How to make the perfect iced coffee at home

Say hello to warmer weather without saying goodbye to your daily cup of coffee

A hot mug of freshly brewed coffee can be exactly what you need on a wintery morning. However, once the weather’s a little warmer, it’s iced coffee’s time to shine. Providing a saving grace for coffee devotees who still need their daily coffee fix throughout the summer months, iced coffee is your ticket to ‘chilled out’, caffeinated bliss.

What’s so great about iced coffee?

Like it says on the tin, iced coffee is just like regular coffee — only cooled down with ice. It sure looks different. It’s often gracefully served in tall glasses filled with chunks of ice and a marbled blend of milk and coffee. However, it’s simple to make and doesn’t require extra equipment (if you don’t count a freezer).

We adore iced coffee because you can tweak it to meet your personal taste, just as you can with your regular hot coffee. Whether you’re in heaven with a large creamy latte or prefer a shorter brew, you can replicate your go-to coffee fix in iced coffee form.

If you thought iced coffee involved making a batch of cold coffee, you might be thinking of cold brew. Just FYI — iced coffee and cold brew are not the same thing! To make an iced coffee, you’ll be making your regular coffee, then cooling it down with ice and milk.

How to make iced coffee at home

Everyone has their own way of stirring up an iced coffee, but this is how we like to make ours. It all starts with our barista-grade Podster Coffee Machine.

To make one glass of iced coffee, we always start by chilling a tall glass in the fridge. You can leave it in there as you make your coffee.

Brewing your coffee

Select your favourite ethical coffee blend from our Rabot Estate Coffee pod selection. Pop it in The Podster and choose your desired size. If you want to recreate a latte, choose the larger size. If you want a shorter drink, choose small. Your iced coffee glass might not fit under the Podster, so have a mug or cup at the ready to collect your fresh espresso. Press the button and wait a few minutes.

We adore using our Podster to make our iced coffee espresso base as it’s designed to precisely extract the coffee to create the most exquisite, coffee shop-quality brew. If you’re aiming for the perfect iced coffee, it has to start with barista-grade espresso.

Once you have your espresso, you’re going to have to resist drinking it right away. (Trust us, it’s worth the wait). Leave it to cool down for 20 minutes or so. You can speed up this process by popping it in the fridge.

Take a pause to make your just-used coffee pod ready for recycling with our Podcycler.

Putting it together

When your espresso is cold, add it to your tall chilled glass. Then, pour in as much cool milk (dairy or plant-based) as you desire. You can even drink it straight, without any milk, if you’re a fan of a strong black brew. Fill the rest of your glass with ice cubes to keep your coffee extra cold. Give it a quick stir and there you have it — one flavoursome and refreshing iced coffee.

That is, unless you want to take it to the next level…

The art of exquisite iced coffee

We always add a special step to make our iced coffee irresistibly creamy. Just as you might froth your milk to make your normal cappuccino or flat white, we like to apply this to our iced coffees, too.

Though our Velvetiser was originally designed to create velvety hot chocolate, it can also whip up silky smooth milk for your coffee. Simply add your milk to the Velvetiser, let it work its magic, then let it cool down before adding to your coffee and ice. To cool it down quickly, pour the creamy milk from The Velvetiser straight into a chilled glass.

If you prefer a thicker, velvety-smooth, sumptuous iced coffee texture, don’t skip this step. Also, if you’re hoping to achieve that characteristic marbled effect with your beverage, you’ll find that this creamy milk consistency will hold the two distinct colours for longer.

Add a finishing touch to your iced coffee

If you prefer to enjoy your coffee plain (the best option for experiencing the nuanced tones and flavours within the coffee blend itself), you’re good to go.

However, if you like your coffee with an extra dash of something, you could add some flavoured syrup, a dash of sugar, or a touch of cacao.

Coffee syrups are available in a wide variety of flavours, like vanilla, caramel, and mint, and a dash of sugar needs no explanation. If you’re tempted to venture into iced mocha territory with a chocolate twist, we recommend using our Chocolate Latte Sachets which are compatible with The Velvetiser. Simply add a single-serve sachet to The Velvetiser along with your milk, create some creamy goodness, and add it to your espresso and ice (as above).

These delectable sachets already contain coffee so, if you want a weaker drink that’s easy on the caffeine, just skip the espresso base. Simply create your velvetised Chocolate Latte using your choice of milk, leave it to cool, and add ice cubes.

If you like the sound of creating our iced Chocolate Latte but still want to experiment with other flavours, take a look at our Hazelnut Latte and Caramel Latte sachets.

Your beans make your brew

Ultimately, the best way to make iced coffee will depend on your unique coffee preferences.
Still, if we have to choose one take-home tip, just ensure you select a high-quality, ethical coffee blend to provide a strong foundation for your beverage. The quality and flavour notes of your coffee beans will make their way into your glass, so a lovingly roasted, rich, multi-layered coffee blend is key.