Ah, the summer months. A magical time where many of the troubles of life make way to a more carefree way of living. There’s just something about the summer that seems to melt the stress away. And there’s perhaps no better treat than enjoy a refreshing, homemade, ice coffee during those dog days of summer.
How To Make Cold Brew Coffee:
This is my personal favorite method for making iced coffee but it does require some foresight and planning. We cover how to make a cold brew at length in our cold brew article [LINK]. Suffice it to say that it’s a brewing method which uses cold water, and requires being left in the fridge for roughly 18 – 24 hours. It produces a really bright, aromatic final product that works best with light roasts. Because the coffee is chilled during the steeping process it will be ready to drink as soon as you’re ready to filter out the coffee grounds. The remaining coffee concentrate will be very strong so be sure to cut it with some chilled cream, or water and server over ice.
How To Make A Brewed Iced Coffee – Step by Step Instructions
I know what you’re thinking, “18 – 24 hours?! But I want iced coffee noooooow!” I hear you. And you’re not out of luck cause making a quick iced coffee can be pretty simple.
- Brew some coffee: Brew a regular cup of coffee using your favorite beans, and whichever brewing method you prefer.
- Add Sweetener: If you enjoy sweetener in your coffee, now is the time to add it as the heat helps to better incorporate it throughout the coffee.
- Allow the Coffee Time to Cool: Let the coffee cool for up to 1 hour at room temperature
- Refrigerate it: Now that the coffee is cooled, put it in a sealable container like a mason jar and leave it in the fridge for 1 – 2 hours to allow it to cool further.
- For the Impatient, use ice water: You can cool the coffee down much faster by adding in ice water. Obviously this will dilute your coffee, so if you’re going to do it, it would be best to make a stronger coffee in step 1.
- Serve over ice: When your coffee has sufficiently cooled, be sure to serve it over ice, and cut it with cream to taste. Another nice trick is to use any leftover coffee to make coffee ice cubes. These can be saved for your next iced coffee to ensure it never gets diluted!
- Add Garnish: What you can do with an iced coffee is limited only by your imagination. A popular addition is to use sweetened condensed milk rather than cream to cut the coffee. This is what make Vietnamese Coffee a favorite among many people. A personal favorite is to throw my iced coffee into a blender with some ice, hazelnut, and chocolate for a really nice slushy like treat. I’ve also seen people add raspberries, vanilla, cinnamon and any other number of things. This would be a great place to try one of our homemade, flavored creamers. [LINK]
How to Make an Iced Coffee with a Keurig
I personally like to use the cold brew method, otherwise I’ll usually turn to my trusty French Press. The issue I have with using a Keurig is it does create quite a bit of waste brewing enough coffee to make a nice batch of iced coffee. If you’re really determined to use a Keurig machine just use the same steps listed above and use your Keurig for step 1.
Alcoholic Iced Coffee
We hear you loud and clear! On some days, you just want to let your hair down and have a little fun. The good news it’s incredibly easy to make an adult only iced coffee to entertain a bunch of party goers (not that kids should be drinking coffee in the first place anyways). Some examples that go well with coffee are Brandy, Baileys, and rum. A really great trick, if you’re willing to learn is how to make a coffee Martini!
Iced coffee is one of my favorite treats, and one of my favorite remedies for the summer heat. Make sure to always have a ready supply available and just feel the stress slip away.
