Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Treatment and handling of your distillate.

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father william
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Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by father william »

Came across this because I'm sort of a coffee geek, have roasted my own for several years, have half a dozen coffee making devices including an espresso machine (a real one, not a steam boiler). Always looking for new ways to enjoy coffee.

Cold brewed coffee is considered by many the only correct way to make coffee that is eventually going to be drunk cold or iced. Coffee that's made with hot water deteriorates as it cools due to the acids and oils going acrid: drink a cup of coffee that's been sitting in the Bunn at work for a couple of hours and you'll know exactly what this means.

Cold brewed is made similarly to Sun Tea. Time rather than temperature extracts the caffeine and most of the flavor components from the coffee. However, the majority of the acids and oils do not get dissolved out of the grounds since temperature is required to release them.

You get a very smooth, almost cocoa-tasting cup of coffee that doesn't grind up your stomach if you drink a lot. Plus, it will keep in the refrigerator in a sealed jar for up to two weeks. At first it will taste a bit thin compared to a regular cup of drip coffee because you'll associate the oils and acid with full flavor, but after drinking it a few times you'll notice that the more delicate flavors open up because they're not masked by the stronger oil and acid flavors.

Why post this here? Because it also happens to provide an excellent coffee/cocoa taste to liquor and is extremely stable over time.

To try it, pour 1/3 of a cup of medium or coarse grind coffee into a glass jar. Add 1 1/2 cups of room temp or cold water. Stir, cover and let it sit overnight (I make it right before going to bed). When you get up in the morning, pour it through a coffee filter into a sealable second jar and you've got cold brewed coffee extract. Scale up the recipe if you like it, since it keeps so well.

It'll be twice as strong, roughly, as an ordinary cup of coffee. I dilute it 1 to 1 with water, heat it up in the microwave for a minute, and have an excellent cup of coffee in the morning, even if I used a cheap coffee to make it.

Lately I've been adding 20ml of coffee extract (not diluted) to 40ml of 125 proof UJSM, then dropping in a few ice cubes and letting it sit, blend and melt for a few minutes. Sort of a hillbilly Kahlua if you will, with no sweetness.

Next step is to pour it into the bottle and let it blend and age for some time. Vanilla bean, sugar, hazelnut, etc. can all go in over the top.

Trust me, after doing this you won't even consider the old "add instant coffee crystals to vodka" method of making homemade coffee liquers. Cold brewed coffee extract is simply superior.
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Fester
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by Fester »

Thanks FW, everything you said make perfect sense. Gotta try your cold brew when I make my next batch of Kahlua.
A smoother and more delicate coffee taste would make a finer liquor as I try to make the coffee as strong as I can without too much bite.
theholymackerel
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by theholymackerel »

Thankyou father william.

I've been lookin' for somethin' like this for quite a while. I'll start experimentin' tonight.
Sbeghan
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by Sbeghan »

This is a great idea. What do you suggest for a finished concentration of coffee in a coffee liqueur made this way? 1x regular coffee, 2x?
father william
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by father william »

This is a great idea. What do you suggest for a finished concentration of coffee in a coffee liqueur made this way? 1x regular coffee, 2x?
That would have a lot to do with what proof the booze you're using is, and what proof you want the liquer to have. I've been using one part extract to two parts 125 proof UJSM, ending up with around an 80 proof drink which gets diluted a bit with the melting ice cubes. Without any sugar or other flavorings it can't really be called a liquer, I guess, but it's pretty good that way.

You can experiment and add more extract or more booze. Try mixing a couple of drinks and see if you like it before committing a bottle to it.
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Fester
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by Fester »

father william, thank you very much for your coffee procedure. My brother quit drinking coffee recently and last week he gave me 2 pounds of very good coffee. I knew exactly what to do with it. Kahlua!
Your cold coffee brewing allowed me to make it extra strong and tasty without the slightest hint of bitterness.
I've added a full gallon of excellent Kahlua to my "inventory".

