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Brew Guide

Cold Brew: All the best parts of iced coffee

Iced, iced, baby!

On a hot summer day, if I was given a decision between iced coffee and cold brew, I would probably choose cold brew. But that doesn’t mean I love my iced coffees from time to time. They’re both refreshing and allow room to get creative with the toppings (although I love drinking it black - but that’s just me). The main difference is how it’s prepared - cold brew is required to sit in room temperature water for the coffee to extract (which takes hours) whereas iced coffee uses coffee that been brewed in hot water (few minutes). The cold brew method avoids extracting the oils and just focuses on the flavour, thus makes it less acidic than its counterpart. Regardless, if you’re a big fan of either of these cold caffeinated beverages, then here’s our suggestion:

Making a batch of cold brew coffee at home is your iced coffee base

Instead of watering down your coffee and losing the punch of the flavour, you can just make a big batch of cold brew that’s already less acidic and fresh because you’re not bringing out the oils like you would with hot water. Here are some quick steps to make a pitcher of cold brew:

  1. Get three ingredients: a mason jar, a reusable cotton coffee filter, and one cup of fresh medium ground coffee.

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2. Fill the resuable cotton filter with the coffee and tie it up.

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3. Fill it up with room temperature water and let it sit for 12-18 hours.

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That’s it! Not only do you have cold brew ready for you, but you can use it as a base for your iced coffee drinks. Visit our blog to read more about cold brew coffee and to find recipes you can try today!

 
Special Blast blend logo we created for the team at Fusion Analytics.

Special Blast blend logo we created for the team at Fusion Analytics.

Recipe:

Tim’s Reboot Cocktail

In a tall glass, pour 3/4 cup (200 ml) of cold brew Sparkplug Coffee over 3 ice cubes. Add:

  • 1.5 ounces (45 ml) of decent whiskey or bourbon

  • 1.5 ounces (45 ml) light cream or half-and-half cream

  • 2 Tbsp (30 ml) salted caramel syrup (or 2 Tbsp (30 ml) caramel syrup and a generous pinch of sea salt)

  • Stir until well mixed. Enjoy!

 

Start making iced coffee and cold brew at home with Sparkplug Coffee

 

How to Pick The Best Coffee Grinder

How to Pick The Best Coffee Grinder

The Scoop on Coffee Grinders

Our recommendations for at home coffee grinders starting from $100. What's the best fit for your coffee habits? 

How To: Make Great Espresso at Home

How To: Make Great Espresso at Home

Making espresso with an espresso machine can be a bit more fiddly than making drip coffee or brewing with a moka pot.

Guest blogger, Oli, takes us through how to use a basic portafilter-driven espresso machine in a way that gives you the best chance of achieving optimal extraction when you brew. Follow his advice to avoid sour, under-extracted espresso. Instead, you’ll be pulling great shots every time!

Goldilocks & the 3 water temperatures

Goldilocks & the 3 water temperatures

Too hot, too cold, just right….

After Goldilocks had eaten the bears’ porridge, she decided to make coffee.

The first time she boiled the kettle and poured it right away, using water that was too hot.  “Oh!” she cringed, “this coffee is bitter.”

So she  made more coffee, without heating the water again. This time it was too cold.  “Oh!” she said, making a disappointed face, “this coffee is sour and weak.”

The third time she heated the kettle to a boil then let it cool for just under a minute before she poured it. “Ah!” she sighed, sipping her java contentedly, “this coffee is just right.”

And that’s all you need to know.

You don’t need to spend hundreds of dollars on an expensive kettle.  But you can if you want to!

The Amazing AeroPress - why we think it's the best coffee maker ever

The Amazing AeroPress - why we think it's the best coffee maker ever

The Amazing AeroPress

What the heck is that thing?

The AeroPress is a coffeemaker, of course! But it is strange looking and many people wonder how that crazy syringe-thing works.

Here’s the Sparkplug Coffee Scoop on the Amazing AeroPress. Read on to learn how it works and why it's great.

How clean is your grinder? Does it matter?

How clean is your grinder? Does it matter?

You'll be surprised the difference a clean grinder makes

Most of us don’t pay attention to this and don’t clean our grinder regularly. Over time, coffee oils and residue build up and can start to affect both the taste and performance of your grinder. Darker and oilier coffee beans are especially bad for gumming up your grinder. (Take note Globetrotter fiends!)   

The good news is that cleaning a grinder is quick and easy. Read on for our tips - and we've got you covered, whether your grinder is blade or burr.