Cold Brew arrives in Spain & it’s called Cafè Fred

I personally heard about cold brew coffee only a few months ago, and just recently I had the chance to meet Jorge from Cafè Fred.

What is cold brew?

Cold brew is a process of cold maceration where coffee (or tea) is left to infuse in water at room temperature over a period of 24 hours.

Recently ground coffee is put in a filter and submerged in water. After the necessary time, the mixture is filtered a second time to remove any residue.  


Thanks to cold brew it’s possible to produce a 100% natural product, undiluted, that doesn’t go through any processes that might alter the nature of the raw materials.

Advantages of cold brew

  • You know what you’re drinking

With cold brew we obtain a concentrated coffee with all its natural notes and aromas, as well as its original sweetness. With this process the coffee is 60% less acidic, which is ideal for people with a delicate stomach. Cafè Fred contains no conservatives, preservatives, colourings, or any substance whose name you can’t pronounce.

This would be the equation:

Coffee + water = Cafè Fred – the real coffee 100% natural

It’s like having an iced coffee without having it diluted.

Cold brew coffee process

  • You save time

It’s a product whose quality you already know, and which is ready to be consumed.

I always thought that the best products are the most natural and freshly made, but cold brew is a 100% natural drink with the advantage of being ready to drink from your fridge. To achieve this, Cafè Fred uses a method called HPP (High Pressure Processing), so that their teas and coffees can last up to a year. Now you can fill your fridge with bottles of this cold brew and be sure that you’ll never be without high quality iced coffee.

Who is Fred?

Cafè Fred was born in Barcelona, which is why it has a Catalan name. No, it isn’t the name of any of the founders, but it’s the translation of the word for ‘cold’ in Catalan.

How was Fred born?

Jorge and David are twin brothers from Navarra, but now settled in Barcelona. The idea to make cold coffee, and bring the cold brew process to Spain, is owed, in part, to Jorge’s wish to have iced coffee milk without it being diluted and losing half of the coffee when pouring it into a glass with ice. It also comes from the time when David lived in London, right in the midst of the arrival of ‘specialty coffees’ and the cold brew novelty. The union of these two facts, and the desire to bring high quality coffee to Spain brought about Cafè Fred, a cold coffee made using cold processes.  

Cold brew coffee cafe Fred

What kind of coffee am I drinking?

This is something people don’t tend to ask themselves, either at home or in coffee shops. We’re often drinking coffee from unknown sources, with any kind of roast – including torrefacto.

The coffee used to produce Cafè Fred has a first name and a surname, and is a “specialty coffee”. Their provider is El Magnifico, who recommends the best coffee of the season, and roasts it on their premises in Barcelona.

At the moment, the coffee used to start the cold brew process comes from Teodoro Engelhardt’s plantation in Guatemala called La Florida.

This coffee’s tasting notes are: smooth, sweet, cocoa, cedar notes, very clean, full-bodied with a honey after taste. I challenge you to get the cedar notes!

Tasting notes cafe Fred cold brew

When to drink Café Fred

This cold brew coffee is ideal for when it’s difficult to make coffee or find a high quality one. It’s great for when you have houseguests, or when you’re invited to a dinner, lunch or brunch. Taking a bottle of wine is a thing of the past now. You can be much more original and a bit of a sybarite if you bring a half litre bottle of Cafè Fred. You’ll have a chance to talk about this high-quality product, about specialty coffee, and above all, you’ll be able to explain how the cold brew process works.

This cold brew is also ideal for recipes involving coffee – equally for drinks as for food.

Recipes cold brew coffee

What if I prefer hot coffee?

No problem – Cafè Fred can be heated up. If you do that though, I think we might have to add a surname, and Cafè Fred becomes Cafè Fred Calent (hot in Catalan) 😀

But just consider the practicality of having a high quality coffee all ready to go in your house. Think about when you get up and you’ve only managed to get one eye open – can you be bothered to make coffee? With this cold brew coffee you only need a few seconds to heat it up and have this energy shot ready to get your other eye open and start the day.

What if I’m more of a tea person?

Jorge and David have also thought about tea lovers, and soon will start selling “Tés Fred”: green tea with mint, roiboos with vanilla and chai black tea.

I personally look forward to seeing them soon in most bars, cafes and restaurants, and finally having the option to order a refreshing, natural and sugar free quality drink.

Where to buy cold brew Café Fred

Café Fred is sold in two formats: a 60ml bottle, equivalent to two espressos, and a bottle of half a litre which is equivalent to 16 coffees (once opened can be storage in the fridge for up to two weeks)

The bottles are designer bottles, each of them is unique – the bottling, as well as the labelling, are handmade using an artisan process.

Right now you can buy Cafè Fred in more than 80 spots all over Spain, or from their website where you could also get a discount.

And as if that wasn’t enough, Cafe Fred are offering a discount just for readers of Coffee & Brunch.

Use the code “brunchandfred” to get 5€ off (free delivery) on your Café Fred!

Map where to buy Café Fred cold brew

And if you’re a designer, illustrator or an artist, you might be interested in “Fred & Friends”. Cafè Fred have started a collaborative project for their creative friends to offer their graphic vision of Cafè Fred cold brew. Once they get an illustration, it goes on their facebook gallery.

Fred and Friends cold brew coffee and art

What about you – are you more a tea or a coffee person?

Have you tried cold brew coffee yet?

 

 

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