A few weeks ago I finally had enough of the cold brew trend and decided to see what all the hype was about. I followed (because $5 at Starbucks is just too much for me), and was surprised to find cold brew wonderfully smooth, sweet and mild. I love coffee, and though I drink it with milk and sugar, I’ve never especially been bothered by the bitterness or acidity of traditionally brewed coffee. None the less, cold brew is quite amazing, and it left me wondering what the chemistry behind it was.Â
It turns out that hot water (about 93 ℃ in most drip coffee makers ) accelerates the extraction of molecules and chemicals that, once mixed with water, form the coffee we know and love. Once brewed, the coffee continues to react with air and water molecules. This is why coffee goes stale. Heat accelerates these reactions (as it does most), so coffee left on a burner, or in your car, all day goes staler more rapidly. In cold brew however, there is no heat to help extract these molecules, and to cause the break down of others. The time the cold brew is left brewing allows the chemicals to be extracted from the coffee grounds much like the heat does, but you do get different amounts of different chemicals, leading to the different taste. Notably, many molecules that taste bitter are not extracted in large amounts in the absence of heat, which explains cold brew’s sweetness. You may have also seen cold brew being sold pre-packaged in stores, a possibility that is afforded to it due to the cold water not accelerating the ‘staling’ process.
So for once it seems like the hype was justified, though I'll stick to making my cold brew at home.Â
