Cold Brew Coffee - Correct ratios?

[b4k4]

Hey All,

I got me 8oz by weight of fresh ground espresso I wanna cold brew for my stout. I got a big old pitcher for the brewing and a french press for filtering after it's brewed.

Whats the optimum ratio of grounds to water to get the most efficient brew of the coffee? I see many threads on this but cant seem to find a definitive answer.

Thanks

 

[Horace]

As a coffee geek first and a brewer second; cold steep is 4:1 water to coffee for about 12 hours.

 

[b4k4]

is that 4oz(liquid) to 1oz(weight) of coffee or like a volume to volume ratio?

The coffee I have now is at 23oz in my measuring cup, so if volume to volume that would mean 10 cups of water right?

 

[Boy]

I used the same ratio but used a 64oz growler for cold pressing. It was annoying to fill but the shape acted as it's own filter when I emptied it. Just tipped it upside down into a french press and left it for 30 minutes. Very little grounds went into the press. I got 12oz of coffee into the growler.

 

[dougdecinces]

I do 3:1 for my iced coffee. The ice dilutes it somewhat, so I like mine a little more concentrated. But basically anything between 3:1 and 4:1 is fine. Do it before you go to bed, let it sit on your counter all night, and strain it in the morning.

By the by, I have always been under the impression that you want a coarser grind with cold press coffee since the water will have more contact time with the grounds. But like most things, I could be mistaken.

 

[b4k4]

Giving it a try now. I figure if I mix up the ratio's I'll likely just end up with more concentrated coffee which is fine since I'm adding it to 5 gallons of beer anyway

 

[Slurm]

Use 1 liter of water with your 8oz of espresso.

After you press it, filter it. Just put a cone filter in a funnel and pour it thru -it will remove a surprising amount of fine particles, and keep your beer clean.

 

[MaltnHops]

Is there any risk of infection with adding non boiled water and coffee to your beer? Seems like there would be. Also, do you add the coffee during secondary?

 

[dougdecinces]

Is there any risk of infection with adding non boiled water and coffee to your beer? Seems like there would be. Also, do you add the coffee during secondary?

Probably very minimal, as long as you sanitize properly and use sterile water.

Two things working in your advantage: One, alcohol and hops in the finished beer will make it less likely to spoil; two, coffee--especially when brewed to such a high concentration as this--is very acidic.