The best roast for cold brew is a medium or medium-dark one, as it tastes smooth and a little sweet. It doesn’t turn bitter when it sits in water overnight.
My first batch was a light roast. It tasted like weak tea, honestly. The second was a very dark, oily bag, and it was harsh. Medium-dark is the one I kept buying.
If you’re still working out which beans to get, read our guide on how to choose coffee beans first. This post is only about cold brew.
Key Takeaways
- Best roast for cold brew is medium to medium-dark
- It should be ground coarse
- Light roast works, but it needs more time in the water
- Roast doesn’t change caffeine much. How much coffee you use does
- Plain cold brew is about 5 calories and zero sugar
What Type of Roast Is Best for Cold Brew?
Best roast for cold brew is Medium to medium-dark. Here, cold water pulls flavor out slowly, so you get the sweet, chocolatey side of coffee and very little bitterness.
Hot water brings out the sharp, fruity side. Cold water mostly doesn’t. That’s why a light roast can taste flat, while a medium roast still tastes full.
I stick with a medium-dark Colombian or Brazilian bag. It’s hard to mess up, and it’s good with milk.
Which Roast Level Is Best for Cold Brew?
Medium is the best level for a lot of people, and medium-dark is a close second. The steep times below are rough starting points:
| Roast | How it tastes | Steep time | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light | Fruity, tea-like, thin | 18 to 20 hrs | Drinking black |
| Medium | Balanced, nutty, caramel | 14 to 18 hrs | Most people |
| Medium-dark | Chocolatey | 12 to 16 hrs | Adding milk |
| Dark | Smoky | 12 to 14 hrs | Milky drinks |
Best roast for cold brew is dark roast, the most famous one as it tastes the same every time, but if you leave it too long, it’ll get smoky and harsh.
Light roast is the most tricky one, and for this you may need extra coffee, a longer soak, or else it comes out thin.
Most guides skip this part: match your steep time to your roast. It fixes a lot of “why does my cold brew taste off” problems.
Which Roast Does Starbucks Use for Cold Brew?
They call it a custom blend, steeped in cold water for 20 hours. A lot of different websites call it medium-dark, but that’s a guess, not an official label.
To get it somewhat close at home, go for a medium-dark blend, grind it coarse, and let it sit overnight.
How Many Calories Are in Cold Brew?
It has almost no calories, Starbucks lists a Grande at 5 calories with 0g sugar, 0 g fat, the extras add up, not the roast:
| Grande cold brew | Calories | Sugar | Caffeine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 5 | 0 g | 205 mg |
| Vanilla sweet cream (approx.) | 110 | 14 g | 185 mg |
What Are the Best Flavors of Cold Brew?
The most well-known cold brew flavors are:
- Vanilla
- Caramel
- Hazelnut
- Salted cream foam
They all go well with a medium-dark roast, also the beans matter too:
- Brazil tastes nutty and chocolatey
- Colombia is caramel-like and mellow
- Ethiopia, usually a lighter roast, tastes floral and berry-like
Our most favorite things it to add a pinch of cinnamon mixed into the grounds before steeping.
Why Does My Cold Brew Taste Sour or Bitter?
It tastes sour because of too little time or too light a roast, and the bitter taste normally comes down to too long or too dark a roast. You have to change one thing at a time.
- If it’s sour, add 2 hours
- If it’s bitter, cut 2-4 hours
Also make sure to check your grind, as a fine grind over-extracts fast and turns muddy.
Should You Buy a Blend or Single Origin?
Blends are the easy choice for cold brew as they taste steady, and single origins are fun once you’ve got a routine.
A bag labeled cold brew blend is normally just medium-dark and made for long steeps. An Ethiopian single origin gives a fruity cup, but it can taste a bit sharp.
How Do You Make Cold Brew at Home?
We start by mixing coarse-ground and cold water:
- Mix coarse-ground coffee with cold water
- Leave it in the fridge for 12-18 hours
Tip:
- Use 1 part coffee to 5 parts water for a concentrate
- 1 to 8 if you want it ready to drink
We mix our at night and strain it in the morning, then dilute it to taste.
Fresh beans help a lot, so see how to store coffee beans to keep them fresh. The concentrate stays good for about 7 to 10 days.
Final Sip
Honestly, the best roast for cold brew is medium-dark. That’s what we keep going back to. It’s sweet, it’s smooth, and we’ve never ruined a jar with it.
Just scoop coarse grounds into a jar, pour in cold water, stick it in the fridge, forget about it till morning. Around 16 hours. Then strain it and taste it.
Sour? You should’ve left it longer. Bitter? Left it too long, or the roast was too dark. Make a small jar this week, and write down what you did. By the third try, you’ll know your own best roast for cold brew.
FAQs
Is cold brew stronger than iced coffee?
A lot of times yes. It depends on how much coffee you put in the jar, if you drink the concentrate without adding water, it hits much harder than a normal glass.
Can you use espresso beans for cold brew?
Yes, they work fine. A lot of espresso beans are medium-dark, dark, so steep them a bit shorter, around 12-14 hours, or they get bitter.
How long does cold brew last?
Plain concentrate stays good in the fridge for about 7-10 days, and once you mix in water, milk, finish it in 2 to 3 days.
Can you use light roast for cold brew?
Yes, you can, but give it more time, around 18 to 20 hours. It won’t taste chocolatey, it’ll taste fruity and a bit like iced tea.
