Cold Brew Old-Fashioned Recipe

Whether you like your Old Fashioned with bacon-wrapped figs or spiced pecans, Home Grounds agrees on one thing: it’s always better with coffee. Sweet, smooth, and with almost a syrupy mouthfeel, cold brew coffee is the Old Fashioned cocktail’s natural complement.

Wanna learn how to make a fantastic one? Keep scrolling for a few tips on how to make the best cold brew Old Fashioned.

The Best Coffee to Use for Cold Brew Old Fashioned

Traditionally, cold brew coffees incorporate dark to medium roast coffees because of their cup profiles. Cold brew made with coarse coffee grounds benefits from the flavours that develop later in the roasting process via the Maillard reaction. This is why people prize it for low acidity and sweetness.

What’s more, you’ll want to choose your single-origin coffee beans or coffee bean blends to complement the rest of your ingredients. While a bright, floral African coffee works well in a cinnamon orange iced coffee crush—where the prevailing flavours are citrusy and spicy—it may not work well for drinks like the Old Fashioned, where the flavours are less bold and more subdued. So as a general rule of thumb, stick with single-origin coffee beans or coffee bean blends from Central and South America.

How to Make A Cold Brew Old Fashioned

Though you won’t find cold brew Old Fashioneds at many local bars, this cold brew coffee drink is a great way to elevate this classic before-dinner coffee cocktail.

As with our almond milk cold brew and Vietnamese cold brew coffee, a great cold brew old fashioned starts out by making cold brew. And for us, the optimal cold brew method is pretty simple: coarse coffee grounds, room-temperature water, and a 1.5-litre French press.

Room-temperature water quickens the extraction process and ensures that all of the coffee’s subtler tasting notes are extracted from the bean. What’s more, you can simply combine the coffee grounds with water and leave it on your counter for 16 hours.

After your batch of cold brew concentrate is ready, simply press the plunger and decant your cold brew into a glass jug. Now, your cold brew coffee concentrate is ready to be incorporated into a bunch of cold brew drinks.

Now that you put all your ingredients together, let’s make a cold brew Old Fashioned.

1. Brew your Cold Brew Coffee

Measure 1 cup of coarse coffee grounds into a 1.5-litre French press and add 5 cups of room-temperature water. Stir gently to combine.

With the plunger fully retracted, place the French press lid on and leave it on the countertop for 16 hours. Once it’s ready, plunge and decant into a large, 1.5-litre jug.

2. Make Your Simple Syrup

A few minutes before you’re ready to serve your Old Fashioned, place one cup of brown sugar and one cup of water into a saucepan.

Then, bring it to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Once the sugar has dissolved, remove it from the heat and let your simple syrup cool to room temperature.

3. Assemble the Cold Brew Old Fashioned

In the bottom of a 240 ml rocks glass, use either a muddler or bar spoon to muddle a dash of Angostura bitters and two teaspoons of simple syrup.

Then, add equal parts rye whiskey or bourbon and cold brew concentrate. For a single, use 60 ml of each (1). Stir gently to combine.

Add in one large cold brew ice cube, or a few small ones, and garnish the Old Fashioned with an orange peel and a Maraschino cherry.

Now, if you want another cold brew drink with alcohol, why not try our cold brew martini recipe?

Final Thoughts

This classic Old Fashioned cocktail is sure to bring a fun, caffeinated lift to your evening. While dinner is cooking, serve this cold brew Old Fashioned with some spiced pecans or chocolate chess pie for a classic treat.

Have you made this cold brew Old Fashioned? Which bourbon did you use? Drop us a comment below or in our Home Grounds Facebook group.