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french press cold brew in a glass with ice and milk being poured in
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5 from 1 vote

French Press Cold Brew

French press cold brew makes a smooth, satisfying coffee concentrate while you sleep that's ready to press and pour in the morning. Use a 34-ounce French press (which the manufacturer calls 8-cup but really holds four cups of liquid).
Prep Time5 minutes
Additional Time12 hours
Total Time12 hours 5 minutes
Course: Coffee
Cuisine: American
Keyword: french press cold brew
Calories: 10kcal
Author: Carolyn Gratzer Cope

Ingredients

To brew

  • 80 grams 1 cup ground coffee
  • 1 tablespoon (13 grams) brown sugar
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 3 ½ cups (830 ml) cold filtered water

To serve

  • Ice cubes
  • Milk of choice or additional cold filtered water to taste

Instructions

  • Into an 8-cup French press, pour the ground coffee, brown sugar and cinnamon.
  • Pour in half the water and stir well.
  • Add remaining water and stir again.
  • Let sit at room temperature for at least 12 hours, up to 24.
  • Press the coffee.
  • Transfer concentrate to a clean glass or ceramic container with an airtight lid to store in the fridge. (I use a quart-sized mason jar.)
  • To serve, fill glass with ice and pour in coffee concentrate and cold water or milk of choice to taste.

Notes

  1. This method will work with any coffee beans that you like — you may even be surprised how much more you like them cold-brewed. I'll just go ahead and admit that I typically buy my coffee pre-ground for my automatic drip machine and Chemex, and it works well for French press cold brew, too. A standard grind is fine, but look for one — or grind it yourself — a little on the coarse side of standard.
  2. I like to include a little bit of brown sugar and ground cinnamon to take the flavor profile to the next level. I do this even though I don't sweeten or otherwise flavor my regular brewed coffee at all. It makes this cold brew extra-special. That said, these ingredients are optional.
  3. The only other thing you need for brewing is cool water. I use filtered water from our tap.
  4. How to serve: This method makes a fairly strong concentrate, but people's coffee preferences vary so widely that it's hard to know exactly how you'll want to use it. I tend to prefer smaller amounts of stronger things, so I pour some over ice and stir in a roughly equal proportion of my milk of choice. (Plain unsweetened Silk soy milk, in case anyone's asking.) You can dilute it with cold water instead if you like your coffee black, use it in any favorite iced coffee beverage of your choice — or even warm it up.
  5. If you don’t have a French press: You don't need one! All you need is a glass or ceramic container that holds about four cups of liquid. Let the coffee brew in there, then strain it through a coffee filter or several layers of cheesecloth. Store the brewed concentrate in a clean container of similar description.
  6. Storage: You'll need to leave at least 12 hours (up to 24) for brewing. After you press it, concentrate will keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for at least a week, up to two. I use a quart-sized mason jar.

Nutrition

Calories: 10kcal