This homemade cold brew latte is very easy, refreshing, and delicious! It saves you time and money and is also versatile. Feel free to add your favourite syrup and enjoy a Starbucks-quality drink from the comfort of your home – plus, it’s great for entertaining!
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Why To Make This Homemade Cold Brew Latte
If the photo of this ice-cold glass of coffee doesn’t speak for itself, then let me tell you why to give this recipe a go:
- This cold brew latte is delicious, refreshing, and tastes milder than a regular iced latte, thanks to the long brewing time.
- It is a super simple recipe to follow, you only need 3 ingredients and all of them are budget-friendly.
- You don’t need any special barista equipment or a fancy coffee machine to make this.
- It can be made ahead – in fact, the longer you leave it, the better flavour the coffee will have. You can also freeze it for later.
- This homemade iced coffee is easy to scale up or down, which makes it perfect for parties and gatherings, especially around summertime.
- This recipe is flexible – it will taste great on its own (plain), with sugar and/or your favourite syrup. Top it up with a whipped cream and voila – you just made a fantastic show-stopping ice-cold drink that everyone will want to try!
Key Ingredients For Homemade Cold Brew Latte
This recipe only consists of 3 ingredients, isn’t it fabulous?! To make it at home, you will need:
- Good quality ground coffee – coffee beans are available in the majority of shops or coffee shops. For the freshest-tasting coffee, you can grind the coffee coarsely at home using a coffee grinder. Alternatively, for ease, buy a bag of coarse ground coffee. There are thousands of coffee varieties in the world, but your best bet will be your trusted brand or roast blend.
- Milk – it wouldn’t be a latte (café au lait) if it didn’t contain milk. Use semi-skimmed milk to keep the calorie count low, whilst still being tasty enough to compliment the cold brew well. You can add whole (full-fat) milk too – the coffee drink will naturally taste sweeter.
- Ice – to help keep the drink ice cold. Both real and reusable ice cubes are good. The main difference is that the real ice cubes will melt into the coffee drink and will dilute it slightly, whilst the reusable ice cubes will not melt into the drink and therefore won’t change the taste of your iced coffee.
- Sugar, syrup, or sweetener – are optional and added to taste. Cold brew normally tastes sweeter and smoother than regular hot coffee, due to the long-brewing process which intensifies all of the coffee flavours. Add a small amount of sugar or another sweetener to the cold brew if it tastes bitter.
Substitutes & Variations
This homemade iced coffee recipe is great for its flexibility and versatility. If you have any dietary needs, or you’re missing some of the items, you can swap or substitute the ingredients as follows:
- Instant coffee or chilled espresso can be used instead of cold brew. Instant coffee can be dissolved in cold water. Espresso needs to cool down to a room temperature before you can cool it in the fridge. Depending on the size of the served drink, you can use espresso (small glass), or lungo (large espresso/americano; medium glass).
- Decaf coffee (instant, espresso, or ground) – use it in the same way as you would a regular coffee used in this recipe.
- Plant-based milk for vegan-friendly cold brew – oat, almond, coconut, or soy milk will work just fine.
- Alternatively, you can use lactose-free milk, or whole milk.
All of the above substitutions are 1 for 1 ratio (1 serving of coffee per portion).
Variations
Feel free to play around with the flavours of this iced coffee by adding a syrup of your choice – caramel, chocolate, vanilla, coconut or hazelnut will turn this cold brew latte into a special treat.
PS. If you love iced coffee, make sure to also try this caramel iced latte, homemade iced mocha or pumpkin spice iced latte.
🧋How To Make Cold Brew Latte
This iced latte with cold brew can be prepared at home in 3 easy steps:
- Make cold brew 12-24 hrs in advance. Strain it and taste it – add sugar, honey, syrup or sweetener if needed.
- Fill a glass with cold milk, add ice cubes.
- Pour over the cold brew and serve immediately.
For detailed instructions and measurements, please see the recipe card below this post.
