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  • Cold Press - Methods

    I thought I would have a go at cold press.

    I used a one Litre french press (plunger).
    Put some fresh grinds in (Rocky set on 20, normally 4-6 for espresso). Added cold filtered water. Didnt stir. Put in fridge for about 12 hours (covered). Slowly pressed down (about one minute). Bottled it up and took to work.

    I used it to make some iced soy coffee (my body doest deal too well with dairy esp milk and yoghut).
    Liked it.
    Yesterday put some CP into a cup and nuked it. I really like it. Much prefer an espresso but prefered it over what I get out of my syphon.
    Seems the easiest way to get good coffee at work.
    The automatic coffee vending machine at work uses old old beans. Its idea of a "short black" is 100mls of liquid, extracted over 3 seconds, that looks like the city yarra river water.
    The coffee van that comes around produces stuff that looks like coffee and tastes like battery acid. I put five sugars in 30mls of "coffee". Still too acidic.
    I stop whining now. Sorry about that. ;D

    My question/s is;
    Now that I intend to have 1-2 cups a day at work, is it worth buying a Toddy or something similar?
    Has someone tried both (plunger and the Toddy or other method) and can tell the difference?
    Will slow dripping instead of pressing make a difference?

    Thanks

  • #2
    Re: Cold Press - Methods

    Let me introduce Javaphile and his cold press fanaticism...

    I watch with interest

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Cold Press - Methods

      Ah yes Cold Press. Such yummy stuff!

      The difference in the cup between using a French Press and a Toddy to make CP is the amount of suspended solids you end up with in the solution. Using the Toddy with its filter will result in a lot less suspended solids in your cup which will give you a smoother flavor.

      The Toddy system does not slowly drip the water through the beans. The beans are soaked in water and when its time to decant the liquid a plug is removed from the bottom of the toddy and the CP drains out passing through a filter taking maybe 15 minutes to drain. The grounds are dumped and the filter is removed and rinsed and put in the fridge until its next use. The Toddy system typically comes with 2 filters and with proper rinsing and storage between uses you can go years before youll need to buy more filters.

      I brew my CP at room temp, not in the fridge. Once the liquid concentrate is decanted it is then stored in the fridge. Brewing at room temp typically yields a richer and more concentrated brew than brewing in the fridge.

      One of the handy things about CP is its long term, up too 3 weeks in the fridge, storage ability. Rather than brewing up coffee multiple times a day every day you can make up one large batch which will last you a week or more. For those who drink multiple cups a day brewing at room temp and producing a concentrate also means you can bring a large amount of coffee with you in a very small container. With the method and ratios I use (room temp soak of 5 lbs beans with 14 quarts water for 8-18 hours depending on the bean and ambient temp) I end up with a concentrate that is used at a 1:5 (CP:water or milk) ratio. At that usage ratio a small thermos can carry a full days supply of coffee for even the heaviest of coffee drinkers. If youre not a huge coffee drinker you can also easily store a weeks supply of coffee at work all fresh and ready to go in a small container. No more having to prepare your coffee/beans at home ahead of time every morning.


      Java "Can you tell I really like CP? :" phile
      Toys! I must have new toys!!!

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Cold Press - Methods

        Thank you (Javaphile) so much for answering!

        Ah!
        So the Toddy is just a better filter than the plunger? Maybe easier to use?

        Any reason why I couldnt line a bigger container with a filter cloth, soak the grinds then draw the cloth together and filter off?

        Does the sediment reduce storage time?

        Sounds like a silly question but what do you regard as "room temp".
        The temperature here has been very unstable lately.
        In the house it has got up to 31C (88F). Not bad considering it got to 45C (113F) outside. Next day, outside, it got to the max temp of 22C (71F) and dropped to 11C (51F) overnight. Inside the house it was between 20C-24C. Hence the reason for putting it in the fridge.

        If the ambient temp goes up do you reduce the soak time?

