By 
Jumping on one of the many trends at artisanal coffee shops, Starbucks introduced cold-brew coffee at select locations in March. Today, the brand is rolling out the small batch coffee at all outposts nationwide.
But what exactly is cold-brew coffee and how is it different from iced coffee?
I like to think of cold-brew as a craft coffee of sorts. That's because it's been prepared specifically to bring out a range of flavors and it's a time-intensive process. And, for the record, just about the only thing it has in common with iced coffee is that they're both served chilled. I got a first taste of the cold-brew coffee at Starbucks, plus a crash course in how its deviates from traditional java. Here's what you need to know:
The bean blends are different.
With beans hailing from Latin America, the cold-brew blend is full bodied and surprisingly smooth enough to drink without milk, cream, or sweeteners. The brand's iced coffee blend comes from East Africa, smells and tastes a bit more acidic, and pairs best with milk.
Cold-brew coffee is steeped in cool water for 20 hours.
This slow, cool process makes the coffee richer and sweeter by pulling nutty, chocolatey notes from the beans' grinds. Iced coffee, on the other hand, is brewed with hot water for just a few minutes and then poured over ice. The hot brewing method makes coffee taste more acidic because it extracts bitter tannins from the grounds.
Cold-brew coffee is available by small batch only.
While iced coffee can be made on the spot (it is double brewed and can be immediately poured over ice without diluting), cold-brew coffee is made in 60-cup batches. And most locations will only have one batch on offer each day (remember: it takes 20 hours to craft a single batch). Check with your local Starbucks to ask about availability.
In short, this is basically how we feel about cold-brew coffee:
If you want to know how cold-brew coffee stacks up against the espresso-based iced latte, check out this infographic that illustrates side-by-side comparisons among the three chilled drinks.
Follow Delish on Instagram.
