Iced Coffee vs Cold Brew: What’s the difference?

It’s coming into Summer. This means our coffee orders may start changing from hot espresso to chilled. We’re not talking the decadent and lactose-loaded drink with ice cream, whipped cream and chocolate flakes that we’re talking about. You may have seen cold brew floating around cafes lately. You may find yourself at a cafe asking for cold brew and get a regular iced coffee, or perhaps even the other way around. In specialty coffee, what is the difference between an iced coffee and cold brew?

Iced coffee is made similarly to hot coffee. It’s brewed in small batches, then chilled and poured over ice to serve.

Cold brew coffee, as the name would suggest, is coffee grinds mixed with cold water that are left to brew for 12 – 24 hours. It’s a great method to brew single origins and highlight the flavour characteristics of the coffee. After the coffee is finished brewing, it is then poured through a strainer to remove the grinds.

Both options can also be made at home in your own kitchen for those hot days where you don’t even feel like moving. You can check out our recipe for cold brew here.