        Do you also change your ratio of 5 pounds of grinds to 14 quarts of water? (I think that works out to 170grams to 1 litre) In other words any reason not to make a concentrate?

        Sorry for all the questions. Seems like there is a lot of info on Syphons, some info on plungers and almost none on the clearly superior cold press

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Cold Press - Methods

          Hi Bassway

          there are a few threads on CP if you do a search of the site, they are in the next list of threads to be transfered to this section when I get a few more I was going to ask Andy to bring them over into this section.

          The list is on my home PC so I can post tthe links here tonight if you like or as they say "Search is your friend "

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Cold Press - Methods

            Originally posted by 797E7A757D776272757C1B0 link=1233791566/4#4 date=1235522084
            as they say "Search is your friend "
            "Search is your friend" AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHH! >

            I know I keep bitching about this and I shouldnt as I am getting free advice, but other than this thread the search function came back with 3 USEFUL threads. Out of those one question was resolved.... sort of. That was the time soak verses ambient temp. But this was for temps between 15C and 23C not 31C.

            Google comes back with cold press juice extractors, sites that sell Toddys etc or non snobs giving a very vague description of cold press.

            Ill stop now.
            People who get to know me keep saying "You remind me of Henry Rollins"  >
            I dont know if that is good or bad?!?!

            Thank you for your response beanflying. Helping out others is what makes this a such a great site. I wish that sentiment would spill out more often into the real world.

            I think that listing the post link will help other noobs, I am just after a bit more detail.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Cold Press - Methods

              Hi bassway

              Try this:

              http://lmgtfy.com/?q=site:coffeesnobs.com.au+cold+press

              The site: bit is VERY important.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Cold Press - Methods

                Originally posted by 163D2A3D1E5C0 link=1233791566/6#6 date=1235525486
                Hi bassway

                Try this:

                http://lmgtfy.com/?q=site:coffeesnobs.com.au+cold+press

                The site: bit is VERY important.
                Oh Ha Ha,

                But you are searching for cold and or press,

                Try this:

                http://lmgtfy.com/?q=site%3Acoffeesnobs.com.au+%22cold+press%22

                Are you trying to take the mickey?

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Cold Press - Methods

                  Try these Cold Press threads also various links out to Toddy etc. If you found anymore let me know and I will add them to the list for transferring.

                  Also you can use an Aeropress for CP in small batches as that is how Dennis made the Instant Coffee for Auction.

                  Having a think about the process as well today one of my stovetop Syphons might work providing the filter doesnt clog to much. Brew into bucket X then pour into the top brew chamber leave to filter to the bottom, make sure it is not totally sealed to allow air to escape from the lower chamber.

                  http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1141872695/5#5
                  http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1136514307/11#8
                  http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1140901380
                  http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1201311226
                  http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1180308518

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Cold Press - Methods

                    Originally posted by 7770747B73796C7C7B72150 link=1233791566/8#8 date=1235540215
                    Having a think about the process as well today one of my stovetop Syphons might work providing the filter doesnt clog to much. Brew into bucket X then pour into the top brew chamber leave to filter to the bottom, make sure it is not totally sealed to allow air to escape from the lower chamber.
                    Thanks beanflying.

                    I had the same thoughts too, since I dont really use my Syphon. Pictures of the Toddys filter look like they are the same size as my Syphon filter, just that the Toddy has bigger chambers.

                    Might brew some up tonight and filter off tomorrow morning.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Cold Press - Methods

                      Originally posted by 33302222263028510 link=1233791566/3#3 date=1235521339
                      So the Toddy is just a better filter than the plunger? Maybe easier to use?
                      Correct.

                      Originally posted by 33302222263028510 link=1233791566/3#3 date=1235521339
                      Any reason why I couldnt line a bigger container with a filter cloth, soak the grinds then draw the cloth together and filter off?
                      No.

