This week’s cold brew Co-Op featured a highly caffeinated comment section full of controversy. Some said that you should just use your existing coffee equipment or random kitchen items make cold brew. Others sang the praises of dedicated brewing supplies that keep things simple and clean.
Both schools of thought had enough support to fill out this week’s finalists, so check out what everyone had to say below, then head down to the bottom of the post to vote for your pick.
French Press
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I realize I’m breaking rule #1 here, but I just use a good old fashioned French press. The steps to making cold brew are pretty simple: mix grounds with cold water, leave it in the fridge overnight, and separate the grounds out in the morning. No need for a fancy apparatus. – Carlitos the Fünfer
I have a cold brew pot but this works well also.
And if you are afraid of the grinds getting into your coffee, pour it through a mesh filter into a mason jar. It won’t catch the fine stuff, but cold brew should be coarsely ground anyway. And you should probably leave the dregs for the compost bin anyway. – Dr. Cloudy Mc900
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Toddy Cold Brew System
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I’ve been using the Toddy cold-brew system for more than ten years now, and it’s spoiled me for hot-brewed coffee (except for espresso). Aside from replacing the stock carafe with a Frigoverre pitcher that has a handle, making it more convenient to hold, it has been working well for me; it produces a larger batch than the other cold-brew systems I’ve looked at. – Sean Malloy
I second the Toddy coffee maker.
I worked at a coffee roaster/coffee shop almost 3 decades ago that brewed gallons upon gallons a night through this method. That thick filter plug does more than just separate the chunky grounds from the coffee, it does amazing work pulling less lovely oil out of the product…and it’s not fancy, just a hopper and a bucket. – Tuf Pak
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OXO Cold Brew Coffee Maker
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Hands down for me, the OXO cold brew maker. I am not personally a coffee drinker, by my wife has been for as long as I’ve known her, and spent most of that time drinking Starbucks because she could never make great cold brew at home. I bought her this for her birthday last year and not only has she stopped going to Starbucks but even I will drink it as a non coffee drinker. It’s easy to use and clean and really makes the process simple, highly recommend. – Scott
Seconded. I like the capacity and the ease of use and the quality of the filter. I use it without a paper filter and get minimal if any sediment. – Clovis Sangrail
I love mine. I tried using various other methods using containers and filtering devices (since cold brew is very simple in theory) but they were messier and took forever to filter. – 70on17
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A Big Mason Jar + A Nut Milk Bag
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Enough cold brew for the week! I’ve tried the fancy contraptions but this consistently makes the best cold brew and the cost is very small. If you want to be extra, you can strain the cold brew through a paper filter into another large mason jar. – Carat
This is basically how we made cold brew when I worked in a juice/coffee bar. Only instead of a mason jar, we had a five gallon bucket and a very big mesh filter bag. Made a great, strong concentrate that could be used to make many many iced coffees. – Rabbity9
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Hario Mizudashi
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I have tried at least 5 different cold brew makers in the last couple of years. My wife and I both drink cold brew basically every day and I drink it in way too high of a quantity. No matter what I try, I just keep coming back to the Hario “Mizudashi” Cold Brew Coffee Pot. We now keep two of them and just rotate through them and start a new one brewing as soon as it is empty. It is simple and easy to use, clean and cheap. No silly filter to mess around with and stock replacements for, just pour in your grounds, and pour your water over that. There is no easier, cheaper, or more effective way to brew cold brew. – Smalltown Wizard
Aeropress
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I’ll go with the Aeropress. It’s not a cold-press coffee maker explicitly, but I’ve used it to make cold press concentrated coffee for many years. – ReasonablySober
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