Rob Butterworth, of Butterworth and Son and Guats Up! in Bury St Edmunds, shows us how to make and enjoy a cold black coffee with a delicious fruity twist for summer
I saved this article for July hoping the warmer weather would be surely here to stay but as I write this on a grey Wednesday morning I long for sunnier days to return and temperatures to hit 25C+ again. . .
I’ve never been a fan of Cold Brew, it’s a little bit trendy right now yes, but does that mean it’s the best way to enjoy black coffee cold? No, definitely not. Best avoid it and find something waaay more delicious and artisan.
Cold Brew can be smooth and mellow, but this method does not draw out all the nuances of the coffee that the roasting process releases. Those gorgeous fruity flavours will be dull and indistinct. You simply need hot water to dissolve the aromatic compounds found in quality coffee. Cold brewing at home requires an airtight vessel or your coffee is going stale, you also need to consume what you brew within three days before bacteria begins to breed, commercial products should be pasteurised, (which can impact on the flavour negatively).
As with all things artisan, food or drink, I think we’ll all agree that making little and often, as required, for freshness is the key to quality.
The Japanese Iced Coffee method brings together all the best iced techniques and puts them into one brewing method like a coffee Kata. You brew the coffee hot to extract all the flavours and sugars, but it’s brewed over ice to super cool the brew and provides an aromatically rich, flavourful coffee, iced. The best thing about this method is you only need your V60 brewing equipment to make it :)
Here’s the recipe:
22g medium ground coffee
250g hot water
140g ice cubes
Fold filter paper along the crimped edge, open and place inside the V60 filter cone. Pre-wet filter paper whilst in cone.
Put 140g of ice into your mug or server. Weigh out 22g of ground coffee and dispense into V60.
Put server or mug, V60 cone complete with pre-wet filter and 22g of ground coffee, on top of scales. Reset scales to read zero.
Pour just enough hot water from the kettle to cover coffee, ensuring all grounds are saturated and allow the coffee to bloom (around 50g). Wait 30 seconds then add water slowly, only adding enough water to cover coffee + 2cm. Using a pouring kettle helps pour the water with accuracy, try to pour water in circular motion to continuously saturate all coffee grounds and move coffee away from the edge of the filter paper.
Once the weighing scales read 250g stop pouring and allow water to drip through completely.
As the hot water comes into contact with the ice some ice will invariably melt but this helps dilute the concentrated brewed coffee to provide a perfectly balanced brew.
Serving suggestion: Latin Style; add some summer fruits to the ice to add another dimension to your favourite coffee.
Want to brew something iced using espresso? Shake espresso over ice in a cocktail shaker, strain the liquid into a glass and add ice cold milk to taste.
Rob owns Butterworth & Son coffee roasters and tea smiths, based on Moreton Hall, and Guat’s Up! café in Guildhall Street
His job takes him around the world visiting coffee farms to source great coffees
See butterworthandson.co.uk
See guatsup.coffee
