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Author:
Melissa Collins
First, there was coffee. And it was hot. Then came iced coffee and a whole new universe of wonderful tastes opened up for all the coffee lovers in this world. Iced coffee drinks are huge, especially in summer.
What can be better than cooling off with a sweet iced beverage and getting an energy kick, just enough to keep you going on a really hot day?
You can turn almost any coffee into iced coffee and at all major coffee shops the choices are so many it’s hard to make up your mind.
Consumer polls indicate Starbucks’ Coffee Frappuccino as one of the most appreciated summer drinks. If you want to know their secret, they use a blender to mix coffee, ice, milk, and a special Frappuccino syrup. Or you can try a Caramel Frappuccino, which contains all the above ingredients, plus caramel syrup and whipped cream. Yummy!
If you’re having a bite at McDonald’s, you can finish your meal with a McCafé Frappé.
You can also try Dunkin’ Donuts Caramel Mocha or, indeed, the simple Mocha which has an intense chocolate flavor. Let’s not even mention their Butter Pecan Swirl which doesn’t even taste like coffee, but like delicious melted pecan ice cream.
These are just a few examples. Visit any coffee shop and every summer they will have a novelty flavor on offer – raspberry, coconut, vanilla, white chocolate. Ultimately, it all depends on the flavor you prefer.
The first thing you need to know is that iced coffee drinks are different than cold brew coffee. Iced coffee is prepared from regular hot coffee from any coffee maker, while cold brew is made by leaving ground coffee in cold water for at least 12 hours.
You can enjoy iced drinks at the coffee shop or you can learn how to make your own iced coffee at home. It’s quite easy!
Intuitively, you’d say that you make regular coffee, let it cool down a bit, and put ice cubes in it. Well, you could certainly use this method but you need to keep in mind that coffee tends to become bitter as it grows cold. The longer it is left to cool down, the bitterer it will be, and you might not like that.
The easiest way to make an iced drink is to put ice cubes in the carafe of your machine and let the coffee drip over them. This way coffee cools down quickly, retaining its smooth taste and all the flavors.
Pouring hot coffee over ice cubes is not a good idea as you will need a lot of ice and your coffee will taste watery.
Or you can use this simple trick – coffee ice cubes! Take a pot of coffee and make ice cubes of it, keep them in the freezer, and use them to cool down the coffee instead of regular cubes.
Alternatively, you can use milk ice cubes!
If you want to impress your friends, let your imagination run wild. Prepare the iced coffee well in advance, keep it in the freezer and when it is time to serve it add whipped cream, pour a syrup of your choice on top, add chocolate chips or a dash of whiskey, anything you want basically!
Home-made Affogato, anyone? If you have an espresso machine you can create your own Affogato by simply drowning a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream in a cup of espresso, single or double shot, and let it melt a bit!
If you want to cool down on a hot summer day, we strongly suggest a Frappuccino, most coffee shops have several differently-flavored ones on offer this time of the year. Try all of them until you decide which is your favorite.
The Best Ice-Cold Drink at Every Major Coffee Chain
https://www.thrillist.com/drink/nation/best-iced-coffee-and-cold-drinks-at-every-coffee-chain-more
How to Make Iced Coffee
https://enjoyjava.com/how-to-make-iced-coffee/