Coffee on nitro

Went to a cool coffee/beer bar today and they were serving cold coffee on a nitro stout faucet. It was awesome.

After searching online it appears this is becoming a popular trend in the coffee world.

Anyway I have a nitro setup and plan on doing this. Any one try it yet at home? Or any idea on what could be kegged with the coffee - I was thinking maybe baileys but would it spoil?

I'm using my brew pot to do a huge cold brew this weekend.

Baileys wouldn't spoil if it was kept at serving temps ie around 40F. Coffee on nitro sounds good. I'd like to get a nitro setup but I'd have to drive 30 miles to get the tank filled. Ugh. No thanks. Maybe someday I'll give in and get one. Sure would be really nice to have a beer on nitro on tap at any given time.
I think it'd be hard to get the right quantity of coffee with the water if you're going to make 5 gallons of coffee to serve on tap. Or if you had a mini keg, you could do it that way.

Is it pressurised with straight N2 or with beer gas - I guess my question is "is the coffee fizzy?"

No you we've it on beer gas so while there is some co2 it's thick and creamy like a stout. The one I had at the bar didn't taste fizzy at all.

Found some cold brewed recipes online and will go from there. Living in Texas this will be a perfect way to keep the stout faucet occupied on 100 degree days

daveooph131 said:

No you we've it on beer gas so while there is some co2 it's thick and creamy like a stout. The one I had at the bar didn't taste fizzy at all.

Found some cold brewed recipes online and will go from there. Living in Texas this will be a perfect way to keep the stout faucet occupied on 100 degree days

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Insteresting, yeah I guess fizzy was the wrong word This actually sounds really nice

Yeah, it sounds awesome.

Hi guys,

My name is Adam and I'm a coffee roaster in Shanghai. We've been playing around with nitro coffee for the last month - it's frigging awesome. We are kegging cold brew coffee into corny kegs and charging it with a 75/25 beer gas blend. The nitrogenation of the coffee has been a bit inconsistent, but most of the time we are getting an awesome, sexy, cascading coffee.

If any of you are ever in Shanghai, come by and have a try!

mcleadam said:

Hi guys,

My name is Adam and I'm a coffee roaster in Shanghai. We've been playing around with nitro coffee for the last month - it's frigging awesome. We are kegging cold brew coffee into corny kegs and charging it with a 75/25 beer gas blend. The nitrogenation of the coffee has been a bit inconsistent, but most of the time we are getting an awesome, sexy, cascading coffee.

If any of you are ever in Shanghai, come by and have a try!

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Adam do you carbonate the coffee first with just co2 - at low volume of maybe 1 or 1.5 volumes like you would a stout and then hook it up to the nitro


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We've considered it. Going to play around with just the beer gas mixture for now - I think we're getting infusion while it's sitting in the keg under pressure which is where most of the inconsistencies are coming from.

daveooph131 said:

Adam do you carbonate the coffee first with just co2 - at low volume of maybe 1 or 1.5 volumes like you would a stout and then hook it up to the nitro


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mcleadam,

nice looking shop you have there, really cool!

I am helping a bistro set this up this week, I came back to see what gas you were using, I appreciate the info you posted. Could you share what pressure you are using? (serving pressure that is)
Also, are you letting it condition to the pressure for any time? I saw that somebody else was letting it condition for 5-6 days first. I am wondering if this is the cause of your inconsistencies? Just thinking of how to proceed with this.

Brewing up a test batch as we speak! Super excited about this...

Nice website Adam. Ok. How are you producing 5 gallons of espresso

Thanks! Like I said, we are pushing with a 75/25 beer gas blend and pushing at 35psi.

We've been doing our best to condition the coffee, however spring is in the air and cold drinks are in high demand. We can't always brew enough in advance to have it rest the ideal amount of time, but it certainly has helped with the consistency. We are using a 20L keg and not filling it up all the way, so the 5 - 6 days can be cut down quite a bit.

Let me know how it turns out! Looking forward to hearing about it, and happy to help with any other questions

brokebucket said:

mcleadam,

nice looking shop you have there, really cool!

