Iced Coffee Smackdown: Our Search for the City’s Best Cold Coffee

Iced Coffee Smackdown: Our Search for the City’s Best Cold Coffee


Iced Coffee Smackdown

1. THE WINNER

Te Aro, the sleek east-end coffeehouse from Pilot Coffee Roasters, is the only café in Toronto that pulls coffee from a tap. Coarse-ground beans are brewed in hot water, then chilled and stored in a nitrogen-tapped keg, which shields the coffee from flavour-decayers like light and oxygen. The result: a cold brew with the creaminess you’d expect from a Guinness. $4. 983 Queen St. E., 416-465-2006


2. THE RUNNER-UP

At Rooster, the new downtown outpost of the popular Riverdale café, coffee is brewed, blanched and then chilled for 20 hours. It’s strong, but the flavours are actually quite delicate: sweet and vaguely peachy. $3.75. 343 King St. E., 416-995-1530


3. SECOND RUNNER-UP

Ezra Braves, the owner of the Ezra’s Pound coffee shops on Dupont and Dundas West, hates when lumps of ice dilute a strong brew, so he pours shots of espresso over cubes of frozen coffee. The drink stays cold and potent from first sip to last. $4.10. 238 Dupont St., 416-929-4400


4. HONOURABLE MENTION

Early Bird Espresso, the new café on Queen West, has an elaborate cold-drip system imported from Japan. Icy water filters through four towering beakers, pulling a bright, citrusy concentrate from the grounds. $4. 613 Queen St. W., 647-962-4204