Which method is NOT a cold method of flavor extraction?

Distillation is not considered a cold method of flavor extraction because it involves the application of heat to separate components based on their boiling points. In distillation, the mixture is heated until the desired volatile components vaporize; these vapors are then condensed back into liquid form. This process inherently requires the use of heat to drive the extraction.

In contrast, infusion, maceration, and percolation are all techniques that extract flavors from materials at lower temperatures, often at or near room temperature.

Infusion involves steeping ingredients, typically in a liquid, allowing flavors to gradually transfer into the liquid without the application of heat. Maceration similarly extracts flavors but focuses on breaking down the materials, often through gentle crushing or grinding, to release their essences into a liquid medium. Percolation typically involves liquid flowing through a bed of the material, extracting flavors as it passes through, and is also done without heat.

Each of these methods aims to retain the delicate flavors and compounds that might be altered or destroyed by heat, making them suitable as cold extraction techniques.