Iced Coffee = More Coffee?

Today I made some iced coffee at home using a French press and some Guatemala La Soledad. I thought about a conversation I had with Steve Mierisch last week while driving to Boston. We passed a billboard advertising Dunkin Donuts iced coffee and Steve asked me if I thought we would see a big uptick in coffee consumption this year because of the growing popularity of iced coffee. I had to answer truthfully: "I have no idea."

The first assumption would be that iced coffee has indeed increased in popularity. Anecdotally this seems true to me, at least out here on the East Coast. One has to remember that there are two kinds of iced coffee drinks: iced espresso drinks and iced brewed coffee. The increase in iced espresso drinks (assuming there is one) would be thanks to the continued popularity of Starbucks and to the growth of super-specialty cafés that serve made-to-order espresso drinks.

Any increase in iced brewed coffee might come about as the result of a few different factors. Steve mentioned that in his experience, ten years ago people were much more likely to think, "Iced coffee? That's just weird! Why would I put coffee on ice?" Nowadays no one blinks an eye. So familiarity might have something to do with it. Secondly, there are ad campaigns (that fuel this familiarity), like the ones for Dunkin Donuts iced coffee that are pretty ubiquitous in the New York and Boston areas.

A third reason for growth is one that I'm most interested in, and that's the improvement in the quality and taste of iced coffee. First of all, the quality of beans that go into iced coffee bevarages is increasing dramatically, at least at the margins, just like it is with hot coffee (i.e. the same roasters are providing the beans for both, and as super-specialty gets better and better, the large specialty companies get better, and even the mega-commercial roasters are more worried about quality than ever before). But it's also improved brew methods that make for better iced coffee.

My hot press pot coffee poured over ice cubes today notwithstanding, there are some excellent cold-brew methods for making very smooth, sweet iced coffee. I'll review a couple favorites later this week.

In the meantimes, Steve was asking this question partially with his "producer hat" on (his family grows coffee in Nicaragua). Traditionally coffee consumption dips in the summer time and rises steeply again in the fall. Will this year be the year that producers notice a more steady demand from their US consumers, and if so will it increase overall annual per capita consumption? Is there some dynamic at work here that I am missing? Does anyone have good data they would like to share? Or anecdotal evidence?

Comments

[Tony Frater]

Daniel - first congrats on the new format. I really enjoy reading your coffee insights, and I appreciate the extra time it takes to share it in this format. Secondly, I was thrilled to log on this morning and see the Iced Coffee headline. The last week or two I've honestly been thinking about emailing you to get your iced coffee thoughts. I know iced coffee has some negative connotations within the community (e.g. the episode last year at Murky coffee and the triple shot over ice) but I’ve had a love/hate relationship with iced coffee for the last 15 years. I love it, in part, for days like today when my Brooklyn brownstone is already pretty hot & humid by 9am and a steaming cup a coffee just isn’t all that satisfying -- but also because I have had some genuinely great cups of iced coffee. The problem is great cups of iced coffee are too rare.

I wish had been more mindful through the years of remembering what I liked about a great cup of iced coffee because every summer I seem to spend weeks experimenting and mostly just getting good cups. Anyways, anecdotally I know the market is ripe for growth, but I think it requires some experimentation. I have a few theories: I think icing the coffee tends to mute both fragrance as well as secondary/complimentary flavors -- and typically those flavors really contribute to making a great cup of regular (hot) coffee. So beans that have been roasted to make a great regular coffee don’t necessarily translate to great cup of iced coffee. Ideally we could find a brewing method that captures and maintains those flavors when chilled. If that’s not possible, and I know this is subjective, maybe there are characteristics of a coffee (body, acidity, flavor, etc) that are just better suited for iced coffee.

Anyways, I apologize for the length of my comments, but I’d really love to look forward to “iced coffee” season the same way people look forward to seasonal beers/wines/fruits etc. And I am eagerly awaiting your future post on cold brewing methods!

BTW, one of the greatest cups of iced coffee I’ve ever had was a home roasted Nicaraguan. Absolutely memorable. So please let Steve know he’s on to something.....

[Daniel Humphries]

Hi Tony.

What a coincidence. Though I suppose it's not that surprising we'd both be thinking about iced coffee considering the weather in New York right now.

I think you are right about the rarity of good iced coffee. Of course, the same might be said for good hot coffee. You are absolutely right that it's just a matter of finding the right brew method and the right beans. Just like a good espresso contains the right coffee and has been well-prepared by the barista.