I am helping a bistro set this up this week, I came back to see what gas you were using, I appreciate the info you posted. Could you share what pressure you are using? (serving pressure that is)
Also, are you letting it condition to the pressure for any time? I saw that somebody else was letting it condition for 5-6 days first. I am wondering if this is the cause of your inconsistencies? Just thinking of how to proceed with this.

Brewing up a test batch as we speak! Super excited about this...

Click to expand...

Brewing 5 gallons of our espresso blend, not extracting 5 gallons via the espresso machine

TheDudeLebowski said:

Nice website Adam. Ok. How are you producing 5 gallons of espresso

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Kegging coffee is one of the most fascinating things I have ever seen. Its presentation coming out of the tap is second to none. I am looking into this quite seriously to offer at my shop. I have a great cold brew recipe that brews a concentrate which then gets diluted 1:1 with water. If I want to get started out on this with no experience, can I just purchase a starter kit? Anything special I need for the n2/co2 blend?

I am working with a local cafe to put coffee on tap now. Here is what you will need...assuming you have the means to brew 5 gallons of finished product:

-a kegerator, including all the lines and tap
-a bottle of beer gas (nitrogen/CO2 mix)
-a nitro tap (like a guiness tap....a regular tap will not work)
-at least one cornelius keg, plus the in/out connectors to the kegerator.

If I were a shop owner and setting it up, I would start with the ability to do two 5 gallon batches at once, so that you could have one batch sitting on gas conditioning while the other were being served. That means you would need a means of splitting the gas line into two inlets (either a simple tee, or a valve manifold with two out lines). I say this because it seems like it takes a few days on the gas before the coffee will start cascading.

I am actually heading over to check on our nitro project today. There have been some bumps in the road, but I think we have it going now. I have been out of town, so I havent checked in on the coffee, but I will post an update later...hopefully with a picture or two.

Here are some photos of the final product! After a lot of playing around, we decided to go pretty low in the infusion. We got a lot cleaner and less gassy flavour this way, and the foam retention is outstanding. Hope some of you get to make it to Shanghai to try it!

That looks awesome!

That looks really nice! Cant wait to try some!

In regards to the below nitro tap, would you recommend purchasing from Northern Brewer? http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/nitro-keg-system.html?gclid=CO_IjI6-8L0CFW5eOgodDXEATg

Where is your shop @brokebucket?

brokebucket said:

I am working with a local cafe to put coffee on tap now. Here is what you will need...assuming you have the means to brew 5 gallons of finished product:

-a kegerator, including all the lines and tap
-a bottle of beer gas (nitrogen/CO2 mix)
-a nitro tap (like a guiness tap....a regular tap will not work)
-at least one cornelius keg, plus the in/out connectors to the kegerator.

If I were a shop owner and setting it up, I would start with the ability to do two 5 gallon batches at once, so that you could have one batch sitting on gas conditioning while the other were being served. That means you would need a means of splitting the gas line into two inlets (either a simple tee, or a valve manifold with two out lines). I say this because it seems like it takes a few days on the gas before the coffee will start cascading.

I am actually heading over to check on our nitro project today. There have been some bumps in the road, but I think we have it going now. I have been out of town, so I havent checked in on the coffee, but I will post an update later...hopefully with a picture or two.

Click to expand...

I picture from Friday...this was after about 24 hours on beer gas.

The shop is in Mechanicsville, VA. They should start advertising it this week...it is the first shop in the Richmond area to have it!

rickastleyjr2 said:

That looks really nice! Cant wait to try some!

In regards to the below nitro tap, would you recommend purchasing from Northern Brewer? http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/nitro-keg-system.html?gclid=CO_IjI6-8L0CFW5eOgodDXEATg

Click to expand...

Yes, that should work if you dont have a home brew shop close by. If I were a coffee shop owner, I would also add at least one more gas line, and possibly a 20# cylinder so that I could handle a larger turnover. Another gas line would allow you to have two kegs, one serving and one charging up.

sexy pictures, Mcleadam!

