Cold brew concentrate dilution
Cold brew concentrate is brewed strong and diluted with water or milk when you drink it. How much to add depends on how strong the concentrate is. The table shows the final coffee to water ratio for each combination, so you can compare it with a ready-to-drink cold brew at about 1:8.
| Brewed at | Add 0.5 parts | Add 1 part | Add 1.5 parts | Add 2 parts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1:4 | 1:5 | 1:6 | 1:7 | 1:8 |
| 1:5 | 1:6.5 | 1:8 | 1:9.5 | 1:11 |
| 1:6 | 1:8 | 1:10 | 1:12 | 1:14 |
| 1:8 | 1:11 | 1:14 | 1:17 | 1:20 |
How to read it
"Add 1 part" means 1 ml of water or milk for every 1 ml of concentrate. A concentrate brewed at 1:5 diluted with 1 part water ends up at about 1:8, a normal cold brew strength.
The sums assume the grounds hold back about twice their weight in water, so 100 g of coffee in 500 ml of water gives roughly 300 ml of concentrate. Your yield varies with grind and how hard you press the grounds, so treat the numbers as a starting point and adjust by taste.
Milk dilutes the same way, but it adds flavor and sweetness of its own, so many people use less. Ice melts as well, so pour over ice only after you have settled the ratio.
The brewing side is on the cold brew ratio page. To work out grams for your jar, use the calculator.