Cold brew or iced coffee?
summer is no longer alone ice cream territory But also. We have already resorted to cold soups and creams at lunch and dinner time. But at breakfast and snack? And at any time? You have to drink a lot of fluids, experts say, against the high temperatures and there are more and more options in Madrid. Without going any further in all these specialty coffee shops that in recent years have stolen our palate and convinced that another coffee was possible in this city.
No one can come from outside to tell us that we don't know how to drink coffee in summer. Ice coffee will continue to be king on some terraces, but more and more people, Hola Coffee and Misión Café assure us, are launching to discover the cold brew and there they stay.
The coffee that came from the cold.
And what is cold brew? Isn't that the same as an iced coffee? No way. “It consists of extracting the coffee with cold water”, explains Pablo Caballero, from Hola Coffee. “Coffee is an infusion, the more water and at a higher temperature… but in cold brew the hot water is changed by time: we have it a minimum of 12 hours”. Specifically, they have about 15 hours.
That coffee that comes out “It is less bitter, it has other nuances and the ice melts less”. Yes, coffee experts know that it is better than a simple iced coffee and allows for a variety of combinations, as we have seen in some of the specialty coffee shops in Madrid. Although it's not all brown in them either, these are some of the most refreshing drinks to spend the summer in the city.
Iced Latte and Cold Brew.
HANSO COFFEE LIME COLD BREW
This cafeteria on Calle Pez, always full, has released a new recipe for its cold brew this summer: “We use lime, cane sugar, and cold brew coffee.” As simple as that, but the difference is refreshing. “It is to give it a little more acidity, from the lime, and so that it is not so acidic, we add a little cane sugar to make it sweeter,” they explain. [At Hanso Café they are now closed for the holidays, but when they come back there will still be summer for their cold drinks].
Lime Cold Brew.
WARRIORS COFFEE VERMOUTH
Another of the pioneers in good Madrid coffee, Toma Café, serves its own cold brew in its two premises (Malasaña and Chamberí). In fact, they sell the format Cold Brew Bag in Box, that allows it to be kept in the fridge for a month "without suffering any change", because "thanks to its tap it prevents the entry of oxygen". "It is ideal for vacations, picnics, offices or to have at home," they tell us.
They also mix it inspired by a Venezuelan recipe in the C.B.P.L., that is, Cold Brew Papelón with Lemon, It's like their version of lemonade, but for coffee drinkers. "We make the typical Venezuelan drink and add a part of concentrate from our Cold Brew X 2 concentrate. Super refreshing."
And finally, the most striking, perhaps: the Warriors Vermouth: “We serve 1 part Cynar (an Italian vermouth) to 5 parts Cold Brew. We put a slice of cucumber, a touch of lime and a few drops of Angostura”. The aperitif of the coffee growers.
Warriors Vermouth: Cynar, cold brew, angostura...
ICED MATCHA SODA FROM THE COFFEE COLLECTIVE
They have been installed in Chamberí for more than two years. A stable trajectory of good coffee, selected teas and pastries and savory dishes. Continuously integrating new options, in summer it is the season for natural refreshment: horchata. “It is homemade made with ecological tiger nuts brought from Alboraya”, they explain. "You can ask for a glass or we also sell it by the liter to take it home."
There is also no lack of your own cold coffee or cold brew and iced latte: "Coffee, always specialty and fresh milk can be cow, oatmeal or almond."
“This year, we have included in the menu a very cold house lemonade and made at the moment with: lime, lemon, panela, rosemary, water and ice”, they add. And they also transform one of the most popular winter drinks, matcha tea, into a summer refresher: Iced Matcha Soda: “ It is a concentrate of matcha tea and very cold tonic. It is served with ice and does not contain milk.
Iced Matcha Soda.
HOLA COFFEE COLD BREW SANGRIA
At Hola Coffee, other pioneers, they already make cold brew almost all year round, That's how established this coffee born from the cold is among its customers. Although there were many skeptics and there will be those who continue asking for the usual iced coffee, they have been teaching that With a cold brew you get "your daily dose of coffee and it allows it to last longer because it doesn't water down with ice."
They also meet many people who take their "coffee with milk and ice" in the morning, something that was not requested before, but now it is the iced latte And it's not just a cute name, it's a discovery. “You mix the ice with cold milk and add the coffee”, explains Pablo Caballero. "From June to September we practically never heat milk."
But, in addition, to attract coffee growers and non-coffee growers in summer, they have had a summer menu for several seasons, the summer drinks in which they are adding recipes. As the cold brew sangria, in which they mix a fruit compote and various spices with coffee and serve in a jar.
The Set-up: "Organic cola, double espresso, condensed coconut milk and a mint leaf." Wave Dirty Horchata, that has coffee and is made with rice and cinnamon. They also offer kombuchas, ibisco with rose water and sheltzer or two classics like the espresso tonic (with tonic) or the shakerate.
Cold Brew Sangria.
COFFEE MISSION AFFOGATO
In Mision Café you will find the same menu as in Hola Coffee and an addition brought from Italy, the affogato, a classic: a scoop of ice cream with a double espresso on top, and is taken with a spoon. The ice creams are vegan chocolate and pistachio.
Horchata with coffee.