How to Make Japanese Iced Coffee

I’m not the biggest fan of regular iced coffee. Whenever I tried to make iced coffee at home, it would come out weak and watery. Japanese iced coffee was the first iced coffee recipe that I used to make delicious iced coffee like I’d get from my local coffee shop at home.

In this article, I’m going to teach you how to make Japanese iced coffee. I’ll explain the differences between Japanese iced coffee and regular iced coffee, cover my favorite ways to brew Japanese iced coffee, and give you some ideas for how you can tweak my recipes to make them your own.

What is Japanese Iced Coffee?

Japanese iced coffee is a special technique for making iced coffee that results in a brighter, more flavorful cup than ordinary iced coffee. The crux of the method is to brew coffee directly over ice, including the weight of the ice in the total amount of water you use in the recipe. This helps preserve the usual flavors you get with hot coffee and prevents the coffee from tasting watery when you add ice.

You can make Japanese iced coffee with any pour over brew method or an AeroPress. Most people use a pour over cone to make Japanese iced coffee. I use my Hario V60 — which is my all-time favorite way to make coffee, in general.

The Origins of Japanese Iced Coffee

Japanese iced coffee originated in Japan in the 1920s as a way to quickly cool down hot coffee without diluting it. The technique was popularized by Japanese coffee shops and eventually spread to other parts of the world.

The key innovation of Japanese iced coffee is accounting for the ice in the total brewing water. By doing this, you ensure that the coffee-to-water ratio stays consistent, preventing the weak, watery taste that often plagues regular iced coffee you make at home.

This clever approach results in a cup of iced coffee that tastes bright, crisp and flavorful — much closer to a freshly brewed hot coffee than traditional iced coffee methods can achieve. The rapid cooling also helps preserve volatile aromatic compounds that contribute to coffee’s complex flavors.

How to Make Japanese Iced Coffee

I’m going to teach you how to make Japanese iced coffee using a Hario V60 because it’s my favorite way to make it. You can, however, opt to use another pour over method like Chemex, or an entirely different method like AeroPress or Clever Dripper. I’ll discuss these alternatives after the main recipe.

When making Japanese iced coffee, you need to account for the weight of the ice in the total amount of brewing water. A good rule of thumb is to use half of your water in the form of ice, and the other half to actually brew the coffee.

For example, if you’re using a 16:1 water-to-coffee ratio and 20 grams of coffee, your total water weight would be 320 grams (20g x 16 = 320g). In this case, you’d put 160 grams of ice in your receiving vessel and use the other 160 grams of hot water to brew the coffee in your pour over device.

What You’ll Need

Hario V60 pour over dripper
Paper filter
Coffee grinder
Scale
Kettle (preferably gooseneck)
Ice
Whole bean coffee (light to medium roast works best)
Mug or carafe

Steps to Make Japanese Iced Coffee

Boil water in your kettle and let it cool slightly to around 205°F (96°C).
While the water is heating, weigh out your coffee beans. Use a 16:1 water-to-coffee ratio. For 20 grams of coffee, you’ll need 320 grams of total water (160 grams of hot water and 160 grams of ice).
Grind your coffee to a medium-fine consistency, similar to table salt. I use the same grind size I use in my regular V60 recipe.
Place your V60 on top of your mug or carafe. Put a paper filter in the V60 and rinse it with some of the hot water. Discard the rinse water.
Put half of your total water weight in ice into your mug. For our 20g coffee example, that’s 160 grams of ice.
Add your ground coffee to the V60. Tare your scale.
Start a timer and pour 40-50 grams of water onto the grounds. Let it bloom for 30 seconds.
After 30 seconds, continue pouring the remaining brewing water (the other 160g, in our example) in slow, steady circles until you reach your total water weight.
Allow the coffee to finish dripping into your mug, over the ice. This should take around 2-3 minutes total.
Give your iced coffee a quick stir, then enjoy it as is or add milk, cream, sugar or other flavorings as desired.

Remember, the key is dividing your total water evenly between ice and brewing water. By doing this and brewing directly onto the ice, you’ll get a deliciously bright and flavorful cup of iced coffee. I know it sounds like it shouldn’t change much, but it does. Just try it.

