We know that brewing coffee seems like a very cool and hip thing to do, but be careful! Not doing it right can spoil all the flavor and aroma of your favorite drink, and you might end up disappointed. If you just started making your own coffee, don’t feel overwhelmed. There are actually some easy steps that you need to follow in order to make sure that your experience will be fulfilling, and we made sure to include all of them below.
First off, the equipment
The most important rule of all is this one: always keep your tools clean and dry. The way to do so is really simple: rinse them after each use with plain, hot water, then wipe them off with an absorbent towel. The things to look after when doing so are leftover grounds or built-up coffee oil: they can make your coffee taste bad or compromise its freshness.
The main ingredient: beans
The principal reasons your coffee has a certain flavor or quality are, of course, the beans and the way you grind them. Depending on your personal taste, you want to choose the perfect combination that will meet all of your desires.
Therefore, the origins of the most famous beans include:
Colombia: Most likely the best-known coffee producer in the whole world, the fact that Colombia ranks second in yearly production might come as unexpected. A reason for this might be the still so difficult way of transporting the beans from the farms to the shipment and production centers, because of the rugged terrain. Even so, this doesn’t change the fact that the level of excellence is unmatched and the mild, well-balanced, even sweet coffee is unmistakable.
Brazil: If Colombia is the best-known coffee producer, Brazil is the biggest one, with plantations so immense that hundreds of people are needed to manage them. Both varieties of Arabica and Robust are cultivated here, and the bean gives a crystalline, sweet taste.
Ethiopia: Chances are, that without Ethiopia we wouldn’t even have the opportunity to talk about coffee, let alone drink it. It becomes more and more believable as you learn that their wild coffee tree forests are the ones keeping the harvesting industry busy. Considering Ethiopia is the ”real deal” in the production of coffee beans, we wouldn’t expect the flavor to be anything less than full, down-to-earth, and bodied.
Mexico: Not that it would be surprising, but Mexico has so many small coffee farms that it’s part of the countries that produce the most coffee in the world. The qualities that bring Mexican coffee forward are authentic, not to be the mistaken aroma, an intense flavor, and a strong sharpness. This bean is perfect for dark roasts and is commonly found in different blends.
Puerto Rico: Even though this island has seen some dark times in the coffee industry, because of powerful hurricanes and harsh competition, today they focus on reviving this part of their culture, and they do so by carefully cultivating high-quality Arabica varieties. Here, we find the distinct characteristic in the fruity aroma.
Hawaii: This area is famous for its Kona coffee, which, after it’s processed with a lot of care, delivers a surprisingly rich, aromatic and, it goes without saying, delicious cup of medium body. All of this wouldn’t be possible without mother nature’s contribution, which offers volcanic soil found around the Mauna Loa active volcano. If you thought of the amount of heat the poor coffee trees must endure, don’t worry, the tropical clouds provide sufficient shade throughout the day and the frequent drizzles make sure to give just the right amount of hydration needed.
If you noticed the words ”Arabica” and ”Robusta”, you most likely heard them before, but don’t know what they stand for. Well, they indicate the bean type, and mean the following:
Arabica goes back to the first coffee trees found in Ethiopia, the ones we talked about before. They give out a mild, full of aroma coffee, but less caffeinated and represent about 70% of the worldwide production. It is also the most expensive, because of the costs caused by the cultivation of the trees and their exposure to disease.
Robusta, found in Central and Western Africa, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Brazil, represents only almost 30% of the whole market. It is mostly used for instant coffees and, in comparison to Arabica, it is cheaper to cultivate and more immune to disease. These two varieties can also be blended together to balance each other out.
Now that we talked about the origins of the coffee beans, we also need to analyze how the way they are processed can affect their qualities. Let’s start with the roast types, this causes variation in color.
Light roasts, with a light brown color, are meant for mild coffee. They do not show any oil on the surface because the roast time is not long enough for the oils to breakthrough.
Medium roasts have, you guessed it, medium brown color and a stronger flavor, but they still don’t have any oil on the surface. You might have also heard about it under the name of American roast.
Medium-dark roasts have a darker color, with a little bit of oil, which gives off a faint bittersweet flavor.
Dark roasts create beans with a very shiny black color and strong bitterness, but far less acidity than the others.
Don’t forget to purchase your coffee as close after the roasting process as possible! This will ensure the freshness you need for a perfect cup of coffee. For this to be possible, make sure you buy it often (approximately every one to two weeks), in small amounts.
Another process that the beans go through is grinding.
For this, the best options are a mill grinder or a burr, and that is because coffee ends up being a consistent size. Depending on the method you use to brew your coffee, there are also different types of grind. If you use a French press, you will want your beans coarse, very chunky. With a Chemex, they need to be medium-coarse, a little bit less chunky. For a machine drip or a classical drip, the best fit is a medium grind, with a texture similar to kosher salt. If you have a siphon, you need something in-between kosher salt and table salt, medium-fine. For an Aeropress or an espresso, the beans have to be fine, like table salt. And finally, if you want a delight like Turkish coffee, the grind has to be as fine as powdered sugar.
Don’t forget about the water!
You might think that this is insignificant detail, but the water you use can actually influence the taste of your coffee. The best would be to use filtered or bottled water, but if your tap water is good and doesn’t have a strong taste or odor, similar to chlorine, that is okay too. Even so, make sure you use cold water and let the tap run a bit before filling your coffee pot.
When it comes to the amount of water you should use, there is something called the ”Golden Ratio”, which is 25 grams (2 tablespoons) of ground coffee for every 117 ml (6 ounces) of water. You can also check your brewer for more specific measures.
Another important factor is the temperature because, first of all, you have to put safety first! For an optimal brewing process, your water should be between 90 and 96 degrees Celsius (195 to 205 degrees Fahrenheit). If it is too hot, you will lose the quality of the taste, or if it is too cold, it will be flat. When you are brewing the coffee manually, let the water sit for a minute after it hit the boiling point, and only after pouring it over.
Time is money
In order to make sure that everything will be perfect, there is one last thing you need to take into consideration: the amount of time your grounds are in contact with water. Again, depending on the brewing method, you have the following options: 5 minutes in a drip system, 2-4 minutes with a French Press, only 20-30 seconds for an espresso, and about 12 hours for a cold brew.
Enjoy!
And there you are! Finally, your favorite cup of coffee is prepared and served as a pro. After you have followed each step, you will realize how much each of them means and it will be worth the wait. Don’t forget that coffee is best enjoyed the same way it was prepared: fresh! So make sure not to waste any of your precious hard work and don’t make more coffee than you can take.
