As soon as the heat arrives, cold brew coffee gets more in demand than ever. We know there is quite a large group of people who drinks it year round, because of its health benefits. Regardless on how often you drink it, you want to make it at home. Some of us because we want to save money, some, because we love our coffee more than the store bought one.
And if you made cold brew coffee at home, you know it can be a hassle. Messy on the counter, lots of filters to clean, and inconvenient overall. The best way to avoid the mess and make the process more convenient, is the cold brew coffee filter. And if you think about the coffee sock, or some sort of reusable textile bag, that’s not it. We are talking about the reusable coffee filter bag. It’s a no brainer, but let’s see why.
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Our Choice of Coffee Filter Bags
These bags are $10 for 200 pieces. The size I use for my cold brew coffee is the 4″ x 6″, which works great in a 1 quart mason jar, filled about 2/3. If you fill it up to the maximum, you can use it in a 1.5 quart mason jar.
The bags are made of a non-woven fabric that is high temperature resistant, if you want to use them for French press, or tea. The material is breathable, and allows for a richer, more natural coffee flavor.
Different ways of brewing Cold Brew
Lots of ways of brewing this awesome drink have been developed. Cold Brew Coffee Makers are becoming very popular. We can also use standard coffee paper filters, mesh metallic filters, a coffee sock or even a French Press. We have tried them all so that you don’t have to and have come up with a clear winner – The Mason Jar and Disposable Cold Brew Filter Coffee Bags Recipe. But we also use the coffee filter bag in our fast cold brew coffee recipe.
What are Cold Brew Filter Coffee Bags?
Essentially they are disposable, biodegradable bags that fasten at the top. You simply pour your ground coffee into the bag, close it at the top then place it into a container of water and leave it to work its magic. That’s it. After the appropriate time (time and quantities will vary depending on the recipe) you just take out the bag and throw it onto your compost heap. All that is left for you to do is enjoy. Here are some of the bag’s main advantages.
Advantages of the Disposable Cold Brew Coffee Bags
No mess associated with other Cold Brew methods
Before brewing
If you love the taste of Cold Brew coffee but absolutely hate dealing with mess, these bags are just awesome. Unlike with paper or metal filters, there is no manual filtering required. This means no mess is created during the preparation stage and nothing needs to be cleaned. The same goes for after you have made the coffee.
After brewing
If you make your Cold Brew using your French Press, you have to deal with all of the gross coffee sludge after you have brewed. On top of this, Cold Brew prepared this way often needs to be filtered after brewing. This is because no filter is used before as such. If you use a reusable filter, this has to be cleaned as well. I have a distinct memory of my parents drinking French Press coffee at the breakfast table. My dad always had the wonderful job of dealing with the coffee sludge. It was something then I decided I would avoid at all costs!
Coffee Bags won’t break
Lastly, these bags are super strong with reinforced seams. This means the bags will never break on your way to the trash, like paper filters sometimes have been known to do. If that’s happened to anyone reading this, you’ll know it’s the worst thing ever!
Filter coffee bags provide great filtration
These filters may be strong but they do the same amazing job as paper filters. The holes are really fine so you always get a super clean cup of Cold Brew. Metal filters have bigger filtration holes that let more of the fine coffee grounds into the coffee cup.
Finer grind
Another advantage of the finer filtration is that you don’t have to grind your coffee extra coarse. With reusable or metal filters the coffee has to be extra coarse so that no grinds are passing through. This is not the case with these coffee bags.
If you prefer the flavor profile from slightly finer ground coffee in your Cold Brew, these bags do the job very nicely indeed. We have an experiment where we tested various cold brew extraction times, but more importantly we tested the grind size. The result was a little surprising, with the medium grind tasting better than coarse grind.
Classic Cold Brew Convenience
The best feature of these disposable filter bags in my opinion, however, is how crazily convenient they are. There is next to no preparation required. Just grind your coffee, put it in the bag and place it into water. Here is a cold brew recipe using a filter bag and a mason jar, if you need it.
Again, afterwards, just throw the bag away. The fact that it is bio-degradable is also great for peace of mind, knowing that we are doing our bit for the environment while enjoying our delicious Cold Brew!
Way Better than the Reusable Bag
You are probably wondering why the disposable bags are better than the reusable ones, also known as the coffee sock. The coffee sock works in a similar way but you wash them out afterwards and use them again. This leads to several problems.
Firstly, the coffee sock is not convenient. You need to dump the spent grounds, and wash the bag, which is fine if you brew once in a blue moon. But if you do this on a regular basis, it turns into a chore.
Secondly, the bag will stain after a little while, starting to retain more and more old coffee, which will impart a little taste to your brew. The stained bag becomes an eye-sore in time.
Thirdly, the sock starts to deteriorate over time. Fibers from the sock then start finding their way into your coffee. You would have to be very careful and inspect the bag on a regular basis, if you still want to use it.
The disposable bags are convenient, there is no staining, no cleaning, no sanitation required and your cold brew is always fresh.
No Big Initial Investment
There are several cold brew coffee makers on the market. Some of them are cheaper some of them are more expensive. You will have to spend an initial amount on one of these.
The disposable cold brew coffee bags require no big initial investment. You can buy 200 bags for $10 and start brewing right away. A new coffee machine will set you back 30 to 60 bucks, and you have to find the kitchen top space for it!
The Best Cold Brew Coffee Filters Bags
We prepared a list with a few great options if you want to buy the bags. We tested some of these, and they are the best filters on the market.
Yzurbu Coffee Filter Bags
The bags that I use for my cold brew are Yzurbu, and they are $10 for 200 pieces. The size I use for my cold brew coffee is the 4″ x 6″, which works great in a 1 quart mason jar, filled about 2/3. If you fill it up to the maximum, you can use it in a 1.5 quart mason jar.
The bags come in four different sizes, from 2″ x 2.8″ the smallest size, to 6″ x 8″ the largest size, if you have larger recipients. They have a drawstring, to secure the coffee grounds in the bag, and they retain greatly finer coffee particles.
120 Cold Brew Coffee Filters
These filters come in two sizes, 4″ x 6″ and 8″ x 12″. They are a bit more expensive per bag than Yzurbu, but the larger size is a great option for those looking for brewing large batches.
Disposable Mesh Brewing Bags with Drawstring
Another great option, that is also affordable. The bags are made of a non-woven fabric that is high temperature resistant, ensuring durability and safety. The good penetrability of the material allows for a richer, more natural coffee flavor, without releasing any harmful substances from the filter.
The package includes 200 pieces of coffee filter bags, which is quite generous and ensures you have enough supply for a long time. The bags size is 4″ x 6″, and the cost is $12.
Commercial Cold Brew Coffee Filters – 100 Count
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed this review. If you are just getting into Cold Brew and want to learn more about it you can read our article on four different methods of making Cold Brew here. Happy brewing!