More consumers than ever before are choosing cold brew and iced espresso, but are roasters keeping up with the pace of flavour-focused beverage innovation? James Hoffmann speaks to Tobias Pearce about the importance of product development, optimising blends for flavour at lower temperatures – and why specialty shouldn’t take itself too seriously
From centrifuging espresso to solar-powered roasting and even deep frying, James Hoffmann is no stranger to putting the humble coffee bean through its paces.
As the UK sweltered in its hottest summer on record, the co-founder of Square Mile Coffee Roasters, author and content creator set out to explore what he identified as a growing schism in the cold coffee world: cold brew versus hot espresso over ice.
“There are people who want cold coffee to be cold brew, which is heavy, textured, a little sweeter, very low acidity, and stands up to a little bit of milk or cream,” Hoffmann explains.
