Cold brew coffee isn't just a trend—it's one of the cleanest sources of natural caffeine available. Here's what the research actually says about cold brew, and where it stops.
Lower Acidity, Better Digestion
Cold brewing extracts fewer of the acids that hot brewing pulls from the same beans — research published in Scientific Reports found cold brew has a lower total titratable acidity than hot-brewed coffee, though pH is comparable. That's a property of the brewing method, measured in a lab.
What it is not is a treatment. Cold brew does not treat, prevent, or relieve acid reflux, IBS, or any other digestive condition, and we're not going to tell you it will. If coffee bothers your stomach or you have a digestive condition, talk to your doctor about whether coffee of any kind fits.
Antioxidant Powerhouse
Coffee is frequently cited as one of the largest sources of antioxidants in the American diet. Cold brew retains polyphenols, hydrocinnamic acids, and melanoidins from the bean.
Chlorogenic acids (CGAs) are among the most-studied compounds in coffee. That research is about coffee and its compounds generally — it is not a claim that any particular can will do anything for your health.
Clean, Sustained Energy Without the Crash
Cold brew delivers caffeine without the added sugar that most energy drinks carry. With no added sugar, there's no sugar spike layered on top of the caffeine. Bare Brew packs 320mg of natural caffeine per can—more than most energy drinks—with zero sugar, 20 calories, and zero additives. How caffeine feels still depends on your own tolerance.
Unlike energy drinks that rely on synthetic caffeine and sugar for their kick, cold brew's caffeine is naturally occurring in the coffee bean, and arrives with the other compounds in the bean rather than on its own. For a full breakdown of how much caffeine is in cold brew, see our complete guide.
Supports Metabolic Health
Published research has looked at associations between regular coffee consumption and markers of metabolic health. Those findings are about coffee and caffeine generally, in population studies — they are not claims about Bare Brew, and nothing here should be used to manage a medical condition. Talk to your healthcare provider about that.
What we can say about a cold brew with just two ingredients—coffee and water—is what's on the label: no added sugars and no artificial sweeteners, unlike most ready-to-drink options. If you're on a GLP-1 medication like Ozempic, that's a conversation for your prescriber — see our guide on drinking coffee on Ozempic.
Gut Microbiome Benefits
Researchers are actively studying how coffee polyphenols interact with the gut microbiome. That work is ongoing and is about coffee generally; we are not going to claim a gut benefit for any specific brand of cold brew, including ours.
Mental Performance and Focus
Caffeine is the world's most studied cognitive enhancer, and cold brew is one of the cleanest delivery mechanisms. Studies show that caffeine improves reaction time, working memory, and sustained attention—effects that typically last 4-6 hours.
The difference with a zero-sugar cold brew is that you get the caffeine without an added-sugar load on top of it. That's also why cold brew comes up alongside intermittent fasting — 20 calories per can, no added sugar. Whether that fits your fasting protocol is your call.
The Bottom Line
Cold brew isn't a health fad—it's a different way to brew coffee, with a measurably different acid profile. Beyond that, what matters is what else is in the can: strip away the sugar, the artificial flavors, and the 15+ mystery ingredients and you're left with what coffee was always supposed to be.
Try Bare Brew—just coffee and water, 320mg of clean caffeine, zero sugar, 20 calories. That's it.
