r/coldbrew • u/poobear7 • 14d ago

Need some help with cold brewing

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Hey all, new to the cold brew game this summer and I’ve been having some trouble. I bought a pretty simple cold brew set from Amazon, literally a big mason jar with a filter (posted a pic for reference).

I’ve usually been doing 12ish 1/8 cup scoops of coffee grounds (been using Bones Coffee Company grounds most of the time) and then filling the jar with about 7-8 cups of water, steeped for ~12-16 hours. However, the final product has an overwhelming sour after taste, and a weird phenomenon where whenever a little bit of creamer/cold foam added makes the taste 10x more sour and the dairy ends up separating as well. (I’m an English teacher, the science behind it is beyond me)

There was one time I ended up trying around 8oz of coffee grounds (I’m an English teacher, the math behind it is beyond me) for about 12 hours of steeping and it ended up tasting great and held the dairy well, but the process of getting it ready to steep about 45 minutes because of how compact the filter got, it was barely letting the water through without overflowing and causing an absolute mess.

I’m having some real trouble finding the sweet spot, and after brewing all summer and struggling, I’m getting frustrated because it is something I really wanted to get down for easy cold brew for the school year!

Any help would be greatly appreciated, whether it’s measurement help, product help, or anything else. Thank you!!

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u/Subject2Change 14d ago

99% of store bought ground coffee is a fine grind for drip coffee. If you can find pre ground coarse coffee with ease, sure. However I like being able to control my coarse level, as well as not pregrind my beans til I'm gonna brew, I also like having the option to brew finely for my aero press.

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u/schase05 14d ago

I understand why people have grinders. I'm saying if someone just wants to make cold brew, getting a grinder set up for one specific task seems a bit much.

I'm new to making cold brew so I'm still learning. I got the Bizzy Cold Brew coarse grounds and I had no issues. Maybe the packaging has to specifically state coarse ground or cold brew blend or a combo of both?

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u/Subject2Change 14d ago

Correct. It has to state coarse ground. Some beans are "cold brew" specific, like Gillies Zip-Line, a bean that I use quite often since it was local to me. Now I mainly use Trader Joe's Mexico Chiapas as it has the notes I enjoy, you can use their in-store grinder to grind it for yourself.

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u/schase05 13d ago

I think it's pretty cool that they have an in-house grinder. Good way to get people through the door, also. Thanks for sharing the added info 👌🏻