Join us for a drink with the team Toddy, a proud partner of Standart Issue 26.
What is your favourite summer cocktail to have with cold brew?
As the days grow longer, we look forward to enjoying a refreshing supercharged cold brew and tonic. The combination of gin, tonic water, and cold brew concentrate is perfect for those warmer evenings - and can be tastefully made with decaf if you’re trying to limit your late-day caffeine intake.
Ingredients
- 60 ml gin
- 120 ml tonic water
- 60 ml cold brew coffee concentrate
- 15 ml simple syrup
Garnish
- Large ice cube
- Sprig of rosemary
- Lemon wedge
Use a cocktail shaker to blend gin and simple syrup over ice until well chilled. Next, place a large ice cube into a glass and strain the gin and sugar mix into the glass. Add tonic water.
'Having a basic understanding of cold brew recipes and specialty coffee varietals will help inform better beverage creation.'
Gently pour the cold brew concentrate on top (it should float above the tonic), then wipe the rim of the glass with lemon peel. Garnish with a lemon wedge and the rosemary sprig.
Or, for a delicious nonalcoholic beverage, our hibiscus cooler – made with cold-brewed hibiscus flower tea – is always a popular caffeine-free drink.
Generally speaking, how should a cold brew recipe change, based on the sort of coffee one is using?
Although there are no hard and fast “rules” governing cold brew recipes, having a basic understanding of cold brew recipes and specialty coffee varietals will help inform better beverage creation. Lightly roasted single origins will often bring out delicate floral-tasting notes. These coffee types are an ideal option to include in a cold brew flight, potentially featuring one coffee served hot, one over ice, and one as a nitro. The fruitier single origins are also delicious when used as the foundation for cold brew cocktails that feature citrus juices and/or sparkling water. Darker roasted blends with nutty, chocolate-tasting notes are great over ice, served with cream or a dairy alternative, and mixed into frozen beverages.
Can I substitute cold brew for espresso in my iced drinks?
Iced beverages are becoming more and more popular at cafes around the world, and cold brew can be a great alternative to espresso to help keep up with growing demand.
To make the swap, choose a coffee with a flavor profile similar to your espresso blend, and brew a cold brew concentrate. Because cold brew has a more stable flavor profile than coffee brewed with heat, your concentrate can be stored in the refrigerator to use in frappes or as a premix for popular drinks such as iced lattes and mochas. The relatively small amount of time spent making the cold brew pays off by efficiently delivering a multitude of drinks from one batch of concentrate.
This interview was published in partnership with Toddy.
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