Do you serve that ice? Does adding ice or cream mess up the head?

What psi are you charging the korny keg with? The same 35 psi you serve at?
I just got a nitro setup in the mail today and have never brewed beer before, but am a total coffee geek (I've got a La Marzocco GS3 and Mazzer Super Jolly in my kitchen!) I just put some Toddy coldbrewed Bolivian I roasted a few days ago in the keg and have it sitting in a fridge at 35psi right now.
Is there anyone willing to help a total kegging n00b out? Do I just let it sit connected to the beer gas (75 nitro/25 CO2) for 24 hours and then hook up the nitro spout to serve? Or do I have to purge the pressure before serving? No idea what I'm doing, but after seeing the pics of a cascading cold brew I knew I had to order a setup for myself!

Thanks

brokebucket said:

I picture from Friday...this was after about 24 hours on beer gas.

The shop is in Mechanicsville, VA. They should start advertising it this week...it is the first shop in the Richmond area to have it!

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What is the name of the shop? I live in Richmond and would love to try this!

Bell Cafe in Mechanicsville (off Pole Green Rd). Tell them Chris sent you!

gearhound,

My experience is that you can leave it alone for a few days and it will start cascading, or you can hook it up to the gas and shake the hell out of it to get it to cascade immediately. To shake it, hook up the gas line and let it start coming up to pressure. When you hear gas stop flowing, start rolling the keg back and forth to let more gas in it (you will hear it). Do that until you hear no more gas, or get tired.

Just hook it up at 35# and serve. The stout faucet has a restrictor plate in it, so it will serve at that high of a pressure. DO NOT try that high with a regular CO2 faucet though, it will blow all over the place I am sure.

Post up a pic when you get it running!

I can't wait for this cascade effect at my shop. We are getting a good response on our cold brew. I wonder how they will react when they witness it coming out of the tap! What do most people think?

This is the setup I am working with(below image). I have an empty space where an undercounted freezer once rested. Would a kegerator work in this scenario?

Dimensions:
32" deep x 34.5" tall x 29.75" wide with a butcher block countertop that is 1.5" thick.

I was thinking of placing a kegerator in here and cutting a hole out for the tower. Any suggestions?

welp, I let it sit in my fridge at 35psi for 40 hours and had about 4 pints of it this morning! Its unreal! Cascading is unbelievable and it retains a great head. (not sure why the image uploaded sideways?)
Do I need to keep it constantly hooked to the beer gas while its just sitting in the fridge for the 1st 40 hours or can I charge the keg to 35psi? And then take the gas off and re-connect when I wanna pour? No idea really how the kegging works, but seems like the keg just retains the 35psi?

The only way the pressure should drop in the keg is if you are dispensing. I am curious why you want to disconnect the gas when not actively serving?

There is no benefit to doing so unless you have a leak and it may be a slight inconvenience to connect/disconnect each time.

The keg will stay at 35 psi in the head space unless something changes (e.g. dispensing) in which case pressure will drop as headspace increases.

Thanks for the info Jon! I've just got a bunch of other stuff in my basement fridge and would prefer to not have a beer gas tank in there taking up space when I'm not using it.

gearhound said:

Thanks for the info Jon! I've just got a bunch of other stuff in my basement fridge and would prefer to not have a beer gas tank in there taking up space when I'm not using it.

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That makes sense.

Also it is generally better to keep the tank at room temp so the gas doesn't condense. Time to cut some holes! Hope you enjoy your jegging adventure and thanks for the coffee pron.

I can't wait to give this nitro coffee a shot.

What's the water to coffee ratio for making cold brew? I'll be putting this up soon on my tap for the summer.


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This is an amazing thread, thanks to all of you who have shared some great info.

Wondering if I can pose a further question. If a person were doing this idea commercially with say a four tap tower cooler, can you use an air line splitter with nitro? All kegs would be served via a nitro tap, so even pressure across all of them.

