Cold
Nitro & Flash-Chilled Cold Brew
Cold brew, elevated — charged with nitrogen for a silky, cascading, stout-like pour, or flash-chilled over ice for a bright, aromatic iced coffee.
At a glance
CategoryCold
DifficultyModerate
Total time16–20 hours plus charging
Best forA silky, naturally sweet iced coffee with a creamy cascading head
What you’ll need
Cold brew concentrate, plus a nitro cold brew maker or a pressurised dispenser with nitrogen chargers. For flash-chilled, just a pour-over brewer and ice.
The recipe
100.0gDose
800gWater
1:8 (concentrate base)Ratio
20°CWater temp
CoarseGrind size
16–20 hrs + chargeBrew time
How to brew
Two ways to take iced coffee up a level. Nitro cold brew charges cold brew with nitrogen gas for a cascading, creamy, stout-like texture and a naturally sweet, smooth cup served without ice. Flash-chilled (or Japanese iced) coffee instead brews hot straight onto ice, locking in bright, delicate aromatics that a slow cold steep can miss.
Nitro cold brew
- Start with cold brew concentrate (see our Cold Brew guide) and dilute it to taste with cold water.
- Charge it with nitrogen using a nitro cold brew maker or a pressurised dispenser with a nitrogen charger.
- Dispense firmly into a glass and let the cascade settle into a creamy head. Serve without ice so it stays silky.
Flash-chilled (Japanese iced)
- Brew a pour-over (e.g. V60) but replace about a third of the water with the same weight of ice in the carafe below.
- Brew hot as normal onto that ice — the hot water captures the aromatics, and the ice instantly chills the coffee to lock them in.
- Swirl until the ice melts and serve over fresh ice.
Troubleshooting
- Nitro not cascading or creamy? Chill everything well, charge with nitrogen (not CO2), and dispense hard through the nitro tap.
- Nitro too weak? Dilute the concentrate less before charging.
- Flash-chilled tasting watery? Count the ice as part of your total water and keep the coffee-to-total-water ratio at about 1:16.
- Flash-chilled too sharp? Grind slightly coarser or use a touch less ice.
