BREWING THE PERFECT CUP OF COFFEE
IT STARTS WITH GRINDING
To facilitate the brewing process you need to grind up the beans into small particles - finer grounds for a faster extraction of the coffee flavour. The grind (coarse to fine) should be matched to the type of maker (e.g. French press, espresso etc.). Ideally, you should grind just before brewing as coffee begins to get stale within a few hours of grinding. A home grinder will make all the difference !
Those inexpensive rotary blade grinders will not produce a very even grind, but this is still preferred to using pre-ground coffee. With this type of grinder it helps to grasp the body and top of the grinder with both hands and sharply shake it while continuing to grind. Burr grinders produce an adjustable, even grind and lead to brewed coffee that is much more evenly extracted. A good burr grinder will cost much more but, for a devoted home-brewer of fine coffees, this is a good investment. The Waterloo Coffee Company uses the best Swedish burr grinder for any orders requesting pre-ground coffee.
In a blade grinder, the granule size is determined by the duration of the grind and works by pulverizing the beans into ever smaller pieces in a largely uncontrolled fashion. This often results in a range of granule sizes, the smaller ones contributing to filter clogging and the over-extraction of bitter and sour flavours.
Coffee must be ground to suit the particular brewing method.
Coarse - Percolator
Medium - French Press, flat-bottomed filter coffee makers and metal cone filters
Fine - paper cone filter, Espresso
Very Fine - Turkish Coffee
The objective is to tune the grinding to produce a granule size that allows a proper distribution of the water evenly through the coffee and which matches the length of the brew cycle. Coffee grounds with the wrong granule size may result in over-extraction (granules too small) or under-extraction (granules too large). So it is particularly important to use the correct grind for the brew method. A bit of trial and error may be required.
TIME AND TEMPERATURE
There are many ways to brew good coffee and in each case you are aiming to extract the coffee oils from the grounds without also extracting undesirable sour flavours. This is best done by using water just off the boil and maintaining this temperature throughout the brew cycle (195°-205°F/ 90°-96°C). Try 2 tablespoons (10g) of coffee for each cup (6oz to 8oz). For decaffeinated coffee the temperature should be at the lower end of this range and you'll want to use around 20% extra grounds. A faster brewing process minimizes the extraction of less palatable flavours.
It's better to brew the coffee too strong and then dilute to taste. And drink it up, the great taste of fresh coffee degrades within 20 minutes or so of brewing.
EQUIPMENT AND METHODS
There are many methods available to achieve a good extraction of flavour from the beans, from simply adding water at the right temperature to grinds in a mug to the use of the latest fashions in designer equipment. Each has its merits and for many, the brewing up process is a 'coffee ceremony' to itself. The two most popular methods are drip and infusion.
Drip Brewing - The drip brew method is basically pouring hot water through a bed of coffee grounds held in a filter basket or cone. The water flows through the grounds continuously during the brew cycle, forced only by gravity. Be aware that unbleached paper filters can contaminate the flavour; metal filters are preferable. Either way, the specifics of the drip method results in different flavour characteristics than the infusion method. The grind should be fine enough to allow the brew to be completed with the coffee grounds in continuous contact with water for 4 to 6 minutes.
Infusion Brewing - You simply mix hot water with coffee grounds for 4 to 6 minutes. The press pot, or French press, is the most popular tool. Because the coffee is stewing in the brew it produces a different flavour characteristic from drip brewing.
The infusion method of brewing is popular for people who appreciate the manual process and the rich brew possible of a French press. Another method growing in popularity is the 'coffee sock' (more on this topic in the future...)