BY CAROLINE POWELL
Staff Writer
As a barista with six years of experience in the caffeine world, I was excited to try the new Joyride cold brew station in the Pencader P.O.D. Walking up to the station, I will say it was aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
The cold brew came on tap with stirrers and variations of milks including whole, almond, oat, along with the basic half and half. It also had syrup flavors of vanilla, caramel, raspberry and sugar-free vanilla. I immediately thought it would be delicious because of its appearance and set up.
I quickly learned not to judge a book by its cover.
I decided to try both the cold brew and the nitro separately, without any add-ins, to see how they each tasted. Both tasted extremely bitter, even after adding milk and flavoring. I personally don’t like my coffee to have lots of sugar or milk in it, but it seemed like even if I added a lot to it, there was still a bitterness to both.
To justify my negative mindset, I will go into a slight caffeine nerd mode for a second. If you notice that your cold brew is extremely bitter or sour, this is usually due to over-extraction of the concentration. Under-extraction creates a weaker taste.
In case you’re wondering what I mean by extraction, according to the Barista Institute, it is the weight or percentage of dry coffee that’s been dissolved in the water you brew your coffee with.
Maybe the extraction went on for too much time, or the grind of the beans was too fine. If it had been under-extracted, the acid from the beans could’ve dissolved too early. I can only suggest trying to reduce the brew time or using a coarser grind. Because of the extraction, it holds an acidic flavor to it, making it completely unappealing.
A really good cold brew is smooth and rich, with no bitterness. For me, I can always tell if it’s good coffee if it tastes good on its own before add-ins. However, I know that cold brew can be a sort of acquired taste to some, so maybe I’m the problem. Nonetheless, I was disappointed in what could’ve been such a good addition to the campus.
