How many grams of ice does it add to an authentic American style? Why can't ice cubes in coffee shops melt easily?

Iced coffee, I believe everyone here has drunk it. Generally speaking, as long as the quality of the beans is online, then the extraction parameters are found, and a certain proportion of ice is added while ensuring a moderate concentration, the coffee produced will often have a good iced taste. However, on the front street, I still often hear some friends raise doubts such as "how to add ice","how much ice to add","add ice first or add ice later."

So today, Qian Jie will continue to come and talk to you about using ice for coffee ~

The main role of ice cubes

As a supporting role in drinks, although ice cubes seem colorless and odorless, they play a big role in frozen coffee, which emphasizes the stimulating taste of low temperatures. If used correctly, it can add to the icing on the cake; if used incorrectly, it may turn into "ashtray water" in minutes.

As more and more players enter the industry, almost all common coffees on the market have ice versions. There are already many tricks in practice, and various parameters are dazzling. But in fact, all changes are the same. As long as we understand the principles behind it, there will be no problem in adding ice.

1. Rapid cooling down

Looking at the menu in coffee shops, it is not difficult to find that in addition to cold extracts and ice drops, the vast majority of iced coffee is extracted in the form of contact between high-temperature hot water and coffee powder, so the freshly made coffee must be the most fragrant, but it is also hot to the mouth. At this time, if you want to turn it into a cold drink, adding ice directly is undoubtedly the fastest and easiest way to cool down.

But everyone knows that ice cubes achieve cooling by absorbing heat and melting. Therefore, in order to prevent the ice cubes from turning into a pool of water before the coffee gets cold, we must leave a certain "space" in terms of concentration. Let the ice cubes work. In other words, coffee must be strong and delicious enough before cooling down to withstand the wash of ice.

2. Lock in the aroma of coffee

If we feel that a cup of coffee is bitter, we can add sugar and milk to reduce the bitter taste, but only a small amount, otherwise the coffee will be diluted or become sweet and greasy. The operation of adding ice not only suppresses the bitterness, but also uses rapid cooling to lock in the aroma of coffee.

3. Keep low temperature

According to research, human taste is characterized by temperature, and the intensity of the taste we feel will be affected by temperature. When we drink iced coffee, the sensitivity of the tongue to bitter taste decreases, because the cool temperature can neutralize and reduce the bitter taste, making the coffee easier to eat, while the tip of the tongue is temporarily paralyzed, which also reduces the sensitivity to bitter taste.

However, as the iced coffee gradually returns to warm and gradually moves from cold to normal temperature, the taste buds will enhance their ability to perceive bitterness, and the coffee will begin to become bitter or even astringent. Therefore, if you want to make the coffee drinking experience better, it is particularly important to maintain a low temperature.

Based on the above three points, when we decide the usage and dosage of ice cubes, we will see whether it can make hot coffee quickly ice-cold and maintain the drink at a low temperature without causing the coffee to become water because it melts too quickly. Collapse. In other words, to make a good iced coffee, we must not only consider the problem of more ice and less ice, but also pay attention to the quality of the ice.

What's so important about ice cubes?

At present, we can roughly divide ice cubes on the market into solid ice and hollow ice. If they are divided into square, spherical, crescent, snowflake, etc. according to their shapes. Many milk tea shops prefer square and crescent shapes. Most square ice is hollow, has small particles and melts quickly; crescent ice is solid, has higher hardness, and melts more slowly in water.

The ice-making abrasive tools used in our homes are usually mainly round and square. Because they use static freezing, they all belong to solid ice. In the same form, the larger the volume, the slower the melting speed. However, the corresponding freezing time is also longer. In addition, re-frozen ice has higher hardness, and it has a better cooling effect when put into coffee than freshly frozen and directly removed fresh ice. (A comparative experiment has been conducted on Qianjie. There is not much difference between coffee brewed with ice first and then brewed with ice, so it will not be discussed separately here.)

For friends who like to drink iced coffee at home, Qianjie recommends that when purchasing an ice cube, try to choose a slightly larger style or a single large spherical mold to make the ice more solid. If the ice cube you are using is too small, you can remove the ice cubes in advance and store them in a clean container to keep the ice cubes more rigid.

How to add ice to different coffees?

When we understand the purpose of using ice and grasp the factors affecting the quality of ice cubes, we can find the corresponding ice adding amount based on the actual situation. For iced coffee that is heated first and then cooled, Qianjie's idea is to not only ensure the concentration of the coffee, but also maintain a low temperature for a long time. Therefore, ice cubes account for a large proportion, and large re-frozen ice cubes are preferred;

Iced American: 40g Italian concentrate +120ml water +100g ice cubes, the ice cubes are 2.5 times that of coffee liquor;

Iced latte: 40g Italian concentrate +180ml low-temperature milk +80g ice cubes, the ice cubes are twice the size of coffee liquor;

Ice hand-flushing: 15g powder/150ml hot water/75g ice cubes, the ice cubes are 5 times that of coffee powder;

Considering that the low-temperature extracted coffee liquor itself is cold, no additional cooling is needed. However, since Qianjie is accustomed to making it in a slightly higher concentration ratio, a small amount of ice is needed to slightly dilute the coffee liquor:

Cold extract, ice drops: 180ml coffee liquor +30g large ice cubes, coffee liquor is 6 times as large as ice cubes.

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