Cold brew Vs. Hot Brew – What’s The Difference?

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Posted by: Sean Craig
Posted on: May 23, 2022

Have you ever thought that hot-brewed coffee is to bitter? You’re not alone. Hot coffee can be incredibly strong for some peoples preference. Cold brew coffee allows you to enjoy all of the same energy and health benefits as normal coffee, without the hard bitter taste! To make it, you don’t even need a filter, or coffee maker. Just get a large jug or container, and you’re ready to go!

Cold Brew Coffee – What Is It?

Cold brew coffee is when you steep the grounds directly in cold or room temperature water for a longer duration of time (12 hours or more). The water is never heated, but it extracts the caffeine from the grounds over the duration of time.

What Is Hot Brew Coffee?

Hot brew coffee involves boiling the water, this allows the coffee drinker to extract the caffeine much faster then cold brew as the heated water will speed up the caffeine extraction. While the major benefit is the faster brewing time, the downside is that the coffee tastes stronger, and will be more bitter since the hot brew method extracts the acid from the coffee as well.

Does Cold Brew Coffee Taste Different Then Hot Brew Coffee?

Cold brew coffee will be less bitter then hot brew coffee as the acid in the coffee grounds aren’t extracted when the water is kept at a colder temperature. You can further affect the taste by brewing with ice cold water. You can do this by adding ice to the container that you are using to brew the coffee.

Cold brew may also be less flavorful then hot brew and less aromatic. So if you do want a stronger cold brew, you may have to brew for longer, or double brew the coffee you used. Or, if you just want cold coffee, you can hot brew coffee, then ice it to make it colder. However, it will still be bitter like normal coffee.

What Affects The Taste Of Cold Brew Coffee?

Roast Level

Typically you will use a darker roast for cold brew, as you will want to extract as much of the flavor and aroma profile out of the coffee as possible. Cold brewing a dark roast will help promote a stronger flavor, and a more aromatic profile.

However, this is all personal preference, so if you want a lighter roast, that’s ok too!

The Grind

A finer grind will allow for a stronger flavor and aromatic profile since there is more surface area created when the grinds are smaller. If there is more surface area, the water will have a greater chance of penetrating and extracting the aroma and taste profile of the coffee.

Water Temperature

Extracting the caffeine, taste, and aroma of the coffee grounds can be slowed down if you use colder water, or ice water. Some people prefer this as it will make the cold brew very smooth to drink, which is mainly why they are drinking it to began with. However, if you want a stronger brew, you can just put in room temperature water to begin the brewing process.

Best Bean For Cold Brew

The best bean will largely depend on your choice of preference so you should experiment with different bean origins! If you need a place to start 100% Arabica beans are often preferred for their flavor. But you can use any origin of bean, and you can use blends of beans too! The options are absolutely unlimited!

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Cold Brew Expensive To Make?

Not at all, you can get 900 grams of coffee for under $20, and this can last a while even for the heaviest addicts among us. You don’t even need filters, or a machine!

Is Cold Brew Hard To Make?

It’s easy, just measure enough ground coffee for the amount of water you are using. Afterwards, we recommend steeping the grounds overnight, so it’s ready in the morning!

About The Author

Sean Craig

Hi, my name is Sean Craig and I love coffee! I wanted to share all the great things I've learned about coffee with you! I've been drinking coffee for decades now. My favorite coffee is cold brew because It's simple and easy, but I also like to treat myself every now and again too!

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