Ice Rocks

September 10th, 2008 admin Leave a comment Go to comments

Ice Rocks

Iced Coffee For A New Generation

When your jonesing for an iced coffee this summer, think about expanding your flavor horizon.

Cold Brew It

In the cold brewing process, coffee grounds are mixed with cold water and allowed to sit between 12 and 24 hours. The coffee is then filtered through like a typical brewing process. Coffee connoisseurs claim that this process yields a coffee that is lower in acidity and caffeine, with more bouquet and character. The lower acidity not only allows more flavor to come through, it is also easier on the digestion. Cold brew enthusiasts often note that that have a much lower rate of acid reflux; a classic symptom of too much hot coffee consumption. Perhaps the only disadvantage of cold brewing is that it's not an instant gratification process. While a hot brew may be faster than a cold brew, remember that good things will come to those who wait.

Chill With Coffee Cubes

This can really make or break and ice coffee experience. One of the most common time saving practices in making iced coffee is pouring hot coffee over ice. Instead, try freezing some fresh brewed coffee in an ice cube tray and the next day pour coffee over the frozen cubes. The result is a much richer, less diluted drink. A quick tip: store the coffee ice cubes in a zip lock plastic bag to maintain their freshness.

Rock Sugar Swizzle Sticks.

You see them in coffee shops all the time. Don't underestimate them. You might enjoy a little sweetness to your swizzle. Stirring with a rock candy stick can add a festive touch to an otherwise mundane ice coffee session. The cold drink won't melt the sugar as fast, so drink it slow and let the sweetness catch up to you.

Whip Cream Rules

You've worked hard all week, and sure, you're trying to watch what you eat. But it's the weekend and you're already hitting the early afternoon doldrums. You are in need of an iced coffee, however you want to go all the way. Do it. How often do you add whip cream to your coffee anyway? Whip cream in iced coffee is like jelly on peanut butter, only better.

Milk Brewing

You wouldn't necessarily think of Australia when iced coffee comes to mind, but the Land Down Under has been indulging in commercialized iced coffee drinks perhaps longer than any other nation. Australians are noted for brewing it with milk, rather than water. The milk brewed process is so popular that Australia is one of the few countries where milk based beverages to outsell Coca Cola. The result of milk brewing is a cold coffee beverage with an amazingly smooth milkshake-like flavor. The Starbucks Frappuccino attempt to mimic this process, but fall short by using plain ice in the recipe.

The Potential for Mudslides

A Mudslide is a drink for adults only. But it tastes like a drink for a kid. There aren't many coffee drinks that are as addictive. Add a healthy shot of Kahlua to two scoops of vanilla ice cream. Finish with half a shot of Bailey's Irish Cream and a touch of vodka. Blend it up for instant heaven.

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