I tried 6 brands of cold-brew concentrate from the grocery store, and I'd only buy 2 again

Stumptown's 2X cold-brew concentrate makes five servings, and it cost $10.99 ($2.20/serving) at Whole Foods.

It comes in a glass bottle with a slightly ominous label that reads, "Good luck."

The lack of a flavor description along with that message made me think I may be in for a rough time.

The coffee was extremely bitter and left a strong aftertaste that made it difficult to drink.

The recommended 1:1 ratio of coffee to water didn't help to dilute the bitterness enough. Adding more water than instructed could help, plus it would stretch more servings out of the bottle.

Unfortunately, this isn't something I'd buy or drink again. 

The only cold brew I tried that required preparation was Grady's New Orlean's-style concentrate, which can be found at Walmart and Whole Foods.

I bought a can with four 2-ounce bean bags, and each bag makes three cups of coffee. The 12-serving can cost $12.34 ($1.03/serving).

To prepare it, I added a bag to a pitcher of water and left it in the fridge for 12 hours, as instructed.

One of the reasons I love cold brew is its convenience, so needing to prepare this the day before really didn't appeal to me. 

Having to make an entire pitcher at once was also annoying — there's no way to split the bean bags to make a single cup.

The taste itself only added to my disappointment. I thought it was extremely strong and bitter.

This might be a good option if you like making a big batch to drink throughout the week or if you have multiple coffee drinkers in your house.

But I don't think it was worth waiting 12 hours for, and I was left with two extra cups I knew I wouldn't drink. 

Chameleon's cold-brew concentrate came in a glass bottle at Target.

It has four servings for $10.99 ($2.75/serving), making it the most expensive brand I tried. 

The description mentioned that it was organic and sustainably sourced.

I was surprised that this had a smooth and rich taste that wasn't overpowering despite calling for a 2:1 ratio of coffee to water.

This was a pretty good cold brew, but it just wasn't as flavorful as some of the others. 

Since it was also more expensive, I wouldn't buy the Chameleon brand again.

The Trader Joe's cold-brew concentrate is one I've seen plenty of people recommend.

The 32-ounce container makes 12 cups of coffee for $8.99 ($0.75/serving), so it was the cheapest cold brew of the bunch. 

It tasted pleasantly mild, which may have been because it instructed me to use a 2:1 ratio of milk or water to coffee. I used water. 

The result of this ratio was a very smooth and easy-to-drink coffee that had a slight sweetness. It actually reminded me of McDonald's iced coffee in the best possible way because of the sweet flavor.

But overall, I prefer my cold brew to have a stronger flavor.

This was also a bit less convenient to track down than other brands on this list since it has to be purchased at a specific store. 

Since most Trader Joe's locations also don't put items on hold, people looking to try this have to hope it's in stock.

I would try it again if I happened to spot it at Trader Joe's, but as someone who doesn't frequent the store often, I'm not expecting to drink this again anytime soon.

As someone who doesn't usually like plain Starbucks coffee, I wasn't expecting much of its store-bought cold brew.

I bought an eight-serving bottle for $9.49 ($1.19/serving) at Target. 

Thankfully, my judgments were misplaced. I prepared my cup with the recommended 1:1 ratio of coffee to milk or water, and it was a delight with water.

The packaging described the cold brew as smooth and rich with chocolaty notes, which was a perfect description of the drink. It was sweeter and smoother than Starbucks' in-store cold brew.

I also enjoyed the chocolaty notes even though I'm someone who usually dislikes mixing chocolate and coffee.

I wouldn't go for it as my everyday drink, but I'll definitely be buying this again as a sweet, midday coffee option.

Califia Farms' cold-brew concentrate was vegan and gluten-free.

I bought a five-serving bottle at Target for $9.50 ($1.90/serving).

The bottle described the coffee as a medium roast, but it ended up being stronger than I expected.

As instructed, I shook the bottle first and then poured a 1:1 ratio of the concentrate with water, though I could've also used milk.

I really liked the bold flavor. It tasted like a strong cold brew without being too bitter like most of the others I tried.

This was my favorite for an everyday cold brew, and I'd definitely buy it again.

Unfortunately, some of the cold-brew concentrates I tried were too bitter for me to consider drinking again.

I didn't enjoy Grady's or Stumptown, and I wouldn't buy them again. 

Chameleon's cold brew was good, as was Trader Joe's. But, in my opinion, neither was as great as the Califia Farms or Starbucks options. 

Califia Farm's cold-brew concentrate had the best flavor, and I'd buy the Starbucks one again when I want a chocolaty coffee.

I also think both those options were a good value for their price.