Iced Coffee: Simple to make, wonderful to enjoy!

In summer, iced coffee's one treat that is always welcome on a hot and sultry day. However, making iced drinks with coffee invites vigorous debates about whether it should be included among decent coffees or not; whether it is real coffee nor not; and how it should be made, served or even consumed.

Not just cold, it's cool!

Let me tell you: I love iced or ice coffee, esp. on days when you can't really seem to cool down at all, and tastefully made and served, it can be really delicious if you are lucky enough to consume it! But in the US and the UK, iced coffee has barely made a dent in people's perceptions of good coffee. Why? Largely, the weather.

That said, there are many kinds of iced coffee made worldwide, including some rather awful things that look like the real deal but aren't. Any coffee drinker knows that instant coffees are barely coffees at the best of times, but adding creamer and sugar along with the ice cubes hardly makes them any better.

Instead, we're going to look at real ice coffee, ice coffee recipes, preparation, serving and consumption! In fact, this way of serving coffee has become very popular in recent years, especially on hot days. It is delicious and the caffeine helps to dissipate the malaise that often settles over us on the long, warm days of summer; while the ice can soothe the head, ease your temper and help you to 'chill' out a little, even when the weather seems unbearable.

Cold Coffee - Variations

There are different ways to prepare coffee in this way and many different recipes, some of which produce better results than others.

Regular Coffee, just cold

For example, some people brew their coffee as they normally would if they intended to drink it hot then let it cool off and add ice. This was what I always considered 'iced coffee' until recently.

The resulting drink usually tastes bitter, especially after being refrigerated for a while.  To solve this problem you can soak the ground coffee in water for a few hours then filter it or invest in a cold brewing system. You can even try your own home built system for making cold brew coffee.

Espresso Shots

Some coffee shops use shots of strong espresso for their drinks, adding sweetener and flavors then pouring it into a cup of very cold milk.  This type of iced coffee is typically called "cold coffee".  Some add ice and blend it while others serve it as is, especially in shops where customer turnover is rapid. 

Syrups, Flavors, and Powders

There are many variations of chilled coffee, as each country has taken its own slant of how to make it. It's worth noting at this point that adding syrups, flavors, powders, creams, liqueurs, etc. will introduce additional calories. For more about this, read the article calorie content which explains more.

Around the world, many countries have invented their own way to enjoy coffee as a chilled drink for warmer climes and warmer times. Let's take a quick look:

• In Italy caffe freddo is popular; espresso is put in a freezer until it turns to slush and is served on hot days.
• In Greece the coffee is prepared as a Frappe, blended with an electric hand mixer so that it has a foamy top.  Other cold coffee drinks popular in Greece are cappuccino freddo and espresso. 
• In Australia, where it's been served and sold commercially since the late 1800's, it comes in syrup form.  In fact, iced coffee outsells the most popular cola drink in the world in Australia and its sales figures come close to those of beer. 
• In Chile, iced coffee is called Helado.  Coffee powder or espresso is combined with cream, cinnamon and vanilla, sugar and often ice cream with ground almonds.  Although it sounds like a heavy, filling drink it is very refreshing and nearly everyone drinks it at least once a day in the summertime. 
• India has its own cold coffee drink which consists of instant coffee blended with cold milk.  Israel's coffee drinkers enjoy a type of "slushie" which uses coffee, crushed ice, sugar and milk. 
• Ready to drink iced coffee has become more than a fad, especially in North America.  It's difficult to find a grocery store or a restaurant that doesn't carry it! 

Many other countries also prepare iced coffee, including Japan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and more. However it is made, the common factors in all of the different ways of making it are: coffee and ice!

Yes, you can MAKE it!

There are several ways to make iced coffee at home. We'll take a look at the most popular ways to make iced coffee.

Tell your barista what you are proposing to do and how you are proposing to make the iced brew, so that she can choose a better blend than you might otherwise do yourself. I'd suggest choosing either a medium or dark roasted coffee simply.

You'll be adding a lot of ice to the mixture, so the coffee itself really has to be quite strong and intense to survive the dilution when the ice cubes melt or are crushed.

Hot Brewed Coffee

Whether or not you decide to go the traditional route, and use left over coffee from today's  breakfast or lunch pot, you may find that some blends and roast make a more satisfying glass of coffee than others. I'd suggest that you let the brew cool naturally, first.

Occasionally when you brew this way, you'll notice that the taste can become bitter as the coffee continues to brew in the hot liquid. Eventually, the coffee flavor goes 'bad', but a lot depends on which beans you use. Vietnamese Coffee tends to avoid this problem, and results in a more satisfying brew.

The Steeping Method

If you want to make it at home you can steep the ground coffee in water for about twelve hours, using a pound of coarsely ground coffee for every ten cups of water. 

The coffee is then strained and the resulting concentrate is used with water, milk or ice.  Adding flavorings or toppings is up to you but it is delicious just as it is. 

Cold Brewing Method

If you don't want to store the concentrate or wait for the coffee to "brew", you can buy an inexpensive cold brewing system or learn how to cold brew coffee yourself.

While it takes a lot longer to make the initial concoction, and you'll need to strain the resulting liquid, you'll end up with a much stronger and tastier that keeps better, and can be used to prepare more than just iced coffee.

Instant Coffee

Many iced coffee drinks, including Starbucks' own, are actually prepared from instant coffees. This may seem to be a downside to most real coffee drinkers, but it can be a nice treat.

You should use unsweetened instant coffee that you can control the sweetness of. Don't use 3-in-1 coffee packs as you will need to double down on the coffee, but the drink may be overwhelmingly sweet. Not to mention that fat in the creamer that comes in those packs.

Mix up the base drink with 20% of the final volume of hot water, then add 80% cold water. Pour over the ice cubes. I'd recommend adding sugar while the coffee liquid is still hot ... it will dissolve faster and more thoroughly.

Japanese Iced Coffee

This is a relatively simple method for making iced coffee. You brew the coffee in a regular drip coffee maker, except that you put an equal volume of ice cubes in the jug as the water you use to brew the coffee. Obviously, this is for the dilution, so the original coffee will probably need to be quite strong to survive the dilution.

The advantages of this method are that you can make iced coffee almost as quickly as hot coffee. You just need to have some ice on hand (run down to 7-Eleven if you don't!). You may need to play around with the type of beans, type of roast level, grinding level, and volume of coffee needed to get the desired flavors. You can read more about this method at the article Perfect Iced Coffee.

Serving your Coffee Cocktail!

Iced coffee is usually served 'on the rocks' but adding various items can really enhance the flavors.

Adding cream or milk over the final drink is a good idea, though many variations include the use of a much thicker and sweeter condensed milk.

You may even serve with a dollop of your favorite ice cream on top. Vanilla always works and complements the strength of the coffee, while adding a little sweetness.

Many coffee shops also produce a frappe of the coffee, ice coffee blended with crushed ice, and topped with cream, many kinds of flavored syrups and ice cream. I daresay you'll also find cinnamon, chocolate, nuts, and much more can be added to the final drink for embellishment.

One coffee shop near my house adds an Oreo for a special touch!

So the next time you see iced coffee on the menu at your local coffee shop, if it's hot outside, why not try ordering some ice or chilled coffee, for a change! It will be a welcome change to the usual latte or whatever you drink.

Do you have a great iced coffee recipe?

If so, why not submit your recipe to this blog, and share it with our addicted coffee drinkers! We'd love to try your iced coffee drinks!

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Wherever you are, remember enjoy that cup of coffee!

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