cold brew

1 of 2

noun

variants or cold brew coffee or cold-brew coffee

plural cold brews or cold brew coffees or cold-brew coffees

: a beverage prepared by steeping coffee grounds for usually 12 to 24 hours at room temperature or cooler and straining before serving cold

… said he had to stop in and try their coffee, and ordered a cold brew.

—Tim Hawk

After you've steeped and filtered your cold brew you should store it in your fridge.

—Jamie Stedmond

… many cold-brew coffees are offered as a ready-to-drink product …

—Oliver Strand

cold brew

2 of 2

verb

variants or cold-brew

ˈkōl(d)-ˈbrü 

cold brewed or cold-brewed; cold brewing or cold-brewing; cold brews or cold-brews

transitive verb

: to brew (coffee, tea, etc.) by steeping at room temperature or cooler

Examples of cold brew in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Rex plans to serve matcha, cold brew, drip, espresso and various pastries. — Kansas City Star, 6 July 2026

Espresso is simply a style of brewing coffee—just like using a drip coffee maker, steeping grounds for cold brew, or pressing coffee with a French press. — Alexandra Emanuelli, Southern Living, 26 June 2026

For beverages, the bar has the usual tea and coffee preparations – the latter with beans from San Francisco’s Grand Coffee – as well as cardamom lattes and cardamom cold brew. — John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 23 June 2026

The cup is designed to hold your 20-ounce cold brew or other favorite drink. — Gabe Hauari, USA Today, 23 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

2000, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1988, in the meaning defined above