How are you brewing?
How are you brewing?
I made a post around a week ago that really took off, and figured we are probably going to see a small spike in activity due to the reddit migration, so I thought we could give it another go!
There are always tons of posts about what beans you are brewing, but my question is HOW are you brewing those beans this week? Sticking to the tried and true v60? Pick up a new Orea and still figuring out the best recipe for it? Pulling some particularly sweet shots on your latest beans haul? Let us know below! What's your brew method of the day/week?
I brew coffee in AeroPress using James Hoffman's recipe. It's simple and produces tasty results.
Sometimes the simplest is the most delicious.
The AeroPress is my daily driver, simple and delicious.
I brew in a Chemex!
I like how I can brew for like 3 people at a time or just myself. Now that it's summer, I've been brewing Mexican Chiapas over ice nearly every morning.
Chemex is still one of my favorites. You first enjoy a meal or drink with your eyes, and the Chemex is easily my most beautiful piece of coffee hardware. I just love the classic look of it.
I've got a chemex and love iced coffee... Talk to me about this "brewing over ice" method?
Basically you just take some portion of the water in your recipe (I usually do 40%, personally) and replace it with ice. So, you're effectively brewing a very short ratio, but diluting it to be the same as your normal concentration. Since your extraction will drop, you may need to grind a little finer or do a little more agitation to compensate.
I've really been enjoying my Bialetti brikka pot. It turns out that the trick with that pot is that you shouldn't fill up the water reservoir all the way up to the valve, because then it overheats easily.
How do you know it's overheating? My Bialetti Kitty has no problems with filling it to the valve but once brewing is done, there's always leftover in the reservoir, something I've never had with my cheapo 10$ moka pots.
The brikka is just a very specific pot which has a rubber pressure valve in the stem to somewhat approach espresso-like brewing. I just noticed that when I don't fill it up all the way the coffee tasted better and less burnt.
The Brikka really is tricky. My method involves using room temperature water (instead of pre-heated like the moka express), setting the heat high-ish and adding a splash of water to the upper reservoir, but mine is the model with the weight-based valve so ymmv. When it works, it makes a great cup, though!
The coffee shop I go to had these beans that were soaked in cherries before they were roasted or something? I need to read the label again but I've been liking them.
Edit: the label says "the seed is left in cherry, sealed in a bin, CO2 buildup creates pressure, this imparts fruity flavors to the seed. The seed is them removed and processed where it dries in cherry"
The coffee cherry is the fleshy fruit portion of coffee that surrounds the bean. Usually removed pretty soon after harvest from my understanding. Sounds like they are using something similar to carbonic maceration, which I usually associate with wine. Sounds yummy!
Sounds like anaerobic fermentation! I have had some seriously funky and delicious beans that went through that process. I even saw one that did the same, but introduced peaches into the fermentation to attempt to impart some of that flavor as well.
https://sprudge.com/what-does-anaerobic-fermentation-mean-for-coffee-192474.html
Black and White's Elkin Guzman Strawberry Catiope was delicious, and made for really wild espresso milk drinks in particular. The process is wild:
After this initial bout of fermentation, a mother culture of microorganisms is added to the tanks. These microorganisms have been fed molasses and strawberries for four days prior to encountering the coffee cherries, which gives them energy for fermentation and contributes flavor to the lot. The coffee is then left to ferment with this strawberry-infused culture for an astonishing 270 hours before being dried on raised beds until it reaches 10.5-11% humidity.
Currently enjoying the comfort and familiarity of where my coffee journey really started: Ethiopian natural ground in 1zpresso K-Max and brewed with Hoffman’s Ultimate v60 Technique in a clear plastic v60.
I have the same grinder! :)
I'm using clever dripper for my manual brew, enjoying coffee bean from West Java, Indonesia. Still pulling a double shot once awhile, just when I need a (stronger) quick fix.
Either the Clever or the Hario Switch will likely be my next purchase. It just seems like a fun new way to make coffee, and the cleanup also seems particularly easy.
I've tried both. The Switch made of glass, quite heavy, and you can lost heat during the immersion phase. However, it uses the V60 paper filter, hence will "forces" the water to flow through all of the coffee ground. Cleaning the Switch also a little bit tricky, there are more "hidden" spaces near it's bottom in the silicon base, so you need to remove, occasionally, the glass cone and give a thorough rinse.
