How to make cold brew coffee at home

You don’t have to visit your favourite café to enjoy a delicious cold coffee. Why not relax at home with this refreshing drink, by making it yourself? A cold brew is a refined and tasty way to enjoy cold coffee. It differs from standard iced coffee, which is brewed hot and has ice added to cool it.

Cold-brew coffee uses cold water from the very start of the process, and the grounds are steeped rather than brewed. But it’s not as complicated as it sounds! Here we’ll show you how to make cold brew at home with a step-by-step guide.

Before you learn how to make cold brew coffee at home, make sure you’ve got the right equipment. With this kind of coffee you can keep it simple – you’ll only need the following items to get started:

• Coffee beans or grounds
• Still, or lightly sparkling water
• 2 jugs
• A funnel
• Kitchen towel, coffee filter paper, or a muslin
• Ice, milk, and sugar to taste

Making cold brew coffee starts with choosing your favourite beans or grounds. The steeping process creates an intense cup, so take that into consideration when selecting the best coffee for cold brew.

If you usually buy beans and grind them, you can also do that when making this drink. We recommend sticking to a coarse grind as it works best for the steeping and straining. If you’re buying coffee grounds, stick to a coarse ground option that’s designed for cafetières for the best results.

Here's a recap of our top cold brew tips:

1. Choose coarsely ground coffee for the best flavour intensity.
2. Leave steep for at least 12 hours.
3. Strain at least once, but more than once if necessary.
4. It’s intense, so serve over ice with milk and sugar to taste. Then enjoy!