Equipment:

When it comes to making anything, you need to make sure you have the right equipment for the job. Luckily there are several ways to brew your coffee, some of those include using a french press, moka pot, espresso machine, and a chemex brewer. Each has a distant way of brewing and can result in differing flavours, finding the right one for you is an important step to creating the perfect cup of coffee.

Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 

It’s no secret that water makes up most of a coffee (around 98.5% to 99% to be exact) but getting that ratio tends to be the hard part. Generally for espresso coffee you want a 1:2 ratio of coffee to water, whereas for drip, pour-over or french press, a 1:16 ratio is optimal. These amounts can be measured with any kitchen scale or even teaspoons or tablespoons.

Grind Size:

One of the most important prepping stages of making coffee. Make sure to always grind your coffee just before you are going to brew it to keep those nasty stale flavours away. If you have a quality burr grinder (like ours) then you will be able to set the specific grind size you need. Generally for espresso you want fine, medium for drip and course for press pot.

Brewing Time:

The essence of brewing and what decides if we get a lovely cup of coffee or a bitter mess. The rule of thumb is generally finer grounds require less time to brew, which is typically around 30 seconds, whereas a french press requires more coarse grounds and takes roughly 4 minutes. All of this goes hand in hand with grind size, so make sure that you are using the correct proportions depending on the type of coffee and equipment.

Water Quality and Temperature:

Considering water makes up over 98% of coffee, make sure you are using filtered water – it makes an incredible difference to the taste and quality of your brew. As far as temperature goes, brewing coffee at 195-205°F has been proven to provide the best tasting coffee. Cooler and you miss out on some of those amazing flavours, hotter and we start getting some uninvited characteristics that we tend to stay away from.