The Clever, on the other hand, made of non-bpa plastic. It light, and heat loss will be less. I bought the 2-cups version, not the large, older model. It uses flat-bottom filter paper, so the coffee bed will be evenly spread. Cleaning also easy, just rinse using warm water.
If you a V60 die hard, use the Switch. Otherwise, I recommend the Clever.
Espresso
Eureka Specialita Mignon
18.3G of whatever bean I want that day
Lelit Elizabeth
So damn good every morning
My cat had recently knocked my clear v60 off the counter, and so I had switched to either my chemex or Stagg XF. But when I was at my local favorite roaster, they had just gotten in a shipment of red V60s, so I snagged one, as well as two different bags of Ethiopian beans.
Feels good to be back to my favorite conical brewer!
So I have been grinding in my Fellow Ode at 4.1, with SSP burrs. Getting the water up to 98C, and following Hoffmann's v60 recipe for some particularly tasty brews.
I've been on a Turkish coffee kick last week after an ethno trip to central Bulgaria. 2 tbsp of extra fine ground coffee (Mehmet Efendi works great, also my local roastery made me a floral/chocolatey, blend if you're into specialty) in a cezve (about 150ml).
Stir before putting on the stove on medium-high heat. Do NOT stir after this point. Just before the water starts boiling, it will foam a little, remove the foam with the cezve off the stove, with a teaspoon and move it to your cup. When it boils for good slowly pour half of it in the cup and put it back on the stove for another 15 seconds. Pour slowly again. Wait for 3-4 minutes to cool and settle and enjoy. Do mind the coffee grounds at the bottom. Drink as is or with lokum, or a biscuit to the side.
If you want to sweeten the coffee, do so as you add the coffee powder, NOT afterwards.
Americano の bialetti I am drunk now though
I've been replying on my v60 daily now, never fails to make a good cup! Maybe I'll make an aeropress once every so often each month for a change.
Recently started making Japanese style iced coffee and that's been fantastic for the warm weather!
I have also been experimenting with a Flair Neo, but I've yet to make something I'm entirely satisfied with.
So as a foreigner who has lived in Japan for 15 years, what is Japanese iced coffee, specifically? Really weak instant coffee with coffee cubes mixed in? I'm not trying to be rude I honestly don't know
I'm using James Hoffman's recipe as found here. I can't say that weak instant coffee with coffee cubes sounds particularly enjoyable!
it’s hot-brewed strong directly over ice
@nikmis But Japan so polite, so clean! Iced Coffee is water and americano type coffee, sometimes espress mixed with water. If you want the good stuff go for the latte one liter cartons with sugar and milk in em. That's what Richard Sensei drinks (apparently).
I’ve recently been using a Timemore B75 dripper with Kalita 185 filters. I use Lance Hedrick’s Ultimate Pourover Recipe with good results so far on a 21:350 brew ratio. As for beans, I have a Guatemalan open right now that I’m grinding at around a 3.0 on a Fellow Ode with 2.0 burrs.
With the B75, I’m able to grind a bit finer than the recipe suggests and still get a fast drawdown.
Have you tried larger batches? I'm a big fan of Hedrick's recipe but found it tricky especially on the Orea when doing 500mL
I haven’t tried anything larger yet, but I can definitely see how a 500ml batch would be pretty tight in a brewer this size. I even had a little trouble with the stock papers at 350ml, but that’s because they sit slightly below the rim of the brewer, where the 185s don’t. I’ll have to try a 500ml brew and see how it goes.
As already mentioned, James Hoffmann is a treasure.
I own a french press, but I have been using it only for a tea. On weekdays I make my morning coffee with an AeroPress. For the weekends I have a Chemex after I got after I realised even my unrefined hand brew is better than any automatic coffee maker can do. Actually this is my second Chemex, because a huge chunk splitted somehow from the first after a year amfya half of use. If it happens again, I will get V60 or something else more durable. I also have a 2 cup Bialetti moka pot for making milk drinks.
There is a semi-automatic espresso machine at my work place but that has only convinced me it's not worth the hassle and dialing in a good cup is really difficult.
I stopped using milk with filter coffee at home when I switched to bying whole beans and found out coffee can be actually good as is when you don't buy the bulk pre-ground stuff. And in last few years there have been a lot of local roasteries popping up and I found out I really like the juicy and maybe slightly sour natural processed ones. But I'm too stingy to be always bying the best stuff, also you need to have a baseline to compare the good stuff :þ
My current grinder is a Fellow Ode. A bit more pricier than I thought I would get, but it was the only reasonable upgrade immediately available when my Wilfa Svart broke.