Also, I can't imagine why their would be, but putting other ingredients such as flavored syrups or possibly cream in the keg. Any issues come to mind? I'm thinking seasonal brews like the ever popular pumpkin spice.

Given the ideal rest time, I'm wondering if smaller volume in corny kegs would be able to keep up demand and also keep the beauty of the cascade.

If I were to do this type of setup, I'm thinking of having some on the gas and some resting in the cooler. Does kegging work like that? I can pressurize the freshly brewed ones, store them to be cold, and wait some days to serve. Basically, once they are under pressure the infusion magic happens, correct?

I want to begin experimenting at home with this. A basic set would be an n2 regulator, tank for beer gas, all the lines, faucet, and cooler of some sort?

Thanks again, awesome and timely discussion for me.

I am looking into ordering the carbonation stone and keg lid.
We are putting our cold brew coffee on a nitro tap and only have 2 kegs to rotate through. I can't wait 24 hours for the coffee to gas. How long would it take with the carbonating stone? Could we really do it in under 5 minutes? We would have the option to be able to add gas for 5 minutes and then it would sit anywhere from 2 hours-24 hours depending on how warm the weather is and demand for iced coffee.
Also, if you have any tips on PSI to serve it at. We have a 60% Co2 40% nitro.

THANK YOU!!!

brokebucket said:

I am working with a local cafe to put coffee on tap now. Here is what you will need...assuming you have the means to brew 5 gallons of finished product:

-a kegerator, including all the lines and tap
-a bottle of beer gas (nitrogen/CO2 mix)
-a nitro tap (like a guiness tap....a regular tap will not work)
-at least one cornelius keg, plus the in/out connectors to the kegerator.

If I were a shop owner and setting it up, I would start with the ability to do two 5 gallon batches at once, so that you could have one batch sitting on gas conditioning while the other were being served. That means you would need a means of splitting the gas line into two inlets (either a simple tee, or a valve manifold with two out lines). I say this because it seems like it takes a few days on the gas before the coffee will start cascading.

I am actually heading over to check on our nitro project today. There have been some bumps in the road, but I think we have it going now. I have been out of town, so I havent checked in on the coffee, but I will post an update later...hopefully with a picture or two.

Click to expand...

How long will coffee stay well in the fridge? Does it start to go stale, or otherwise old?

I'd consider doing this at home on my setup, but it'd take a while to go through even a gallon.

Coffelover said:

We are putting our cold brew coffee on a nitro tap and only have 2 kegs to rotate through. I can't wait 24 hours for the coffee to gas!

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Get more kegs.
Serve ar 30-40 psi`ish

mcleadam said:

Here are some photos of the final product! After a lot of playing around, we decided to go pretty low in the infusion. We got a lot cleaner and less gassy flavour this way, and the foam retention is outstanding. Hope some of you get to make it to Shanghai to try it!

Click to expand...

I am usually in Shanghai every April. I will have to look up how far you are from where we will be. I usually find out about my Shanghai trip by the end the year. Looks great.


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I am usually in Shanghai every April. I will have to look up how far you are from where we will be. I usually find out about my Shanghai trip by the end the year. Looks great, would love to try the nitro coffee.

mcleadam said:

Here are some photos of the final product! After a lot of playing around, we decided to go pretty low in the infusion. We got a lot cleaner and less gassy flavour this way, and the foam retention is outstanding. Hope some of you get to make it to Shanghai to try it!

Click to expand...

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Hi everyone,

I just started on my nitrogen coffee setup and have a question regarding infusion. My current setup is a 5gal Kegco with a 20cu food grade nitrogen @35psi. I am using a Guinness Stout Beer Faucet but have not gotten much foam nor does it cascade. Should I infuse my keg with beer gas first then use nitrogen to serve? Or would I just let the nitrogen set for a few days in the keg? Thanks first.

The nitrogen in the beergas doesn't absorb well into liquids, carbon dioxide does but it takes some time for it to absorb. Fill your kegs then hit them with the beergas at 30-40 PSI. then let it sit for a few days before serving.

wow - that looks really cool.
Need to see there is anyone in MA doing that.