Cold Case

Winter bluster be damned. When there's an iced coffee as superb as Sightglass Coffee's around, we'll happily plunge our body temperature even lower.

Sightglass owners Jerad and Justin Morrison operate out of an industrial storefront in SoMa. The brothers are serious about coffee, using Chemex pots and impeccably pulled espresso shots. But when it comes to iced coffee, the pair likes to play.

For the base, ground Verve coffee is steeped for 15 to 18 hours at room temperature. To make the sweetener, a sugar solution is reduced on the stove until it nearly caramelizes. Whole spices are added at different stages of the reduction to extract the ideal amount of fragrant kick.

The Morrisons are constantly fiddling with the spice formula. Come summer, there's often a touch of lavender in the syrup. This time of year, the brothers understandably veer toward warmer spices like cinnamon, cloves and peppery annatto.

The most popular addition to the sweetened, spiced concentrate is whole milk. Of course, soy is also on offer; Jerad's favorite addition, though, is water. "It really opens it up," he says.

Cold snap + cold coffee = hot solution.

Sightglass Coffee, 270 7th St. (at Folsom St.); sightglasscoffee.com