Nitro Cold Brew and Beer: Four Summer Cocktails

Coffee and beer, two of the most widely consumed beverages on Earth, share more in common than you may think. Like coffee, beer’s taste, flavor, body and aroma varies greatly from style to style. With the right java and the right brew, you might even have a perfectly percolated pair. Here are four nitro cold brew and beer cocktails to bubble up your summer pool parties.

Our Nitro Cold Brew

Available at Barnie’s CoffeeKitchen in Winter Park, Florida, our full-bodied cold brew coffee boasts chocolate and mild toffee notes, a velvety body and a light, toasty aftertaste. The cold brewing process, steeping coffee grounds slowly in cool water, keeps the brew’s acidity low and accentuates the coffee’s natural sweetness.

Unlike its hot-brewed counterpart, cold brew’s chemical composition – and, consequently, its flavor – doesn’t change as it cools because, well, it’s already brewed cold. It’s going to have the same rich, full flavor and body the whole cup through.

Finally, Barnie’s also adds nitrogen to the brew, making the coffee even fuller and creamier. This silky-smooth, nitro cold brew will be the main ingredient for our coffee-beer cocktails.

Tart Raspberry Nitro Cold Brew

• Two parts Barnie’s Nitro Cold Brew 
• One part Lindeman’s Framboise Lambic Ale 
• One mint sprig (for garnish)

Unlike other traditional wits or dark Belgian style beers, the fruity notes in this beloved sour ale aren’t a result of the natural fermentation process. Instead, Lindemans Framboise is actually brewed with an additive – in this case, raspberries – to achieve that distinct flavor and aroma. Effervescent, sweet and tart on the back end, this cocktail epitomizes the classic “sweet and sour” flavor contrast.

Nitro Oatmeal Cold Brew Stout

• Two parts Barnie’s Nitro Cold Brew 
• One part Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout 
• ¼ cup blueberries

This cocktail showcases a classic English ale from a classic English brewer, Samuel Smith. Slightly bitterer than an English porter, with a fruitier aroma than an American stout, this oatmeal stout drinks like a glass of 2% milk with a kick.

Like Lindemans Framboise, this Samuel Smith standout is brewed with an adjunct – steel-cut oats ­– to soften the stout’s natural bitterness.

The nitro cold brew’s sweet, slinky body complements the beer’s oatmeal flavor, wets this brew’s relatively dry palate and further cuts its bitter finish. Try floating a small handful of blueberries on top. The fruits’ vinous skin adds a tart splash to the dry stout and chocolately cold brew.

Cold Brew Cider Cocktail

• Two parts Barnie’s Nitro Cold Brew 
• One part hard cider (wet or dry) 
• Salted caramel (melted)

Lather this cold brew’s fluffy toffee and chocolate flavors with a crisp, prickly hard cider.

Ciders, like apples themselves, range from bone dry to sopping wet. Juicy and dry ciders both pair well with this cold brew, so it’s really up to the drinker. Drier ciders lend themselves to greater contrasts – a tango of sating and invigorating flavors ­– while wetter ciders taste fuller and sweeter, complementing those same qualities in the cold brew. Coat the rim of the glass with salted caramel rim for added deliciousness.

Cold Brew Watermelon Wit

• Two parts Barnie’s Nitro Cold Brew 
• One part 21st Amendment Hell or High Watermelon Wit 
• Ground salt (to taste)

Hell or High Watermelon might be another Belgian-style beer, but this lightly carbonated, refreshing brew bears little resemblance to its raspberry-infused cousin further up this list. That’s due to the different yeasts used during fermentation, which either downplays (in the framboise) or accentuates (in this brew) the character of Belgian hops in beer.

Hops, those leafy seed cones slapped on beer labels and brewery marketing in bars across the world, are the coffee beans of the craft brew world. Hops impart flavor, aroma and, especially, bitterness. The Belgians have historically brewed using older, less fresh hops, which lead to less “hoppy” beer and, for mixing purposes, more accessible beer.

Hell or High Watermelon has lemon zest notes and a wet grass, coriander aroma, and 21^st Amendment Brewing put patios everywhere on notice by infusing this light, floral brew with a splash of sweet summer fruit. This refreshing beer melds perfectly with Barnie’s Nitro Cold Brew, but adding a pinch of salt to this cocktail will really make your taste buds sing.