6 Fun Facts About Toddy Cold Brew

Going to your favorite coffee shop, you may have noticed a large, cylindrical cold brew coffee maker with a spigot on the front. That's a Toddy Cold Brew System, the premier way to cold-brew large batches of sweet, sweet coffee, but that's not everything you should know about the Toddy Cold Brew System.

Here are 6 interesting facts about Toddy!

1. The Sip That Started It All

It all began in Peru in 1963, when Todd Simpson first tried cold brew coffee served hot. This seemingly small encounter would go on to change American cold coffee forever. (Obviously.)

He returned to the U.S. and got to work on a brewer that could reproduce the smooth taste he enjoyed south of the border.

2. Sketchy

The first figure sketches submitted to the United States Patent Office in 1966 depict an early Toddy consumer model, only with a taller carafe and a simpler brewing chamber. The patent was granted on July 4, 1967.

Sans handle, this brewing chamber looks like an elongated automatic drip filter basket. The carafe's shape could have been inspired by the conical Chemex, invented only a little more than two decades prior.

3. Cup It Cold

Describing the flavor profile of a cold-brewed coffee is different than the Specialty Coffee Association's process for hot-brewed coffee, so Toddy made their own cupping form specifically for cold brew.

Traditional coffee cupping involves hot water and coffee grounds; cold brew cupping involves only the brewed coffee, so naturally, not all factors that go into hot coffee cupping will apply to cold brew cupping. To quote Toddy, “If you're going to brew cold, why would you cup hot?”

Why would you test something one way if you plan to use it another way? You wouldn't.

Cold brew cupping looks at all the same aspects considered in hot cupping, like fragrance, aroma, flavor, body, sweetness, and balance. The big difference is that coffee behaves differently when cold-brewed, making cold cupping essential. For example, chocolatey notes may transform when cold-brewed or the mouthfeel could change.

For their cupping form, Toddy wanted to create a tool for the industry that wasn't exclusive to their products, in that it could be used for any cold-extracted coffee. The protocol itself was developed with sustainability in mind. By using a larger vessel, from which more cups can be poured, less coffee is wasted and the process is quicker and more efficient.

Learn about Toddy's full cold brew cupping origin story here.

4. Function Over Form

Compared to the Asobu Cold Brew Makers of the world, the Toddy isn't exactly going to win any beauty contests, but that's the point! Toddy's mission is to create uncomplicated, easy-to-use brewers that deliver consistently delicious cups. If you want a flashy device that produces lackluster coffee, look elsewhere, bucko.

In fact, the tried-and-true technology that made Toddy famous has been left untouched for over half a century! Toddy Cold Brew Systems are engineered with few moving parts to ensure your brewer keeps making the good stuff for years to come without breaking down.

5. Only Fools Rush In

Cold brew is a process. Since you're not using hot water, extraction will take much longer—up to 24 hours longer, but good things come to those who wait. Trust us. If you rush cold brew, it won't have enough time to fully extract, leaving you with a cup of brown, coffee-tinged water.

Toddy understands that, as fast as machines can make it nowadays, cold brew remains a slow, intentional way to make delicious coffee. Sure, your favorite coffee spot has cold brew on deck, ready as soon as you arrive, but you can get the same (if not better) thing right at home with a Toddy. You'll save some money and won't have to wait for the café to open!

6. It Also Makes Tea

That's right, tea lovers! Cold-brewed tea even has a little more to offer than its hot-hot counterpart. For starters, cold brew tea is easier on the stomach since less acid is extracted during the long brewing process. The lack of heat also prevents the tea from over-steeping and becoming bitter, leaving you with a sweeter, smoother cup, especially if you're brewing an herbal tisane like Very Berry Citrus or Coco Berry Mango.

The Toddy is your warm-weather best bud. Use your brew for juices, smoothies, cocktails, mocktails, tea spritzers, or even just as it is to stay hydrated!

Models of the Toddy

The commercial model is the one most people have seen sitting behind café counters. It looks like a glorified white bucket with a spigot on the front. Remember, that's Toddy's uncomplicated schtick. This beast of a brewer can produce approximately 32 cups of cold brew coffee, hence its high-traffic locales. But getting Toddy-quality coffee doesn't mean devoting most of your counterspace to a massive brewer. Toddy also manufactures a consumer model and an Artisan Small Batch Brewer.

If you're in the market for a copious amount of cold brew, there's also the Toddy Pro Series, which are made of stainless-steel instead of restaurant-grade plastic. Each brewer can produce up to 20 gallons of cold brew, so you better have enough ice and creamer in the fridge to pair with it.

Fresh Roasted Coffee

As a company, we are dedicated to bringing you the absolute best coffee from all over the world. And we'd be doing ourselves and our customers a disservice by not also providing the best equipment. That's why we've proudly stocked Toddy Cold Brew products since our beginning, and why we continue to bring new Toddy brewers into our catalog. Top-notch coffee can only be made in a top-notch brewer.