How to Make Cold Brew with Blue Mountain Coffee

Cold brew and Blue Mountain are a natural match. Steeping coarse grounds in cold water for many hours produces a remarkably smooth, mellow concentrate with very low bitterness, which lets Blue Mountain's gentle sweetness and clean finish take center stage. There is no special equipment required, just a jar, a strainer and a little patience.

What you will need

• 1 cup (about 85 g) of Blue Mountain coffee, coarsely ground
• 4 cups (about 950 ml) of cold filtered water
• A large jar or pitcher with a lid
• A fine mesh strainer plus a paper filter or cheesecloth
• A second clean container for the finished concentrate

That 1:4 ratio makes a concentrate you will dilute later. If you prefer ready-to-drink cold brew straight from the jar, use closer to 1:8 instead.

Why a coarse grind matters

Cold brew steeps for a long time, so a coarse grind is essential. Fine grounds over-extract during the long soak and turn the batch bitter and muddy, and they slip through your strainer. Aim for a texture like coarse sea salt. Grinding fresh from whole beans gives you the cleanest result, but a quality pre-ground coffee works too if you keep the grind coarse in mind when you buy. Because cold water extracts so gently, it leaves behind many of the bitter and sour compounds that hot water pulls out quickly, and that is the secret behind cold brew's famously rounded taste. With a coffee as refined as Blue Mountain, that gentleness lets the sweetness and clean finish come through with almost nothing in the way.

Step by step

1. Combine coffee and water. Add the coarse grounds to your jar, then pour in the cold water. Stir gently to make sure every ground is wet.
2. Cover and steep. Put the lid on and let it sit for 12 to 18 hours. Room temperature is fine, or use the refrigerator for a slightly cleaner taste. Around 15 hours is a reliable sweet spot.
3. Strain once. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into your second container to remove the bulk of the grounds.
4. Strain again. Pass it through a paper filter or cheesecloth to catch the fine sediment. This second pass is what makes the cup taste polished and smooth.
5. Store the concentrate. Keep it sealed in the fridge. It stays fresh and tasty for up to two weeks.

How to serve it

If you made the 1:4 concentrate, dilute it to taste, a common starting point is one part concentrate to one part water or milk over ice. Adjust until the strength suits you.

• Classic over ice. Fill a glass with ice, add concentrate, top with water or milk.
• Cold brew latte. Mix concentrate with cold milk for a creamy, naturally sweet drink.
• Keep it cold longer. Serve in an insulated stainless steel cup so it stays chilled through a warm afternoon.

Tips for a better batch

• Do not over-steep. Past about 18 hours the brew can pick up woody, dull notes. Set a reminder.
• Taste before diluting. Strength varies with grind and steep time, so add water gradually.
• Save the first run for sipping black. Blue Mountain cold brew is smooth enough to enjoy with nothing added.
• Label the jar with the date. It helps you use the concentrate at its best.

Cold brew versus iced coffee

Cold brew is steeped cold over many hours, which gives it that signature smooth, low-acid character. Iced coffee is brewed hot and then chilled quickly, so it keeps more of the bright, lively notes. Both are excellent with Blue Mountain, they simply suit different moods. For the fast hot-brewed version, see our iced Blue Mountain coffee recipe, and for hot-brewing fundamentals, our guide on how to brew Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee covers grind and ratio in detail.

Want to start a batch this week? Browse our 100% Blue Mountain coffee and pick up a bag of beans to grind coarse.