Last summer I traveled for seven months throughout the Western United States. One of my favorite discoveries was cold brew coffee on nitro. This was not just cold coffee. It was smooth, creamy and delicious. There was at least one occasion where I had ordered a Porter and a cold brew coffee on nitro and could barely tell the difference. Since that trip I have been looking forward to producing my own version. I finally worked it out and it has changed my summer.
Cold Brew Coffee on Nitro in Five Easy Steps:
- Steep 1 cup of ground coffee in 1 quart of water for 12-24 hours (store in refrigerator)
- Strain out coffee grinds
- Pour coffee into 1 quart whip cream dispenser and fill to max line adding additional water
- Charge container with one whip cream cartridge (N2O)
- Refrigerate for another 12-24 hours
Kit / Tips / Boosters / Stats:
- 1 Quart 100% Stainless Steel Professional Whipped Cream Dispenser
- Nitrous Oxide (N2O): Charges
- Avoid using the pint and half pint size whip cream dispensers, go for the quart size or larger for cartridge efficiency
- When pouring turn whip cream dispenser upside down and use the edge of the glass to reduce foaming
- Booster…MCT Oil (1 tsp or less)
- Booster…Bulletproof makes an excellent Choline Bitartrate (500mg) that I find helps with focus and memory
- Booster…L-Theanine mellows out the caffeine buzz and can help with focus
- Stat: Cold brew coffee claims to be as much as 67% less acidic than brewed coffee
- Stat: Cold brew can be stored for up to two weeks in the refrigerator
People keep making this association with Nitrous Oxide. Nitro coffee is carbonated and served like Guiness with nitrogen. It gives it a creamy head and texture. N2O is not going to give it the same feel. Beer gas itself is a mix of N2 and CO2 which is used when it’s served. Just thought I would get this out there.
@EmptyZed – Thank you for the addendum. You are exactly right that N2O is going to give a different type of head. My findings have been that if I charge and serve within 12 hours there is a big fluffy head with N2O. A straight nitro or beer gas head would be much tighter bubbles. Waiting longer still leaves the coffee with plenty of N2O bubbles in the liquid and no head. Also there is a sweetness imparted by the N2O that is not present in straight nitro or beer gas mixes.
I actually prefer the N2O for coffee. I have yet to experiment with charging using multiple cartridges or doing the fast cold brew by steeping the coffee inside the whip cream dispenser for just two hours under pressure.
I should have also stated that the instructions for what you did were very nicely written.
I appreciate you responding back to my reply. With the cost to purchase a serving of Nitro coffee (even in cans in stores) it’s nice to try to find alternatives that people can do themselves. I just happen to be lucky that I had an array of beer brewing equipment already on hand to give some other techniques a try. I am able to make myself some very small batches and bottle them up for later.
All in all it’s about finding the right texture and flavor that you like and that the technique is repeatable.
Keep up the good work!
@EmptyZed
It sounds as though you have a great setup with all the brewing equipment on hand.
What do yo like to brew on nitro or beer gas?