Laser Coffee

Coffee that is brewed by laser beams. What better combination could there be? Well, fantasy is becoming a reality thanks to Anna Rosa Ziefuss. She is a German scientist who has invented a speedy way to make cold-brew coffee. Total time? Three minutes! Jesus Diaz at FastCompany has the scoop.

Ziefuss and her colleagues used a stock, ultrashort pulse laser from the lab, arranging a series of optical lenses to enlarge the beam and point it at a vessel that contained the coffee powder. While regular cold brew sits undisturbed for several hours, in Ziefuss’ method, the solution gets stirred, and then the pulse laser fires at the vessel. Just three minutes later, they filter the solution through a commercial coffee paper filter to separate the excess coffee powder.

The result, as Ziefuss and her colleagues describe in a paper published in Nature, is a perfect cold-brewed cup of coffee with the same properties as the traditional one. 

FastCompany

Diaz's reporting goes on to say that in tests, the "laser brew" as I'm calling it, has no discernable difference from a traditional cold brew. One of the coolest parts of this endeavor is this process can be used for other applications. Infused drinks like tea and matcha can be "laser brewed" too. Be on the lookout for their startup to make some waves as time goes on.