What’s Brewing?
Summer in Milwaukee. We all know what that means: festivals, beach time, sultry weather and coffee. Yes, coffee. Cold, refreshing iced coffee. Not the thin, sour, acrid stuff you may have been subjected to before the current blessed coffee revolution, but smooth, sweet, juicy stuff brewed with care and attention. We'll get to the manufacture of said delicious iced coffee in just a bit; first, let's take a look at what we have to work with in the roastery.

After a brief hiatus, we were delighted to welcome one of our favorite Peruvian coffees back into the shop just recently. CEPICAFE (CEntral PIurana de CAFEtaleros) is a cooperative of small-scale coffee producers in northern Peru near Ecuador in the Piura district on the western slopes of the Andes Mountains—way up there, at about 9001400 meters. The small-lot family farms that make up co-ops like CEPICAFE promote biodiversity by leaving more of the surrounding forest intact. This means no pesticides or herbicides, shade for the coffee, food for the families and organization to benefit the community. This is all fine and good—but how does it taste? The first impression is always a remarkable, balanced smoothness. Farming at such a high altitude helps to focus natural acids in coffee, leading to a light, bright citrusy acidity. Follow this silky combo up with a sweet, creamy milk-chocolate finish and it’s no wonder why we dig it so much. But now, back to the topic at hand—how to do a coffee like this justice in an iced preparation.

The Extraction
The topic of iced coffee and how best to brew it invites as much discussion as the traditional steaming cup—and as you'd imagine, everyone is pretty convinced they're right. We'll spare you the lion's share of the nit-picking arguments and nerdy hand-wringing and break it down to the two most elemental factions: hot versus cold brewing.

We all recall from high school science class that water is a universal solvent (right?), and it's this property that we rely on to brew delicious coffee. Hot water behaves more vigorously than cold; it only takes a few minutes to brew a well-balanced cup of coffee when using 200-205º F water. If the water isn't as hot, it's going to take longer—a lot longer—to get the goods out of the grounds.

Essentially, both camps are right—you can get a really tasty iced coffee with either method, provided you follow a few reasonably simple guidelines. Which one to choose depends primarily on what kind of flavor profile you're looking for and, to a lesser extent, what kind of brewing gear you may have around.

The cold brew method involves steeping a greater-than-normal amount of ground coffee in cool or room-temperature water for 12-24 hours. After steeping, the grounds are strained from the resulting strong solution, usually first with a fine mesh sieve and then with a paper filter to capture the silt. What's left can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for a week or so. The cold water doesn't extract as much acid as hot water does, though the extended steep time causes some oxidation to occur. When diluted to appropriate strength with ice and/or water, the coffee is exceptionally mellow and smooth, creamy and caramel-y. All this can usually be accomplished with tools and vessels found in the average kitchen, though you have to be the kind of person who likes to plan ahead.

Cold brew is also called Toddy (after the brand name of a fancy-pants commercially available cold brew system), while others know it as New Orleans-style coffee. Keeping a jar of cold-brewed coffee extract in the refrigerator has long been part of New Orleans culture, and several pre-packaged options line supermarket shelves in the area. The extract, often containing a little chicory, is sweetened, iced and topped with a healthy dose of milk for a refreshing respite from hot and humid delta days.

However, if you're a fan of the bright, juicy coffees from the mountains of Central and South America or East Africa, you may find that cold-brewed coffee is too mellow—or maybe you're just not the plan-ahead type. Perhaps hot-brewed, or what is commonly called the “Japanese Style” of brewing iced coffee is more to your taste. The method is simple: Set up a pour-over as you normally would (grinder, scale, kettle, 200-205º F water, funnel, filter, etc.), but use half the water (or twice the coffee—you get the idea) and drip directly onto enough ice to replace the missing volume of water. The hot water extracts all the high-toned fruity aromatics and acidity in the coffee; the ice melts to balance the brew and there's no time for the dulling effects of oxidization. Granted, it's best suited for making just one or two cups at a time and requires having a pour-over funnel, but freshness counts.

[Don't have a pour-over setup and want to try Japanese iced coffee? We cook them up like this one cup at a time every Saturday morning at the Tosa Farmers’ Market. Stop on by!]

The Value-Add
Sangria is known as a sort of wine cocktail, served up by the pitcher with chunks of stained fruit bobbing around. That wine is derived from fruit is obvious, but if you've been paying attention you know that coffee is, too. This recipe builds on the sangria premise of a light, dry, refreshing punch—but swaps out (most of) the wine for coffee. Don't worry, there's still plenty of booze, plus a zesty little caffeine bonus! For an invigorating variation on a summertime staple, give our Valentine Coffee Black Sangria a try.

Start with a quality silver tequila—no need to break the bank, but we don't advocate drinking junk. Next up, add an amaro. The spicy, minty, cola quality of Fernet Branca works particularly well, and it's just plain good practice to keep some of this stuff around. Follow this with a splash of wine; not just any wine, but a medium-sweet fortified wine: Madeira if you're the type to have it on hand; Italian (sweet) vermouth will do just as well. Cointreau, or some other quality dry triple sec, because, as always, it really ties the room together. Top off with iced coffee—either method will work, you choose. As with drinks of this sort, there's no need to be pedantic about proportions or recipes; make it your own. For a place to start, try this:

Valentine Coffee Black Sangria

4 parts iced coffee
1/2 part Cointreau
1/2 part Fernet
1 part vermouth
2 parts tequila

Build it on ice by the glass or pitcher. Skewer some berries if you're into garnish. Enjoy.

Article By Joe Gilsdorf & Robb Kashevarof from Valentine Coffee Roasters