|
A New Trend In Coffee?This cool gift is a really hot idea.Edited by Madelyn Miller
Unbeknownst to most, cold-brewed coffee - served steaming hot or iced cold - gains popularity as cold-brew system turns 40 in December In 1964, Todd Simpson, a chemical engineering graduate of Cornell University and fledgling entrepreneur, developed and patented the cold brew system that, using regular coffee beans, creates coffee with some 67% less acid than coffee made by conventional hot brew methods such as a drip system, French press or espresso machine. The Toddy is based on a centuries old cold-water brewing process that Simpson discovered during a visit to South America. Cold water, combined with a unique filtration system, extracts the coffee bean's true flavor but leaves behind myriad bitter oils and biting fatty acids (that are soluble only at a high temperature). The result: A bold, super-smooth coffee concentrate that can be served one cup at a time - steaming hot or iced cold. Simply by adding hot or cold water or milk, one can choose the strength of coffee they want. And, refrigerated, cold brewed coffee concentrate is fresh for 14 days, so there is no waste - one drinks what one makes. For a single traveler like me, this is important. I am not wasting a lot of coffee, but save time making the “concentrate” ahead. I also used the coffee at a dinner party, and it was easy to make it almost instantly, but I was serving a “pre-brewed” coffee. Because of its low acidity, concentrated strength, smooth almost sweet taste, and the fact that it mixes cold, cold-brewed coffee concentrate also represents a superior ingredient in food recipes that call for instant coffee or coffee produced by hot brewing methods. A New Trend?
Earlier this year, a TIME magazine 'new trends' brief stated that "cold is not a word usually associated with making java, but a growing number of caffeine connoisseurs are snapping up cold-brewing systems like the Toddy." The Washington Post called the Toddy "the ultimate coffeemaker" that makes "the perfect cup of coffee." The Saturday Evening Post said, "This (cold-water) brewing method makes better tasting coffee that is 67 percent less acidic than conventional hot brewed coffee and has a fuller, richer coffee flavor as well." Because of its low acidity, cold brewed coffee also offers a solution for the millions of coffee lovers who can't drink coffee because they suffer from acid indigestion and elements of GERD. As well, many experts have suggested that low heat and a significant filtration system used during the coffee-making process can lessen cholesterol LDL levels. In addition, hundreds of leading coffeehouses throughout the United States, such as Gloria Jean's, Seattle's Best, Barnie's, CC's, and Full City Coffee, use Toddy's cold-brew commercial system to make their signature coffee drinks. Seattle's Best announced this past summer that it has used the Toddy system for more than a decade to brew many of its best-selling coffee drinks. The vast majority of consumers who use the Toddy system do so to make their morning cup of steaming hot coffee; a majority of coffeehouses that use the Toddy commercial system do so to make their iced and iced blended drinks. Cold-brewed coffee for the masses?
"Since 1964, Toddy has been synonymous with cold brewed coffee - with millions of individuals worldwide in love with its super smooth taste, convenience and health benefits," said Brett Holmes, a Toddy partner. "We're confident that more and more coffee lovers will discover the beauty of cold-brewed coffee." The Toddy Cold Brew System is available at myriad cafes and retail shops throughout the United States and in a growing number of countries around the world, including Cost Plus World Market stores and Seattle's Best Coffee cafes, as well as online at ToddyCafe.com and Amazon.com. How Many People Are Drinking This?Toddy, Inc. announced it sold its one-millionth Toddy Cold Brew System (The Toddy Coffee Maker) was sold right after Thanksgiving 2004. The Toddy was purchased at a Seattle's Best Coffee (Starbucks- Nasdaq:SBUX) cafe at the historic Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle. The Toddy was packaged in a specially marked box indicating it was the one- millionth produced. The buyer (an unidentified shopper from the Seattle area) said he and his wife had been intrigued by cold-brewed coffee since being introduced to it at a dinner party earlier this year. |
|
TM
The
one-millionth cold-brew coffee maker sold at Seattle's Best Coffee cafe in
downtown Seattle at the start of the holiday season 2004.
Although
cold-brewed coffee has been a favorite of regular folk, connoisseurs and
food critics for decades, the deceptively simple cold-water coffee maker has
gained in popularity in recent years - based on evolving tastes, convenience
and the health benefits of a true low acid coffee using regular beans.
Houston-based
Toddy plans to introduce an aseptically packaged cold-brewed coffee in 2005.
The product will allow convenience and foodservice providers to serve
steaming hot cold-brewed coffee 'on demand' for the first time.