Top Tips
Here are a few ideas on how to make this iced coffee even better:
To keep this latte with cold brew extra cold, place the coffee mix in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving. You can also cool the glass in the fridge for the same amount of time. Alternatively, you can cool the glass with a lot of ice – fill the glass up with ice and leave for at least 5-10 minutes. Replace the ice with fresh ice cubes, add cold brew, milk and serve.
Add slightly more decaf coffee than regular instant coffee – always check the taste first (it varies a lot from brand to brand).
To create the beautiful layers of coffee and milk, make sure you add milk first, then ice cubes, and finally pour the cold brew slowly over the ice cubes. Do not stir.
For a foamy top, froth some extra milk by shaking it for 1-2 minutes in a sealed jar, and pour it over the cold brew.
Storage
The cold brew for this homemade iced latte can be stored in an airtight container (bottle) in the fridge for up to 3 days. Sealing it prevents it from taking on smells from other food items in the fridge.
When making this coffee drink in advance, remember to add the milk and ice just before serving –it will taste and look fresher, and you can make the layers of the coffee and milk.
When you mix the cold coffee and milk a long time in advance, they will blend by the time you serve this coffee, and the pretty layers will be lost.
Can You Freeze Iced Coffee?
Yes, you absolutely can freeze iced coffees! And you have several options to do so, feel free to adjust the milk and coffee quantities depending on how strong and dark, or milky you like your coffee:
- Freeze the cold brew only – pour it into an ice cube tray, and freeze it for at least 3-4 hours. Serving: Fill ⅓ of a glass with milk, add frozen cold brew (cubes), add some more cold brew (liquid) and serve.
- Freeze the milk only – yes, milk can be frozen – pour it into an ice cube tray and freeze it for at least 3-4 hours. Serving: Fill ½ of a glass with frozen milk cubes and top the glass with cold brew.
- Freeze the cold brew latte (coffee and milk blend) – pour it into an ice cube tray, and freeze it for at least 3-4 hours. Serving: Fill ¼ of a glass with milk, add frozen cold brew latte cubes (½ glass), top with cold brew, and more milk if needed.
FAQs
It is an iced coffee drink made with cold brew and milk. Cold brew is brewed in cold water for a long period of time which gives it a stronger flavour, whilst keeping it less acidic. It also contains more caffeine as the coffee sits in the water for longer.
It will always depend on how strong the coffee was made. The ratio of coffee and water is usually between 1:4.5 and 1:8 (or 1:12). The lesser amount of water used, the stronger and more concentrated the coffee will be. If unsure, make the cold brew stronger and you can dilute it with milk, cold water, or ice later if needed.
Use your trusted and tested coffee beans – ideally coarsely ground for the best flavour. However, finely ground coffee will work too.
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📖 The Recipe
Homemade Cold Brew Latte
Ingredients
Cold brew
- 15.5 g ground coffee or instant coffee
- 125 ml cold filtered water
For the latte
- 125 ml semi-skimmed milk plus some for froth (optional)
- 125 ml ice
Optional
- sugar honey, syrup or sweetener (to taste)
- whipped cream
Instructions
- Make the cold brew 12-24 hours ahead of time by mixing ground coffee with fresh filtered cold water (ratio as recommended on packaging; usually between 1:4.5, 1:8 and 1:12 depending on the preferred strength). Leave to brew at room temperature or in the fridge for a minimum of 12 hours (overnight). Strain through a strainer or a coffee filter, and chill it in the fridge until you are ready to serve the cold brew.
- When ready to serve, fill ⅓ of glass with milk, add ice cubes.
- If using, add sugar, honey syrup or sweetener to your cold brew.
- Slowly pour the cold brew over the ice cubes in milk. Do not stir. Add frothy milk* or whipped cream (if using) and serve immediately.
Notes
- instant coffee or chilled espresso (lungo),
- decaf coffee (instant, espresso, or ground),
- plant-based milk – oat, almond, coconut, or soy milk,
- lactose-free milk, or whole milk.
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