Japanese Iced Coffee Brew Methods

Even though pour over is the most common way to make Japanese iced coffee, you can definitely get similarly tasty results using other brewers. The only requirement for Japanese iced coffee is that you pour the water slowly over ice and use the right amount of water plus ice.

The AeroPress is probably the second-most common Japanese iced coffee brewing method after pour over, but I’ve gotten decent results with a Clever Dripper as well. I’ve sort of made it work with a French press, but it’s not pure Japanese iced coffee because the coffee brews first and then gets poured over ice.

Japanese Iced Coffee in the AeroPress

Making Japanese iced coffee in an AeroPress follows the same core principles as the pour over method. You’ll divide your water between ice and brewing water, put the ice in your receiving mug, and brew the coffee directly onto the ice.

Check out my full guide to making Japanese iced coffee in an AeroPress for detailed instructions and tips.

Japanese Iced Coffee in the Clever Dripper

The Clever Dripper is an immersion brewer, so it doesn’t work exactly the same as a pour over cone for Japanese iced coffee. However, you can use a similar concept to make a delicious iced coffee with bright flavors.

To make Japanese iced coffee in a Clever Dripper:

Put your paper filter in the dripper and rinse it.
Add 20 grams of medium to medium-coarse ground coffee to the dripper.
Pour 160 grams of water at 205°F (96°C) into the dripper and stir.
Put 160 grams of ice in the receiving mug.
After 2 minutes, place the dripper on top of your mug and let the coffee draw down onto the ice.

Since the Clever is an immersion brewer where the grounds steep in the water before drawing down, it doesn’t qualify as pure Japanese iced coffee. The ice doesn’t participate in the brewing process.

However, you still get the benefits of brewing hot and flash-chilling the coffee as it draws down over the ice. This helps preserve the volatile aromatics and results in a livelier, brighter cup than brewing directly over ice.

The immersion process also tends to produce a slightly richer, fuller-bodied iced coffee compared to Japanese iced coffee made with a pour over cone. So it’s a nice option if you want those qualities in your cup, and it’s much easier and more effective than trying to use a French press to get a similar effect.

Wrapping Up

Japanese iced coffee is a great way to enjoy flavorful, refreshing iced coffee at home. By brewing the coffee directly onto ice and incorporating the ice into your total water weight, you can produce a balanced cup that tastes bright, crisp and far from watery.

The Japanese iced coffee technique works with a variety of brewing methods, from pour over cones to immersion methods like the Clever Dripper or AeroPress. Feel free to experiment with different brewers, coffee-to-water ratios, grind sizes and pouring techniques to dial in your perfect cup of Japanese iced coffee.

FAQs

What’s the best coffee to use for Japanese iced coffee?

I recommend using light to medium roast coffee beans for Japanese iced coffee. These roast levels tend to have brighter, fruitier and more vibrant flavors that work well for iced coffee. Opt for freshly roasted, whole bean coffee and grind it just before brewing for the best results. I prefer to brew African coffees from Ethiopia and Kenya when I make Japanese iced coffee.

Can I use a darker roast for Japanese iced coffee?

You can use a darker roast if that’s your preference, but keep in mind that the Japanese iced coffee method tends to highlight brighter, more acidic notes. Darker roasts have less of these flavors, so the benefits of the brewing method may be less noticeable. That said, feel free to experiment and see what you like best!

Do I need any special equipment to make Japanese iced coffee?

All you really need is a pour over brewer or another manual brewing device, a filter, ice and your usual coffee brewing equipment (kettle, grinder, scale, etc.). No fancy gear required!

Is Japanese iced coffee stronger than regular iced coffee?

Japanese iced coffee often tastes “stronger” than regular iced coffee because it’s more flavorful and less diluted. However, the actual caffeine content will depend on the coffee beans you use and your coffee-to-water ratio. If you use the same amount of coffee and total water (counting the ice) as you would for other brewing methods, the strength will be similar.

Can I add milk, sugar or other flavorings to Japanese iced coffee?

Absolutely! While Japanese iced coffee is delicious on its own, you can definitely customize it to your tastes. Try adding milk, cream, sugar, simple syrup, flavored syrups or even a scoop of ice cream to turn it into an affogato-style treat. Get creative and enjoy your Japanese iced coffee however you like it best.