The hard tank baby has arrived!
Using patented technology you can now create beautiful coldbrew quickly and with ease.
I was delighted to get my hands on one of these units as coldbrew and nitro is something that interests me hugely.
The baby model is the smallest of the tanks available, the full range offers a nitro system and a larger tank for cold brew.
Coldbrew Consumption
Traditionally coldbrew drinks are time consuming to prepare, we normally offer the Toddy system to our customers https://toddycafe.com/product/toddy-cold-brew-system
This methods and all traditional methods do require a lot of manual labour, while the coffee is at risk of oxidisation from being exposed during brewing and sitting in the Toddy unit before/while serving.
Coldbrew over the last couple of years however has become hugely popular along with iced beverages. The brewing process normally takes a long time with the result giving a less acidic and less bitter result.
More developed coffees suit traditional coldbrew methods for “coffee taste”, but in the ever changing world of coffee, coldbrew drinkers now would like to enjoy specialty coffee with different post harvesting processing methods. This is where the Hardtank excels.
The cold brew coffee market is poised to grow by $2176.05 mn from 2023-2027, accelerating at a CAGR of 26.44% during the forecast period.
A report on the cold brew coffee market provides a holistic analysis, market size and forecast, trends, growth drivers, and challenges, as well as vendor analysis https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221201005535/en/Global-Cold-Brew-Coffee-Market-2023-2027-Increasing-Product-Launches-and-New-Retail-Outlets-Driving-26.4-Annual-Growth—ResearchAndMarkets.com
But what is HardTank?
Hardtank is the brain child of Hard Beans coffee in Poland, https://hardbeans.com
Baby HardTank it’s a fast cold brew and nitro cold brew maker. In less than 1 hour you can prepare up to 4,5 liters of cold brew coffee, tea or cascara. Innovative, stainless steel double- filtration system makes sure that there are no particles left in your cold brew causing increased bitterness and astringency. Touch screen lets you choose an optimal recipe for your beverage choosing the preferred amount of water and time of extraction. Built -In TDS reader controls your extraction levels throughout the whole production process. HardTank app for smartphones alarms you when the TDS reached your preferred level or production time is about to finish. Automated washing process makes sure that there is no risk of contamination in your beverages. Nitro tap lets you serve chilled and infused with nitrogen cold brew beverage giving it smooth, creamy and refreshing taste.
You can make coldbrew from coffee, cascara, tea and spirits from the Baby hardtank which was the 2021 SCA best new product winner. https://sca.coffee/sca-news/announcement/winners-of-the-2021-best-new-product
The hardtank
PROS
- Quicker
- Cleaner
- Ease of Use
- Robust unit/system
CONS
- The app needs work
- The software is clunky
- No Manual
Final Thoughts
The app and the program for the hardtank are a little clunky it has to be said. Scrolling the menu is not as easy as it should be and theres a confusing element of how much water the tank holds (when you add 4 litres it reads 3.5 etc)
The fact you can transfer the brew straight to a nitro system and keep the coffee enclosed and thus fresher is very smart and beneficial.
The coldbrew we have enjoyed from the HardTank is definitely a huge improvement on traditional methods, with cleaner less bitter results.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of the Hardtank is being able to experiment with different roast styles and brew time in a controlled way but also in a quick and timely fashion. The cleaning/sanitation cycles can be initiated from the menu or you phone. In the video above you can see a quick cleaning method we use when the tank is not plumbed into a closed system. The cleaning is a doddle and ensures you can continue to brew all day.
We would definitely recommend buying one for your coffee shop/roastery and we look forward to many more brews from the HardTank.
