I am a part-time barista and making iced coffee is an art. The ingredients that go into an iced coffee seem fairly simple: coffee, ice, sugar (or substitute), and cream (or substitute). However, the simplicity can be deceiving. If you were to throw all the ingredients together you probably wouldn't be too happy with the outcome. A few simple techniques can be used to bring out the full flavor of the coffee and keep your customers coming back for more.

The secret to iced coffee is the ice cubes. As crazy as it sounds, the ice cubes can make or break the flavor of the beverage. The ice tends to dilute the coffee. To counter that you need to prep the day before by making an entire fresh pot of coffee and let it cool for about 15-20 minutes. Next pour the coffee into an ice cube trays and refrigerate these trays overnight.

You also need to have some cold coffee on hand for the bulk of the mixture. I would use a pitcher to store the coffee. Ensure that you have enough coffee for the next day. You don't want to be caught trying to refrigerate coffee an hour before people order. Keep a pitcher or two in the fridge at all times assuming you have enough volume of people ordering iced coffee.

Now it's time to make the perfect iced coffee. Start by pouring a tiny bit of hot coffee into the cup. Then you grab your sweetener of choice and add this to the small amount of coffee in the cup. Stir the hot coffee until the sugar is dissolved, this will create a thick slurry. Using this method is much easier to dissolve the sweetener in the coffee. This will prevent the sugar chunks that appear if you don't use hot coffee.

Next add your coffee ice cubes and cream. Give the mixture a quick stir combining the cream and sugar slurry. Then add the refrigerated coffee to mixture and stir generously. There you have it, the world's best cup of iced coffee. Remember its all in the ice cubes, regular ice cubes dilute the coffee and give it that watery taste. Your customers will thank you and its a great conversation piece once they realize you have a unique way of making the iced coffee.

Learn more about this author, Erik M. Dell.
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