April 23, 2024
by Natasha Nesic
Do you hear that? The sounds of birds in the breeze, squirrels in the trees, and crocus buds poking their heads out of the ground, saying, "Next month, please!"
For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, spring is well on its way, and that means we can joyfully anticipate warmer weather. And you know what comes with warmer weather?
Colder drinks!
We can finally take a break from finding the perfect boiling point for our incredible lightly-roasted Lardera coffee with our
smart electric kettle and start thinking about all the exciting options for cold beverages.
Cold brew, here’s looking at you.
And it’s so easy, too! Just add your
beans to the correct proportion of cold water—about 2 teaspoons per 8 ounces, adjusting to taste for flavor depth and boldness—and let it sit overnight or longer in your refrigerator to steep in your
cold brew pitcher, slow and sweet.
However, did you know that you can make cold brew with liquids other than plain water?
Here are five new ways to put a twist on this chilly classic:
1. Sparkling Beverages
If you’re looking to preserve your coffee’s flavor—and we do recommend it when you want to make the most of its inherently fruity notes, like with the
Junin Natural, for example—try an unflavored and unsweetened sparkling water: mineral, seltzer, or club soda.
The difference lies in the minerals and chemicals involved in carbonation.
Mineral water naturally contains calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and bicarbonate ions, while seltzer is usually just water with added sodium carbonate, and club soda is water with potassium carbonate.
If you desire more sweetness, consider adding honey from
Adagio Bees before trying a sweetened or flavored sparkling beverage. Just be careful not to overpower the coffee’s natural goodness.
2. Fruit Waters
Neutral juices like coconut water or aloe water, with their mild undertones, work well especially with tender budding beans like Lardera’s green coffee selection.
Try a delicate brew with the
Castillo Washed from Martin Tapias’s farm in Antioquia, Colombia. This might need more time to steep—18-24 hours—since green coffees are much lighter than light roast coffee and require a gentle touch to release their flavors.
3. Fruit Juices
Why not try fruit juice?
Adding a few shots of tart cranberry or black currant to your cold brew can enhance the coffee’s inherent flavors. Match your juice choices to the coffee’s flavor profile.
For example, the notes listed for the
Monobamba Washed are tangerine, concord grape, and black currant.
4. Alcohol
Please skip this section if you don’t imbibe. For those who do, start with neutral-flavored spirits, keeping in mind that caffeine is a stimulant and alcohol is a depressant.
We recommend a 3:1 to 5:1 ratio of coffee to alcohol to preserve the flavor integrity of both elements.
For more pronounced flavors, consider beers and ciders, especially with a rich coffee like the
Catuai Honey.
Tea
With Lardera’s sister company,
Adagio Teas, just a click away, explore the wealth of options that tea has to offer.
Start with a 1:1 ratio of coffee beans to tea leaves, experimenting to find what works best.
Whether fruity, earthy, spicy, or vegetal, tea can elevate your coffee experience.
