How to Make Cold Brew in a Mason Jar

Any coffee can be used for cold brew coffee, but there are some that lend themselves to it more than others. Because of the long, slow brew that takes place during cold brewing, many of the aspects of a coffee get mellowed out and become more approachable. For this reason, it doesn’t make sense to use a wild or exotic coffee for cold brew because many of those characteristics will get lost. I love bright, fruity coffees, but I would never use one for cold brew because so much of what I love in those coffees would come through in the cold brew. Instead I like to use a more balanced and approachable coffee that is rich and full-bodied. Coffees with notes of chocolate, strong sweetness and a lush mouthfeel are my favorite. I like using Central and South American single-origins, but also blends. Many roasters will create cold brew blends, which they create with cold brewing specifically in mind. In this recipe I use a cold brew blend from Oak & Bond that has the rich chocolate flavor notes, caramel sweetness and creamy body that I love in a good cold brew.

The roast level of the coffee you use for your cold brew is completely up to your personal preferences. While I almost exclusively brew with light roasted coffees when making pour over, they are not my favorite for cold brewing (because they often times lose the light, bright aspects that I love so much in the pour over when made as cold brew). I find a medium roast works best for my preferences because it tends to hit a lot of the aspects I mentioned above that I like (more balanced and approachable, rich and full-bodied).

While you can use a cold brew maker to make your cold brew, you don’t need any special equipment. The main benefit a cold brew maker gives you is an easy way to separate the coffee grounds from the coffee after brewing. With a cheese cloth or a strainer though, the process can be very easy to do without any special equipment. For this recipe all you will need is: a 16 oz mason jar, a strainer (mesh metal strainer or cheesecloth), coffee and water.

Cold brew has a lot of flexibility when it comes to its strength. You can make it as a concentrate with a water to coffee ratio as strong as 4:1 or more as a ready-to-drink coffee at a more usual 12:1 to 16:1 water to coffee ratio. This recipe is an 8:1 ratio, which is more concentrated. This allows you to add ice or milk without the coffee becoming too weak or diluted.