A food writer friend of mine recently posed the question, “What’s the deal with cold-brew coffee these days?” I had to agree, not only are we seeing lots of chatter and new products, cold-brew coffee has a very definite following with Millennials and Gen Z.

Cold Brew’s Been Around The Block

Cold brew isn’t new. It’s been popular in countries outside the U.S. for centuries, like Japan, Thailand and India. So when the folks at Chameleon Cold-Brew in Austin wrote to us about not only their cold brew for coffee makers, but also several flavored bottled varieties, we had to give them a whirl. All products for this review were provided by Chameleon Cold-Brew.

An assortment of Chameleon Cold-Brew bottled coffees. Photo: Chameleon Cold-Brew.

The bottled varieties were the first to go down. And in our Food Channel kitchens, coffee is king, so it’s a tough crowd. The culinary, insights and editorial teams provided input on Organic Vanilla, Organic Black, and Organic Mocha Coffees.

One of the differences you’ll find with cold brews is that they’re bold and full of flavor. At Chameleon, they say the coffees are “bold on buzz and easy on the stomach.” Everyone enjoyed the bottled varieties, with the most popular being Vanilla and Mocha. And then it was off to make the home-brewed version, using the kit provided. We sent the kit home with one of our videographers Dylan Corbett, who wrote his own review of the kit and coffee pods.

So, Did He Like It?

According to Dylan, “The kit made it easy to make cold-brew at home. The content included a very cool mason jar with 8 coffee pods, which actually created a great coffee aroma in the house.

Chameleon Whole-Bean Cold Brew Coffee Pack. Photo: The Food Channel//Dylan Corbett

The instructions mentioned if you want a stronger, bolder taste, use two pods instead of one. I decided to go bold or go home (although I was already at home, but you get the point), so added two pods to the mason jar, filled it with some filtered water, and placed in the fridge for 24 hours.

Brewing Chameleon Cold-Brew Coffee. Photo: The Food Channel//Dylan Corbett

After patiently waiting, it was finally time to try. Usually, I add a little bit of milk or 50/50, but this time I wanted to try the cold-brew in its original form, so I simply poured it over ice—and it was great.

The high-quality ingredients do make a difference. It wasn’t as acidic as a lot of the cold-brew coffees I’ve had previously. It had a unique taste that was pleasant on the palate, and I would definitely drink this every morning.”

Net/Net

Two thumbs up from the crew, and more important, from the in-home testing. Not only good for personal enjoyment but would make a great foodie gift for the holidays.