I'm really keen to buy a proper machine in the next year or two. Thinking something like the Quick Mill Pippa.
I was doing V60 for a while but Aeropress is my go-to now, even for an instant "coldbrew" in a pinch.
Bodybrew Bod for cold brew. Love it, so easy to use, so easy to clean.
Normally I use a Bialetti 1 cup, but lately I've been using a second-hand Irmel moka pot I found. Had to buy a new gasket for it.That's a beautiful looking machine, I can see why you'd want to get that! I still don't know which machine I'm going to get, thought I think I want to start with something like the flair 58 and maybe a nanofoamer.
Very much considering going manual for the cost, but also I love the look of the manual espresso machines.
I bought a Bellman that can steam because I didn't like the foam I got with a nanofoamer. But to be honest it's a lot of effort for steamed milk and the way it brews coffee is very hit or miss too. Bit of a learning curve.
Using an Aeropress and James Hoffmann’s recipe - 12g coffee, 200g water, brew for 2:00, swirl then :30 more.
My routine:
- grind beans using cheap hand grinder
- put grinds into French press
- add hot water
- wait
- pour into cup
- drink
I don't measure or time anything. Every cup is delicious.
French press is my most common way to brew for myself. I like that I can make enough for just one cup at a time.
I also like to do espresso if it's the middle of the day and I don't wanna spend 10 minutes in the French press.
It’s been pretty hot where I’m at, so I’ve been making a lot of cold brew. Recently got the XL Aeropress and make a large batch for the day. Extra fine grind, an almost 2:1 water to coffee, and a few minutes with room temp water makes a very passable cold brew concentrate super fast
1zpresso J-Max grinder and Cafelat Robot is my daily driver. I use 20g in and 40g out with a 5sec 2-bar preinfusion and usually get it done in about 30 sec at 6 bars of pressure. I started running at 6bars a couple of months ago instead of the classic 8 and I prefer the change.
My favorite coffee at home is using a modded Gaggia classic with a DF64 grinder, I'm pretty happy with the espresso it makes. But half of the times I use an Aeropress with metal filter to brew a coffee that I can be sipping for longer while working, and also for convenience since this thing needs virtually zero cleaning and maintenance. I've been using Aeropress for almost a decade and I always take it with me on vacation, together with a Hario hand grinder.
Hario Switch, using Tetsu Kasuya's recipe, which works out to be somewhat less fussy for me than James Hoffmann's one cup V60 recipe.
For iced coffee, it's Japanese iced coffee all the way, or cold brew with a French press using cheaper beans when I don't have the energy to brew a pourover.
Early morning coffee before everyone is awake - beans ground with a 1zpresso Q2 and brewed in an aeropress, using a modified James Hoffman recipe for a small strong 'shot' with some oat milk over ice.
Second cup when I can make more noise - beans ground with a Rocky, shot pulled with a Silvia. Not the most elegant setup, but it is exactly what I hoped for when I got it 3 years ago. Also prepared with some oat milk (1:1) over ice.
It may be heresy, but I love my Philips LatteGo 3200 super automatic. It's what I use most days. On days I feel Iike truly experiencing my coffee, I use a Timemore C2 grinder and Aeropress.
I'm using a small (12 oz) Bodum french press. 1:12 ratio with a 30 second bloom and 4 minute additional steep. The procedure seems to work fine to my tastes but I'm still getting a feel for it since I've only used it a half dozen times so far.
I would highly recommend taking a peak at James Hoffmann's method. I feel it has been the most efficient method in removing that sludge at the bottom of the cup.
The sludge is the best part tho
I bumped into that method while doing a quick look into tips for brewing with a French Press. I may give it a try one of these mornings I'm feeling like taking things at a more leisurely pace.
So I gave James Hoffmann’s method a shot this morning. I think I prefer the his method (and recipe) from a flavor perspective independent of any silt reduction. From the reduction of silt perspective it was a significant improvement but not silt free. I think I need a larger press since my tiny press makes getting in there with a spoon a bit awkward and I’m probably disturbing the silt in my efforts to get a full mug’s worth. I suspect using a larger press at half capacity would help with both issues.
I very between the aeropress, one cup v60 and the wife's beans to cup machine depending on mood and how early it is
Where are my Jura peeps at?
Pricey but I love my Jura and it makes a great cup of coffee.
