The Coffee Science Foundation (CSF) has announced a milestone study from the Cold Brew Extraction research project, the publication entitled, ‘Sensory Analysis of Full Immersion Coffee: Cold Brew Is More Floral, and Less Bitter, Sour, and Rubbery Than Hot Brew’ published in the journal, Food. The research related to this publication was led by Dr. Mackenzie Batali at the University of California, Davis.
“We’re intrigued to see some of our long-held beliefs confirmed by rigorous experimentation, especially the conclusion that brew temperature plays a significant role in determining what flavours are expressed from the coffee beans,” says Specialty Coffee Association Board of Directors member, Julia Leach.
“Historically, there hasn’t been much research dedicated to cold brew, so it’s great to see scientific data that will further our understanding about how cold brew differs from traditional heat-brewed coffee.”
According to CSF, although it is widely recognised that the flavour profile of cold-brewed coffee is appreciably different from hot-brewed coffee, cold brew in particular has been associated with less acidic and ‘smoother’ flavour profiles. Scientific corroboration of this behaviour, however, has been lacking.
This project aimed to comprehensively understand cold-brewed coffee extraction, preparation, and consumer value. This research shed light on how different techniques affect physical and sensory attributes in cold-brewed coffee, and how these are perceived and valued by consumers.
“We were motivated to do this research because there are so many passionate debates in the coffee industry about hot brew versus cold brew coffee, but there really has been very little data to inform the debate. I’m proud that the Coffee Center team is generating hard data under very rigorous conditions that reveals the true impact of brew temperature on the sensory qualities of coffee,” says William D. Ristenpart, Director of the UC Davis Coffee Center.
The Coffee Science Foundation (CSF), announced in January of 2020 that it would be embarking on this new research project, ‘Towards a Deeper Understanding of Cold Brew Coffee’ aimed at exploring the parameters of the cold brewing method, including chemical and sensory analysis.
To learn more about the Coffee Science Foundation, visit coffeesciencefoundation.org.