Quick answer: To make iced coffee at home, brew coffee about twice as strong as usual and pour it straight over a full glass of ice. For an iced latte, pull a double espresso over ice and top with 150 ml of cold milk. For Vietnamese iced coffee, drip strong dark coffee onto sweetened condensed milk, stir, then pour over ice.
Iced coffee is the quick way to a cold coffee. Unlike cold brew, which needs 12 hours or more, iced coffee takes about five minutes. The trick is planning for the ice: it melts and waters the coffee down, so you brew strong to start with. Here are three easy recipes, plus answers to the questions we get asked most.
Iced coffee vs cold brew: what's the difference?
Iced coffee is brewed hot and chilled fast over ice, so it keeps more of the coffee's brightness and aroma. Cold brew is steeped in cold water for 12 to 18 hours, which makes it smoother and rounder with less bitterness. Iced coffee is quicker and needs no planning. Cold brew is better if you like making a big batch on Sunday for the week. Our guide to how to make cold brew at home has the full recipe.
A quick note on the name. In Australia, "iced coffee" can also mean a coffee milk drink with ice cream and cream on top. That's a treat of its own. This guide is about coffee brewed and served over ice.
Recipe 1: Iced latte (with an espresso machine)
This is the most popular style and the one closest to what you'd order at a café.
You'll need: 18–20 g coffee for a double shot, 150 ml cold milk, a tall glass, ice.
- Fill a tall glass with ice.
- Pull a double espresso (about 36–40 g of liquid in 25–30 seconds).
- Pour the espresso straight over the ice so it chills quickly.
- Top with 150 ml of cold milk and stir.
- Sweeten with a little sugar syrup if you like.
For an iced long black or iced Americano, pour the double shot over ice and add 100–120 ml of cold water instead of milk. For an iced mocha, stir a spoon of chocolate sauce into the hot espresso before it goes over the ice, then add milk.
Best beans: the OmniSoul blend. Its chocolate and nutty notes cut through cold milk well. Our guide to the best coffee beans for home espresso has more tips, and best beans for milk coffee at home explains why some coffees taste better with milk.
Recipe 2: Flash-brewed iced filter coffee (no machine)
This method, sometimes called Japanese-style iced coffee, uses a pour-over dripper or plunger. You brew hot coffee directly onto ice, replacing some of the brewing water with ice, so the coffee tastes right once it has melted.
Ratio: 20 g coffee to 300 g total, made up of 180 g hot water and 120 g ice.
- Put 120 g of ice in your jug or server.
- Grind 20 g of coffee medium-fine, like table salt.
- Brew with 180 g of water just off the boil (about 93–96°C) through a pour-over dripper straight onto the ice. Aim for about 2.5–3 minutes in total.
- Swirl until most of the ice has melted.
- Pour over a fresh glass of ice.
No dripper? Use a plunger. Brew 20 g of coarse coffee with 180 g of hot water for 4 minutes, press, then pour onto 120 g of ice.
Best beans: Ethiopia Chelbesa Yirgacheffe ($30 / 250 g). It's floral and citrus-bright, with jasmine, lemon and blueberry, and that brightness comes through beautifully when chilled fast. Nicaragua Los Altiplanos ($27 / 250 g) is a sweeter, caramel option. See how to brew single origin coffee for more on filter brewing.
Recipe 3: Vietnamese iced coffee (cà phê sữa đá)
Vietnamese iced coffee is strong, dark coffee dripped slowly onto sweetened condensed milk, then stirred and poured over ice. It's rich, sweet and very strong, more a treat than an everyday coffee.
Traditionally it's made with a phin, a small metal filter that sits on top of the cup, and with dark-roasted coffee. You can make a very good version at home with a phin, a plunger or an espresso machine.
You'll need: 20 g coffee, about 100 ml hot water, 1½–2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk, a glass of ice.
With a phin filter:
- Spoon the condensed milk into the bottom of a heatproof glass.
- Add 20 g of medium-fine coffee to the phin and set it on the glass.
- Pour in about 20 ml of hot water to wet the grounds and wait 30 seconds.
- Put the press insert in, fill with hot water to the top (about 80 ml more), and cover.
- Let it drip slowly, about 4–5 minutes. If it drips much faster, grind finer next time.
- Stir the coffee and condensed milk together, then pour over a tall glass of ice.
Without a phin: pour a double espresso, or 100 ml of extra-strong plunger coffee (20 g to 100 ml, steeped 4 minutes), over the condensed milk, stir and pour over ice.
Best beans: we don't roast a traditional Vietnamese-style dark roast. The OmniSoul blend is the closest match in our range. Its full body and chocolate notes stand up to the sweetness of condensed milk. It won't taste the same as coffee you'd buy in Vietnam, but it makes a smooth, rich version.
How to make iced coffee without a machine
You don't need an espresso machine for good iced coffee. Use Recipe 2 with a plunger or a pour-over dripper, or make a batch of cold brew ahead of time and pour it over ice in the morning. A plunger is also the easiest way to make Vietnamese iced coffee without a phin.
Can you make iced coffee with instant coffee?
Yes. Dissolve 2 teaspoons of instant coffee in a splash of hot water, add cold milk or water and pour over ice. It's quick, but freshly roasted beans taste noticeably better. Our article on fresh roasted beans versus supermarket coffee explains why.
Tips for better iced coffee
- Brew strong. Ice melts, so make your coffee stronger than you would for a hot cup.
- Chill fast. Pouring hot coffee straight onto ice keeps more aroma than letting it cool slowly on the bench, which can taste stale.
- Use sugar syrup, not sugar. Granulated sugar won't dissolve in cold coffee. Mix equal parts sugar and hot water and keep it in the fridge.
- Make coffee ice cubes. Freeze leftover coffee or cold brew in an ice tray so your drink doesn't get watery.
- Use fresh beans. Stale coffee tastes flat whether it's hot or cold. Our coffee bean freshness guide and how to store coffee beans cover the basics.
- Grind just before brewing. If you're choosing a machine that grinds for you, see our best bean-to-cup coffee machines in Australia guide.
Frequently asked questions
Brew coffee about twice as strong as usual and pour it straight over a glass full of ice. For an iced latte, pour a double espresso over ice and top with about 150 ml of cold milk.
Vietnamese iced coffee, or cà phê sữa đá, is strong dark coffee dripped through a small metal phin filter onto sweetened condensed milk, then stirred and poured over ice. It is rich, sweet and strong.
Fill a tall glass with ice, pour a double espresso over it, then add about 150 ml of cold milk and stir. Add sugar syrup if you like it sweet.
Yes. Brew strong coffee in a plunger or pour-over dripper straight onto ice, or make cold brew in a jar in the fridge and pour it over ice.
Iced coffee is brewed hot and chilled quickly over ice, so it tastes brighter and is ready in minutes. Cold brew steeps in cold water for 12 to 18 hours and tastes smoother and less bitter.
Brew it stronger than usual, pour it over plenty of ice so it chills fast, and try coffee ice cubes made from leftover coffee so melting ice doesn't dilute it.
For iced lattes, choose a chocolatey, full-bodied blend such as OmniSoul. For black iced filter coffee, a bright single origin like Ethiopia Chelbesa works well.
Keep the beans coming
Iced coffee is a daily habit for a lot of people once summer starts, so it helps to have beans on hand. A LygonCoffee subscription delivers freshly roasted beans with 10% off, and bean orders over $65 ship free. You can also browse the whole range in our shop.
Planning ahead for the week? Try our guide to how to make cold brew at home.
