Salted Caramel Cold Brew

There's cold brew, and then there's this. A slow-steeped, impossibly smooth cold brew with a ribbon of homemade salted caramel that sinks through the ice like liquid gold. It takes 12 hours of patience and about 3 minutes of actual work. The kind of drink that makes Monday mornings feel like a personal choice.

Salted Caramel Cold Brew

Prep: 5 min + 12 hr steep  |  Serves: 4

Ingredients

Cold Brew Concentrate

• 1 cup coarsely ground coffee (medium-dark roast)
• 4 cups cold filtered water

Salted Caramel Sauce

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1/4 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

To Serve

• Ice
• Oat milk or heavy cream

Instructions

1. Steep the cold brew. Combine the coarsely ground coffee and cold water in a large jar or French press. Stir gently, cover, and refrigerate for 12 to 18 hours. The longer it steeps, the stronger and smoother it gets.
2. Strain. Filter through a fine-mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth or a paper filter. You want zero grit. Store the concentrate in the fridge for up to a week.
3. Make the caramel. Heat sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly with a heat-safe spatula. It will clump before it melts into an amber liquid. Be patient.
4. Add butter. Once the sugar is fully melted and deep amber, add the butter pieces. It will bubble aggressively. Stir until the butter is completely melted, about 2 minutes.
5. Add cream and salt. Slowly stream in the heavy cream while stirring. It will bubble up again. Remove from heat and stir in the sea salt and vanilla. Let cool completely.
6. Build your drink. Fill a tall glass with ice. Pour cold brew concentrate to fill it two-thirds. Drizzle 1-2 tablespoons of salted caramel down the inside of the glass. Top with a splash of oat milk or cream. Stir once if you want, or leave it layered for the aesthetic.

Barista Notes

• The caramel sauce makes way more than you need for one drink. Keep it in a jar in the fridge — it's unreal on ice cream, pancakes, or just a spoon.
• Coarse grind is critical. Fine grind will over-extract during the long steep and taste bitter and muddy.
• For an extra move, freeze some cold brew in ice cube trays. Your drink gets stronger as it melts instead of watered down.