Get Your “Drip-On.” One Cup Japanese Iced Coffee
Dare I say it…is summer here to stay? Quick – before it rains again – make yourself a cold beverage, sit back and soak up some rays. My go-to pick, as you well know, is iced coffee.
When it comes to coffee that is ice cold, nothing is red hotter than cold brew. But what to do if you like to DIY and can’t spare 12 hours for your perfect summer sip to steep? Contrary to conventional wisdom, there is satisfaction to be had in marrying freshly-brewed coffee and ice.
Japanese-style iced coffee is that simple solution, and one through which the hot water extracts the ideal flavors and aromatics in ground coffee, yielding intriguing tasting notes that instantly blossom on the palate, just as the coffee-ice contact cools the extraction down and locks in that flavor.
Although the Japanese cold coffee technique is not new to coffee experts, my method includes a best kept secret product from illy, Medium Roast Drip-On single serve coffee cups, which I use to achieve the richest Japanese-style brew. These one-time-use pour over cups are incredibly simple, perfect for on-the-go, take the guess-work out of pour-over coffee brewing and will impress even your coffee geek friends. The images below show how easy it is to brew your best cup.
Drip-on Japanese style prep:
· illy Single Serve Drip-On Coffee (1 packet)
· Hot water (approx. 5 oz. at 200F)
1. Put two (2) ice cubes into the 8-oz. cup or glass
2. Open the single-use Drip-On packet and place it on top of the glass
3. Pour 5 oz. of hot water over the coffee
4. Let the packet steep in the water for one minute, by when the water level should reach the coffee packet
6. Add the remaining three (3) ice cubes
Pro Tip #1: For when your sweet tooth acts up, add some condensed milk. The added thickness and sweet flavor makes this simple beverage seem quite decadent.
Pro Tip #2: prevent hot brew coffee from diluting by using cold brew coffee ice cubes, I always keep a stash in my freezer!
