Whether you run an independent coffee shop, a chain or franchised café operation, or a wholesale RTD coffee business, there is cold brew coffee commercial equipment designed for you.

Cold brew coffee machines range in output volume, with specific models able to pump out 1,250 200 ml servings per day, but even at lower volume requirements, you can expect a quick return on investment. 

As demand for cold brew coffee grows across all revenue channels, from cafés to supermarkets and online shops, offering this innovative, alternative caffeine fix to your customers is a sure way to appeal to new customers and future-proof your company. 

To learn more about cold brew growth and the reasoning behind purchasing cold brew coffee commercial equipment for your business, we spoke to Mithilesh Vazalwar, CEO of Corridor Seven Coffee Roasters. 

Cold brew coffee: how to make it operationally efficient

Making cold brew coffee is straightforward; anyone with ground coffee and a big enough vessel to brew in can prepare it. On an individual scale, modern cold brew coffee commercial equipment is not necessary. 

What the traditional method cannot do, however, is repeatedly produce consistent, high-quality, hygienic and safe cold brew at speed and scale. When it comes time to turn your cold brew into profit, cold brew coffee commercial equipment is the answer. 

The chief limiting factor of cold brewing is the significant time expenditure without modern technology. With the ground coffee-plus-bucket approach, the infusion takes at least 12 hours before the total dissolved solids (TDS) ratio is suitable for consumption. Cutting corners here will simply result in a weak, under-extracted beverage. 

Cold brew coffee commercial equipment, like the machines we build at Hardtank, has combatted this key challenge: our Hardtank 20 and Baby Hardtank can produce a batch in less than an hour. 

By leveraging patented recirculation technology – where water is constantly moved and agitated across the coffee grounds, increasing the rate of interaction and infusion – 24-hour cold brewing is a thing of the past. 

Speeding up cold brew production is essential to making it a profitable product. As an independent coffee shop running tight margins and fluctuating foot traffic, dedicating time, staff, and space to brewing cold brew is risky: you could left with a wasted surplus as quickly as you could be left with disappointed customers. 

“Cold brew coffee excites us enormously,” says Mithilesh. “More than 43% of our beverage sales from a particular outlet is from cold brew.”

“It has a long future with the shift towards coffee becoming a lifestyle choice, integrated into everyone’s day-to-day. Sometimes, the emphasis on detail, processing types, flavour notes, etc., is overwhelming for customers.  This is where cold brew jumps in; it’s easy to understand, convenient and has a more mellow taste.”

If you plan on building an entire business around RTD coffee or wholesale cold brew, cold brew coffee commercial equipment is essential for brewing in a controlled environment where quality and food safety variables are carefully measured.

Traditional cold brewing lacks the consistency upon which to build a brand. Recipes might vary slightly, TDS levels may change, different staff members might be responsible for various stages of preparation, and open-air brewing can increase the risk of cross-contamination and oxidation. 

In the digitally controlled, food-grade stainless steel cold brew coffee commercial equipment we build at Hardtank, variables are systematically managed, cleaning cycles are automated, and recipes and extractions are set. 

Which cold brew coffee commercial equipment matches my business needs?

At Hardtank, we manufacture two types of cold brew coffee commercial equipment. Our smaller machine, the Baby Hardtank, is designed for cafés, coffee shops, and restaurants – businesses with medium levels of demand. 

Our larger commercial-led machine, the Hardtank 20, is designed for bigger operations, perfect for high foot-traffic outlets, café or restaurant chains, and RTD or wholesale coffee companies looking for high-volume capabilities. 

Both models deploy the same recirculation technology to brew cold brew coffee and can prepare their batches in the same amount of time: 60 minutes. Both use food-grade stainless to manage health and safety, are programmable according to the preferences of the management/owners, are multi-faceted in their beverage production, and offer excellent value for money. 

Baby Hardtank

The Baby Hardtank is an award-winning piece of cold brew coffee commercial equipment with all the key features in a compact set-up. Just 30 cm x 30 cm at its base, the machine can sit comfortably on busy workbenches and countertops and allows customers to watch their coffee brewing in real time. 

It’s highly efficient, capable of producing up to 300 200 ml portions of cold brew coffee per day, and features a fully automated cleaning and sanitation system that runs between each cycle. 

Its brewing chamber can be filled with coffee grounds for cold brew, tea leaves for cold brew tea, or herbs and spirits for cocktail and mocktail production. Coffee shops looking to add to their revenue channels by operating in the evening as a bar or restaurant will find the versatility of the Baby Hardtank to their advantage, seamlessly brewing signature beverages suitable for different day-parts. 

The Baby Hardtank costs €4,500, and by serving just twenty portions of cold brew per day, its owner can expect a return on investment in less than two months and even faster if they leverage the multi-beverage brewing capabilities. 

Hardtank 20

Hardtank 20 is our larger model, representing cold brew coffee commercial equipment aimed at larger operations or busy restaurants and coffee shops looking to move more cold brew. 

With a Hardtank 20 installed, businesses can brew up to 250 litres of cold brew a day – 1,250 portions – for serving in-store or bottling/canning for RTD coffee products. It is a larger unit suitable for centralised production or distribution facilities, but it can also be installed on-site. 

Self-cleaning and sanitation programmes are installed, along with automatic drainage, to guarantee the highest levels of food safety. Food-grade stainless steel and a modular design make the Hardtank 20 highly durable and ready to work consistently for decades. 

Hardtank 20 can be upgraded to a Hardtank 1T or 2T for direct nitro coffee dispensing. This built-in system links directly to the brewing chamber and additional kegerators, so cold brew is safely stored prior to nitrogen infusion. 

Just like Baby Hardtank, the Hardtank 20 offers versatility to the owner’s menu by adding nitro coffee, a quickly growing cold coffee segment, and a more indulgent beverage option to regular cold brew. 

To source your own Hardtank cold brew coffee commercial equipment, visit our website or get in touch with us directly. 

You can still watch a recording of our recent RTD masterclass here!

Cold brew coffee commercial equipment