Raspberry Cold Brew Coffee Shrub

Discover a refreshing coffee drink made with cold brew and raspberries. Ripe raspberries are paired with vinegar to create a shrub syrup, which we add to brewed Cold Brew coffee or regular brewed coffee. Top it off with a little seltzer water and you have a drink that may sound unusual at first, but will quickly become your favorite.

If you have never tried a shrub, you are in for a treat. And no, we don’t mean the bush in the front of your house! Also called drinking vinegar, shrubs are a classic, old-timey beverage that has been making a comeback in recent years. They are especially popular with mixologists at the moment, who are using shrubs to create inventive drinks that are a refreshing change from the typical syrupy sweet cocktail.

Shrubs start with equal parts fruit and sugar (by weight). The first step is to allow the fruit and sugar to macerate in the refrigerator overnight. Then strain out the fruit solids and add an equal amount of your favorite vinegar to the fruit juice to create the shrub syrup. When you’re in need of a refreshing drink, simply add the syrup to your water (sparkling or still) and sip away.

Of course, we took the basic recipe for a shrub syrup and steeped our coffee overnight to make a real Cold Brew, to make this drink even more delicious. If you’d prefer to use regular brewed coffee, you can do that as well.  Choose one of our rich dark roast coffees, like Kiawah Organic, with notes of chocolate and a smooth sweet finish. It pairs perfectly with the raspberries and orange in the shrub syrup.

Feel free to experiment with the recipe below based on the fruit or coffee you have available. Or if you would like to turn it into a cocktail, simply swap out the seltzer water for sparkling wine or vodka. Any way you try it, though, we are certain that this will become one of your favorites.

RASPBERRY SHRUB SYRUP

1 6-ounce package of raspberries
1 cup granulated sugar
1 2-inch piece of orange peel
1 cup white wine or raspberry vinegar

1. Place raspberries, sugar and orange peel in a glass bowl. Use a fork to mash the berries into the sugar, and stir until well combined.
2. Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least 24 hours and up to 3 days.
3. Remove bowl from refrigerator. Strain out all of the raspberry solids, pressing on the pulp to extract all of the juice. Discard the solids.
4. Add the vinegar to the raspberry juice and stir to combine. Transfer to a mason jar and cover. Keep the raspberry shrub syrup in the refrigerator until ready to use.

RASPBERRY COLD BREW COFFEE SHRUB

1 ounce raspberry shrub syrup
2 ounces brewed Charleston Coffee Roasters Kiwah Organic coffee (steeped overnight as a Cold Brew or regularly brewed)
About 6-8 ounces seltzer or club soda
Fresh raspberries and mint, for garnish

1. For each drink, combine the raspberry shrub syrup and  coffee in a tall collins type glass.
2. Add ice to the glass, and top off with seltzer or club soda. Garnish with fresh raspberries and mint.