How To Store Cold Brew Coffee So It Preserves For A Long Time

Cold brew will last longer if you store it in the refrigerator rather than on the countertop. The lower temperatures in the fridge slow down the process of oxidation, allowing your cold brew to stay fresher for longer.

Cold brew coffee that you make yourself has a much longer shelf life than hot brewed coffee made at home. But it’s still important to store it properly to maximize its freshness and prevent the growth of bacteria and germs.

In the fridge, cold brew can last for up to a week. You should store it in an airtight container ideally before you add milk, sugar, or creamer to it. If you want to store cold brew for even longer than this, you can store it in the freezer for up to two months.

Cold brew that’s been diluted - either with water, sugar, creamer, or milk - won’t last for as long as cold brew concentrate. It will have a much shorter shelf life either in the fridge or on the countertop.

You can only store cold brew diluted with water, milk or creamer for two to three days in the fridge before it starts to spoil. Ideally, you should add creamer or milk to your coffee when you serve it to maximize the storage life of your cold brew.

If you want to leave cold brew out at room temperature, diluting it with creamer will mean it can sit for around two hours at most. This is because creamer, whether it contains dairy or not, spoils much more quickly than cold brew concentrate.

It’s important to choose the right container to store your cold brew because this will impact how long your cold brew stays fresh.

The container should be airtight, and an appropriate size for your cold brew. Minimize spare space at the top of the container by choosing a container that’s just the right size for your batch of cold brew. Reducing the amount of air that comes into contact with cold brew will slow down the oxidation process.

Use a clean, sterile container to store cold brew. Making sure that your container is properly clean will minimize the presence of harmful bacteria that could multiply. Washing the container in hot, soapy water and thoroughly drying it before use should kill any bacteria present.

An airtight container made of glass is better than an airtight container made from plastic. This is because glass is non-porous, so the flavors and aromas of your cold brew won’t seep out or stain the container.

It’s important to store cold brew in an airtight container to reduce the amount of air and oxygen that comes into contact with your cold brew. This is because when your cold brew comes into contact with oxygen, the process of oxidation takes place. Oxidation strips the flavor and aroma from cold brew and makes cold brew go stale.

Oxidation breaks down the oils, acids, and aromatic compounds present in cold brew over time. You can slow down the process of oxidation by keeping your cold brew cool and reducing its contact with oxygen, which is present in air and moisture.

Cold brew should be stored in the fridge at around 41F (5C) or lower. This is because bacteria growth is much faster above these temperatures. Storing your cold brew above these temperatures increases the risk of pathogens like botulism from forming in your cold brew.

These pathogens can trigger food-borne illnesses that could make you very sick. This is why it’s not recommended to drink cold brew that has been stored at room temperature after more than two to three days.

Cold brew concentrate will last longer in the fridge than cold brew that has been diluted with water, milk, sugar, or creamer. You can store cold brew concentrate in the fridge for  up to two weeks, although it may start to taste stale after the first week. This is why we always recommend storing cold brew concentrate in the fridge or freezer and adding sugar or milk when you’re ready to serve it.

If you want to save time, you can make a big batch of cold brew concentrate and divide it before you store it. This way, you can make and freeze up to two months’ worth of cold brew at once and only thaw out the amount you need on any day.

Portioning out your cold brew before you refrigerate or freeze it reduces the amount of handling your cold brew undergoes. This minimizes the risk of contaminating your cold brew during storage, which could increase the risk of pathogens and other bugs forming in your cold brew.

Dividing your brew in advance also means it’s easy to serve as much as you need at a time. Whether you want to serve one portion of cold brew or four, portioning out your concentrate before you store it makes this simple.

The best way to store cold brew in the fridge is in a sealed glass jar or container. The seal should be airtight to prevent oxygen from seeping into the jar. Mason jars, and other glass jars that come with airtight lids, are perfect for storing cold brew.

It’s important to properly seal cold brew containers in storage because this prevents air from entering the container and causing oxidation. It also stops the flavors and aromas of your coffee from seeping out of the jar, and prevents external odors from being absorbed by the cold brew.

Dividing your brew in advance also means it’s easy to serve as much as you need at a time. Whether you want to serve one portion of cold brew or four, portioning out your concentrate before you store it makes this simple.

When you brew up a cold brew concentrate, you’ll need to dilute it with water to turn it into a flavorful, enjoyable drink. Most people like their cold brew concentrate diluted with one part concentrate to either one or two parts water, or somewhere in between.