                      Originally posted by 33302222263028510 link=1233791566/3#3 date=1235521339
                      Does the sediment reduce storage time?
                      No.

                      Originally posted by 33302222263028510 link=1233791566/3#3 date=1235521339
                      Sounds like a silly question but what do you regard as "room temp".
                      Room temp here ranges from 12C-35C over the course of the year. At the cooler temps typical soak times are around 16-18 hours. In the warmer months 10-12 hours is more typical.

                      I brew in a 6 gallon container that has a spigot on the bottom of one side. This allows me to draw off samples to determine the best time to decant.

                      The other big variable in your soak time is the fineness of your grind. The coarser the grind the longer the soak.

                      Originally posted by 33302222263028510 link=1233791566/3#3 date=1235521339
                      If the ambient temp goes up do you reduce the soak time?
                      Correct.

                      Originally posted by 33302222263028510 link=1233791566/3#3 date=1235521339
                      Do you also change your ratio of 5 pounds of grinds to 14 quarts of water? (I think that works out to 170grams to 1 litre) In other words any reason not to make a concentrate?
                      Nope!


                      Java "Loves his CP, yes he does!" phile
                      Toys! I must have new toys!!!

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Cold Press - Methods

                        Originally posted by 654E594E6D2F0 link=1233791566/6#6 date=1235525486
                        http://lmgtfy.com/?q=site:coffeesnobs.com.au+cold+press

                        The site: bit is VERY important.
                        Google with attitude... Thats a cack JavaB.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Cold Press - Methods

                          Thanks again Javphile, much appreciated! ;D

                          Java B you are a smarta@se...... LOVE IT! ;D
                          All the I.T. geeks at work loved that link, certainly brought a smile to my face.

                          Made some cold press last night. Tried the Syphon to filter the liquid this morning. No good.

                          The cloth filter clogs. Had to pour off the coffee and clean the filter several times. I guess the vacuum is needed to pull the coffee through (or is it the higher atmospheric pressure pushing it through?).
                          Seemed like 98% of the grinds were no problem. The finer grinds were the problem. I used 170g of grinds to one litre of water, so there was still a lot of fine grind particles compared to what you would get in an espresso shot amount.

                          I used the grind setting that I use for plunger/syphon. About the 22 mark on my Rocky. For an espresso I have the setting between 4-6.
                          Might try a courser grind setting and longer step time. Thoughts anyone?

                          Still seems like a bit of a pain. One of the joys of cold press is the ease.
                          Probably make up a 10-20 litre rig. Shouldnt be that hard! Wont start for a couple of weeks as I will be on holidays. Ill post some pics when done. Stay tuned!

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Cold Press - Methods

                            Originally posted by 6063717175637B020 link=1233791566/12#12 date=1235601727
                            Might try a courser grind setting and longer step time. Thoughts anyone?
                            I use a grind halfway between drip brew and percolator.

                            A very important step in making CP. Dont stir the grounds!! Otherwise youll clog your filter.


                            Java "CP weather here we come!" phile
                            Toys! I must have new toys!!!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Cold Press - Methods

                              Havent got to the 10-20L rig. Call me a gonna if you want!

                              Here is where I am at.

                              Bought a 1.5L jug from the supermarket. Drilled a hole in the bottom. Put a plug in (smooth surfaced ear plug, is that food grade?.....)
                              Found some paper filters for a 5.7L percolator, $25 but they only came in lots of 250.
                              Grind 170g of bean. Add one litre of water. Easy.

                              So far it hasnt tasted as good as from the plunger method I first used. They have less body and more acid. Tastes ?dusty?
                              Thinking maybe the paper filters are taking out more than the metal.
                              Could be the fact I put the first one in the fridge. Trying the paper method in the fridge tonight.

                              Then need to find a cloth filter. Try that out. Old Coffee Snobs bean bags???

                              Has anyone tried out a metal filter with cold press? Like the Swiss Gold ones?


                              Comment

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