Welcome to my third coffee blog (homework) @rambo @missy @charmaine @lyxzen
I attended my first Brewing Basics class at the Counter Culture Coffee in New York this week! And yes brewing coffee is FUCKING SCIENCE! We had a few little labs where we changed various variables so we could see how different changes effected the coffee. It was hugely helpful and a lot of fun.
I want to share my knowledge with you and will explain how to brew the perfect Drip Coffee at home. I am personally a big fan of drip coffee and you probably know the old school porcelain filter your grandma uses. I learned a lot about how to brew the perfect coffee that day and hope you enjoy reading this. I took plenty of pictures that day as well and a little video of me 'slurping and spitting' a method to analyze the taste of coffee just as you do when you look at the good/bad taste of a certain wine.
So here comes a little extract of my first day at college:
. Coffee consists of less than 2 % coffee and 98 % water - so we are speaking of only two but two very essential ingredients that can make coffee taste good or bad.
· The water should be filtered; the coffee has to be grounded right. The coffee/water ratio of course has a huge impact on the outcome as well.
· Is the coffee ground too fine, the water runs through it too slowly which can lead to a bitter taste (over extraction). If the coffee is too coarse, the coffee runs through too quickly and the coffee tends to have a rather sour taste (under extraction) – so the size of the particles and the brew time are related! Espresso for example needs a quick access to water and a French Press steeps for 4 minutes.
· 30 % of the coffee bean is actually extractable and 20 % of it very tasty! So during the brewing process we want to get what actually taste good!
· If too much coffee is used in relation to the amount of water used or too little coffee, the coffee turns out bitter or sour
· People tend to think that stronger coffee has too taste bitter but it might be caused by simply brewing the coffee incorrectly.
· Nicely brewed coffee should have a rather naturally sweet taste
· The best water/coffee ratio is 1,2 – 2 g/1 ounce water
· Depending on brewing methods (French press/drip/espresso maker…) grind and amount of water as well as time has to be adjusted.
· Ground beans right before usage for maximal flavor.
· As a grinder I would recommend a grinder with two plates with teeth rather than blades because they tend to become dull quickly.
· A last tip before I teach you how to drip brew: DON’T store your coffee in the fridge try to find a dry airtight place instead. The beans not only take over the taste of the fridge or food stored in it they as well tend to lose a lot of flavor because once taken out of the fridge water is drawn out of the bean.
So how to brew the old fashioned manual pour over drip?
Ingredients:
· Fresh-roasted coffee (1.6 - 2.0 grams per fluid oz)
· Hot Water (195 - 205 F)
· Grinder (grind size = granulated table salt)
· Brew basket or cone
· Paper or metallic fiber filter
· Measuring spoon or scale
· Cup(s) and/or thermal carafe
Directions:
1. Place paper or metallic fiber filter into brew basket.
Use a small amount of hot water to pre-wet paper filters (to avoid paper taste). Dispose of water used for pre-wetting.
2. Place brew basket above cup, carafe, or pitcher.
3. Measure and grind coffee
Use 1.6 - 2.0 grams of freshly ground coffee per fluid ounce of water. Grind coarsely to roughly the size of granulated table salt. Burr grinders generally offer better performance, but if using a blade grinder, grind in short bursts and give the grinder a few firm shakes between grinds.
4. Add ground coffee to filter.
5. Heat and add water.
With a gentle pour, saturate the grounds with water (195 - 205 F), allowing the coffee to “bloom.” Try to add only enough water to saturate the grounds; stop before coffee starts to flow from bottom of filter.
Carefully pour remaining water and control brewing time (3-4 minutes total) by slowing or stopping the pour as needed. Keeping the water level in the cone between ½ and ¾ full in the cone is recommended for optimum brewing.
6. Serve immediately and enjoy!