If you prefer a stronger cold brew, then you’ll want to use less water and stay closer to a 1:1 ratio. If you like your cold brew weaker and more refreshing, you might prefer a 2:1 ratio of water to cold brew concentrate.

You can also dilute your cold brew concentrate with milk or plant milk if you prefer a creamier beverage.

The best tips for cold brew storage are:

• Choose airtight, glass containers to store your cold brew
• Freeze cold brew into ice cube trays to store it for longer
• Only dilute your cold brew with water, sugar, or milk when serving
• Create a nitro cold brew to store your cold brew for up to 3 months

Glass containers are better than plastic containers when you’re storing cold brew in the fridge because glass is non-porous. Using airtight glass containers to store your cold brew prevents external odors from contaminating your cold brew and affecting its flavor, as well as reducing airflow and oxidation.

If you want to store your cold brew for longer than just a week or two, you can freeze cold brew into individual ice cube trays. Freezing cold brew will keep it fresh and tasty for a couple of months, and ice cube trays offer a convenient way to divide up your cold brew into smaller portions. You can even add cold brew ice cubes to a glass of lukewarm cold brew to cool it down in summer without diluting its flavor.

Creating nitro cold brew - which combines cold brew coffee with nitrogen - is one way to store your cold brew for longer. While commercial nitro cold brew can stay fresh for up to three months, homemade nitro cold brew is usually good for a couple of weeks in the fridge.

Additives such as milk and sugar will only reduce the shelf life of your cold brew. Cold brew with additives will start to go bad within a couple of hours at room temperature or two to three days in the fridge. To maximize its lifespan, only put additives in your cold brew when you serve it.

The difference between cold brew concentrate and diluted cold brew is whether water or milk has been added to the cold brew yet.

When you brew your first batch of cold brew, what you’ll be left with is cold brew concentrate. This isn’t very pleasant to drink neat, so it’s important to dilute it with water to obtain the flavor you want. Diluted cold brew is the liquid that you’ll actually drink.

It’s typical to dilute cold brew at a concentrate-to-water ratio of somewhere between 2:1 and 1:1. You can also dilute your cold brew concentrate with milk or creamer, as well as additives like sugar and sweeteners.

Once you dilute cold brew concentrate, even if only with water, you’ll reduce the shelf life of your cold brew significantly. Diluted cold brew will last just two to three days in the fridge, compared with a week or longer for cold brew concentrate.

Storing your cold brew at a low temperature is key to preserving its taste. Keeping the storage temperature of your cold brew at 41F (5C) or below will prevent the growth of harmful bacteria while also slowing down the process of oxidation. Heat speeds up oxidation, which can strip the flavor from your cold brew.

The higher pH value of cold brew, which equates to low acidity levels, also means that cold brew is less effective at suppressing microbial growth when compared to hot brewed coffee. For this reason it’s even more important to keep cold brew at a temperature that reduces the risk of pathogen growth.

You should always store cold brew coffee in the fridge when you’re not using it. Cold brew coffee will last for up to a week in the fridge, whereas cold brew left out at room temperature will stay fresh only for around 18 hours at most.

Cold brew will be most fresh when consumed within a week provided you keep it in an airtight container in the fridge. After this, it may still be safe to drink, but it will start to lose some of its flavor.

After two weeks, drinking cold brew stored in the fridge could even make you sick. After a week, you should throw away old cold brew and make a new batch.

Cold brew coffee concentrate can last for about seven days in the fridge, after which it will still be safe to drink but it may start to lose some of its flavor. Important milestones to remember include:

• Two to three days: Cold brew with added water, milk, and sugar may start to go bad
• Seven days: Cold brew concentrate will lose its fresh taste
• 14 days: Cold brew concentrate will no longer be safe to drink

It’s also important to keep your cold brew in an airtight glass container to prevent odors and bacteria in your fridge from contaminating your cold brew.

Additives like milk and sugar can reduce the storage life of cold brew to just two to three days in the fridge.

If you want to leave cold brew out at room temperature, diluting it with creamer will mean it can sit for around two hours at most. This is because creamer, whether it contains dairy or not, spoils much more quickly than cold brew concentrate.

Ideally, only add milk and sugar to your cold brew when you’re ready to drink it to maximize its shelf life.