1.5 pounds coffee grounds and 6 cups cold water. steep overnight.
filter into saucepan
add 6 cups white sugar and 2 cups light brown sugar
heat slowly just until sugars are completely dissolved (about 10 minutes) it does not need to be very hot.
filter into a 1 gallon jug
add 2 tablespoons each of vanilla extract and glycerin
top up jug with 84% a/v neutral spirits (about 1.5 to 2 quarts of spirit)
shake jug and enjoy. allow to age, if possible.

This is a very forgiving recipe. All measurements are plus or minus a bit. No need to be too exact.
because the coffee was cold and the syrup was not hot, filtering was slow.
change filters often.
About $100 worth of Kahlua clone for just pennies. Thanks again, FW. Rich coffee flavor without the bitterness.

Fester
Sbeghan
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by Sbeghan »

Fester... Kahlua clone? This is way better than a clone.

This is what I ended up doing.

1 1.75L bottle of 40% and 1 empty 1.75L bottle.
3 pounds of coffee (1 pound light, 1 pound medium, and 1 pound dark roast) - freshly ground to french press / coarse grind.
2 tbsp of really good vanilla essence
sugar

Add the ground coffee to the empty 1.75L bottle and top off with water. Brew overnight and strain and filter and return to the 1.75L bottle. Add the vanilla essence and top off with sugar. Shake till its dissolved and then mix the coffee syrup with the alcohol to get 20% coffee liqueur.

I find this is a good mix of strength and sweetness for mixing with milk or drinking straight which is pretty much all that I do with it.
father william
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by father william »

In the interest of full disclosure:

Sobering news: coffee increases drunkenness

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/scie ... nness.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

OTOH,

Drinking coffee cuts alcohol's harmful effects

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13281392/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

A win-win?
If stupidity got us into this mess, then why can't it get us out?

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Rod
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by Rod »

Thanks for the recipe Father

been making iced coffee every second day

your recipe to steep the coffee

next day

equal quantity of milk , a little sugar , and ice cream to finish
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frozenthunderbolt
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by frozenthunderbolt »

this is awesome - i'm going to try it tonight!
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beowoulfe
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by beowoulfe »

First cup of cold brewed coffee this morning.................GREAT!!

Thanks for the heads up. I already have tomorrow's coffee "brewing".
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Bushman
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by Bushman »

I love my kahlua recipe but would like to give this one a try, currently looking for a good deal on a large french press.
Beerlover88
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by Beerlover88 »

Sbeghan says to put 3 lbs of ground coffee in a 1.75? Will that much coffee even fit in a 1.75? It would probably be easier to use a 1/2 gallon mason jar. I guess I'd have to use a cheaper coffee because decent coffee is about $8.00 a lb here. Any comments from people who have tried it?

Thanks!

Beerlover
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by blind drunk »

Just mixed up a batch for the morning. This is a good a time as ever since my espresso machine is broken and the repair guy said "it'll be about three weeks." No recession in the coffee business. I won't get it to him until next week. Yikes.
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tomgndallas
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by tomgndallas »

you are a genius!! i mixed a half cup in with 2 cups water. sat overnite and filtere. loaded in a cup and a half of white sugar, half cup of brown sugar, about 150 mls of neutral that had frenck oak and madagascar vanilla, then topped it off to a full 1 liter mason jar with white dog. put a little on whole milk, damn!! that is tastey!
TheB
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Re: Cold Brewed Coffee Extract

Post by TheB »

Hi...
Just tried something close to the recipie described. Tastes amazing.
Well, after adding alcohol and letting it sit for a Day, there seems to be this milky layer forming in the bottom of the flask.
My cold Brew coffe extract did not have this layer even after 5 days in the fridge.
Anyone who has sene this too or even better, has an explanation to it.

I’m no expert, but oils should float on top right.

Some tastning showed a Big taste difference.drinking the decanted vs stirred up trub. Way better with no decanting.
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