflict with work hours, so brewing on the weekends is usually best, as it sets you up for the next week or two.

4. Strain the Concentrate

Once the coffee is done brewing, you simply need to filter the remaining coffee grounds. You can easily do this by putting a sieve over container B and then pouring the contents from container A into container B. Keep in mind that you may have to strain a second or third time, depending on the coarseness of your coffee grinds. You can simply rinse of the container of which you poured out and repeat the process.

The benefit of using 2 containers for brewing, is that we only ever need a sieve to filter our coffee grinds. By doing this we will never have to worry about purchasing fancy or expensive replacement filters.

Once you’ve strained the coffee , you can leave the concentrate in the final container OR you can add it to our 64 oz glass milk bottle. I prefer to pour it into our 64 oz glass bottle, as it is more compact and is easier to pour with. Make sure to use a funnel when pouring into the storage container.

Alternate Method

This method works almost entirely like the first, but instead of using a sieve and 2 containers, you can use a cheese cloth and 1 container. The process is the same, we mix coffee grounds and water together in a container, but this time we pour the coffee into a cheesecloth, seal it and then immerse it in the water. This makes things far easier to clean and uses only one brewing container instead of 2.

Optional – Nitro Cold Brew

Once you have your cold brew, you can choose to store it in a pressurized growler. For making your nitro cold brew, use a coffee concentrate to water ratio of 1:1 and pour together. Once you have the concentrate and water in the pressurized growler, add the nitrogen and follow the growler’s instructions. You now have pure nitro cold brew coffee! It’s ready to serve straight up and makes 16 cups if utilizing a 128 oz growler. Make sure to store the growler in the fridge. When kept out of the fridge, the growler can keep coffee cold for 6-8 hours. Nitro cold brew coffee has a slightly sweeter taste and has the added texture from the nitrogen. Simply Delicious 🙂

Conclusion

Brewing cold coffee is really simple if you follow these 4 easy steps. After the process is complete, you will have yourself some cold brew concentrate that stays fresh for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. To serve, simply pour 1 part concentrate to 3 parts water, or a concentrate to water ratio of 1:3. Example – 2 oz of coffee concentrate to 6 oz of water. If you like your coffee stronger, you can increase the amount of concentrate added. Additionally, if you want to try nitrogen infused cold brew, get a pressurized growler and combine concentrate to water at a ratio of 1:1 and then add nitrogen. I hope you enjoyed this article on brewing real simple cold brew coffee! Enjoy your cup of joe!