Curated Snowboarding Experts Mike Leighton & Will Cabral got their hands on the 2024 Lib Tech Cold Brew Snowboard this spring. Check out how it performed in the carving, freestyle, and freeride categories, but consider the fact that each and every rider is different; if you have any questions about the Cold Brew or need recommendations on which board would be best for you, reach out to a Snowboarding Expert here on Curated.

Before we get started, it's worth noting that Curated Experts are not sponsored by any brands. All of these reviews are completely unbiased.

Brand Claims

What does Lib Tech claim about this board? [Mike] The brand claims it’s a 6 out of 10 flex and has a C2 camber, which is camber underneath the feet, and rocker in the middle that creates a nice pivot point. With that shape and that little bit of shorter tail, it makes it snappy in some of the tighter turns.

[Will] Lib Tech claims that the cold brew is an easy, versatile, all-mountain board.

Overall Impressions

What is your overall impression of this board? [Mike] The Cold Brew is an easygoing, playful, performance snowboard featuring a directional shape and a bit wider. This is fun and playful on mellower bumps and in trees.

[Will] I think it’s playful. Lib Tech rates the Cold Brew as a 6 out of 10 flex, and for me, being a bit of a heavier rider, it felt even more flexy. This board was enjoyable to pop around and play in pretty mundane conditions.

Carving

How does it turn? [Mike] It turns well. It has all that edge hold. If you’re trying to draw some nice, easy, lazy carves, it’s great.

What is the edge hold like? [Mike] With the magnet-traction, you still get some good edge control and edge hold. Although with that 6 out of 10 flex, it is slightly loose.

[Will] It was pretty good at holding an edge.

How damp is the board? Do you feel any underfoot chatter? [Mike] You get a bit of chatter at higher speeds. It’s not going to be your hard charger. There are other boards out there, especially in Lib Tech’s line, that’ll do that. It lacks some of the dampness you might want when you’re getting up at those higher speeds, carving, and searching for the steepest and the deepest.

[Will] It did have a decent bit of chatter at high speeds.

How does it perform at speed? [Mike] At high speed, the pivot point sometimes isn’t the best thing in terms of holding the edge all the way through. So, it might not be the best if you’re trying to dig an edge on some steeper stuff. But overall, it’s going to be pretty solid.

[Will] Overall, it was a little unstable at high speeds. This is a pretty flexible board, and it’s really fun, but it can get out of hand as you get a little higher up in speed. This is probably more approachable for someone staying in more of a mid-range of speeds.

How is its energy/acceleration? [Mike] It’s not the fastest board on the block, but with how the board is constructed, it has a good rebound of energy coming out of the turns. So, if you get into some bumps and some uneven terrain, it will be really fun and snappy in that direction.

Freestyle

How is it for freestyle snowboarding? [Mike] If you’re starting to get into some freestyle terrain, whether just hitting sidehits, you’ll have fun on it.

[Will] For someone who's progressing in all-mountain freestyle, this could be a good fit.

Could you speak about playfulness and pop? [Mike] It's not the poppiest board, I'd say it's middle of the road in terms of pop.

[Will] It’s very playful. Trying to get into a tail press was pretty easy. And also, just popping around on flat ground was definitely pretty easy.

How is it for buttering? [Mike] The flex and the rocker point almost create this pivot point you can butter around on and spin a little bit.

How is it on jumps? [Mike] It’s going to let you get up in the air when you want to get up in the air, but it’s not going to force you up there. You’re not going to be jumping out of the roof.

Freeride

How is it for freeride snowboarding? [Mike] If you’re looking for something that’s going to do well, whether that’s in some easygoing trees, bumps, blue groomers, you’re moving up from green groomers, or you’re just going out chasing the kids around for the day, this is a solid option for you.

How is it in powder? [Mike] With its longer nose, this board will be awesome if you have a fresh pow day. It has a 26.2 waist width, giving you some extra float. If you’re out there and you get a surprise pow day and aren’t planning on it, this would be fun.

How is it in uneven terrain and chunder? [Mike] With the 6 out of 10 flex in there, there is a little bit more play in there. It won’t handle chop and chunder the best, but it’ll get through it.

[Will] In uneven terrain, it's a little bit out of control.

How is it riding in the trees? How is its maneuverability? [Mike] We took it through some trees. It was really fun popping in and out of trees. In super-tight trees that are demanding that you need to be in a ton of control, it’s going to be the best. But wider-spaced-out trees, cruising through — this board would be awesome.

[Will] It is easy to get it on edge, and it is very maneuverable in the trees. It’s effortless to flex this board torsionally, and if you want to put the nose somewhere, you can quickly get it over there.

What terrain is this board good for? [Mike\ ] This is a great intermediate board where it is just trying to go all over the mountain in a day. It’s easygoing. It’s not going to try and kill you. It’s not going to try and tire you out. You can just cruise around and have fun on it.

[Will] It will be fun on big, wide-open runs and groomers where you can find sidehits that you could have a big runout into.

What kind of terrain should riders avoid with it? [Mike] The only place that I would say to avoid is really if you’re going to be riding a ton of terrain park features. If you’re riding a ton of steep, technical trees or cliffed-out terrain, extreme terrain, it’s not going to be ideal for you, or if you’re looking to rip it, hit some wide-open groomers, and lay over carves, this might not be the best board for you.

[Will] I would avoid steep terrain and steep moguls where you must stop on a dime and be in control.

Recommendations

Who would you recommend this board to? [Mike] This board would be a great option for someone who is getting back into snowboarding and hasn’t been riding for a long time or someone looking to buy their first real setup, and they’ve been demoing gear for a while. This is a great board to progress on.

[Will] II’d recommend it to a rider who wants to progress their freestyle riding. They’re probably more in the intermediate range and will stay more in the blue runs on the mountain.

Who should avoid this board, are there other better options out there for them? [Mike] Anyone who is looking to ride steep technical terrain fast or someone who’s looking to spend a lot of time in the park.

Snowboards work differently for different types of riders. If you want help finding the right board for you, reach out to Mike, Will, or any other Snowboarding Expert here on Curated for free, personalized recommendations on the best board for you.