I’m about a month into brewing with a V60 (ceramic). Wouldn’t say I’ve perfected anything yet (coming from French press). Currently brewing a local roaster’s medium roast at 15 to 1, Baratza Encore now set to 13. Making a couple cups at a time. Hopefully will have some time to research methodology a bit more and get more comfortable toying with formula and approach.
I use a hario switch. Basically a v60 but with a switch like clever. Pretty versatile
Me too. I love thé hario switch. More forgiving than the V60 and you can try so many receipe...
Grind each morning (currently on an Ethiopian kick), then through a BUNN drip. It's not as good as those special one-off coffees, but I've found its the best balance of energy vs. enjoyment
This year's yirgacheffe from my local roastery has the most amazing blueberry smell. I've never even imagined coffee could smell like this. Last year's harvest from the same farm (I think) was more on the floral side but was still amazing.
Anytime I see an Ethiopian coffee, I pray it has that blueberry bomb. I'm jealous.
Currently using a V60 + Aeropress. Going on holiday soon so maybe I'll bring the Aeropress along.
Ditto Ghostx. I also do James Hoffman’s AeroPress recipe. If I’m making for more than myself, I do the AeroPress AeroPress recipe which allows me to distribute the coffee more evenly and it makes a nice, crisp and snappy cup!
My dad gave me his old krups that he's had for forever and just never used, but I'm still learning how to effectively use it. I can at least brew with it but I have not mastered the milk steaming yet, so I've been leaning into more basic ice coffees. 1 shot of espresso + eyeballed pour of caramel syrup + 7 ice cubes from my small tray + rest of the cup with milk. Once I start narrowing what beans I like/what I like about them, I'm hoping to refine my process a bit better, but I have some beans that my FIL roasted and I gotta say, all coffee tastes better having been roasted and brewed with care. :)
Got a Breville Barista something or other and have been using it daily for 2-3 years now. I am by no means good at this, but I have the morning iced drinks for my wife and I perfected.
We usually get our beans from the Atlas coffee club thingy and rarely have a miss from them. When we recently found some beans from them we LOVED (some honey processing one) we managed to get some more bags of it from them and during that process found out that when they roast and package the beans, they're shipped out within a few hours of a batch being finished. I honestly expected them to be older than that, which everybody tells me is a bad thing for espresso. So that was cool.
I prefer hot coffee, but I want a milk drink in the mornings and can't be bothered to steam milk within minutes of waking up. What a pain. But hey, iced works well enough.
I'm grinding with the feldgrind and I recently switched over from the V60 to the clever dripper. It's just a bit easier in the mornings.
I use a modified rancilio silvia. It has a PID with the boiler set at 216°F. I also have it moded for pre-infusion. I do a 10 second pre-infusion and a shot time of ~27 seconds. 20 grams in 40 grams out. There is an awesome local roaster, light house roasters, they have a variety of beans to choose from. I'm still learning and chasing that perfect shot.
I'm just more curious than anything, but why do you have the boiler set for 4 degrees above boiling?
It seems to produce a better tasting shot. That also seemed to be a temp that outputs water at around 195 at the grouphead. I am not sure if it is normal to set the boiler temp in that range. I would love to hear what is normal if my temp isn't. I have also thought that my PID might not be perfectly calibrated.
Just using my aeropress at home. I do also have a Clever dripper that I use now and again, but I just feel the aeropress is more convenient for me.
I am in the market for a coffee machine, just need to work out where the hell I can put it in my kitchenMy current go-to is a Hario Switch using the immersion method. For the longest time I brewed in a French press, then I tried an Aeropress, now I'm onto the Switch and it's like the best of both previous devices for me.
Baratza Encore set to ~28
32oz French Press (making ~16oz at a time most days)Best coffee I can reliably find locally is Counter Culture, which I learned to love when I was a barista for a year. I usually get the Apollo if it's fresh enough, but I also love their Gradient, Hologram, and Fast Forward. It's the only coffee around that has the roast date printed on the bag, and it's always less than a month old. I used to be able to find it less than a week old, but I guess the stock doesn't turn over fast enough.
Currently I'm definitely in that "got a new Orea" camp : D
I got my "negotiator" a couple days ago and have been trying to get the hang of using it with flat filters. (I got some of the hilariously expensive sibarist ones to try.) It's a little fussy to get everything situated, especially compared to the very easy workflow of the Mugen that has been my main brewer.
Today it's already pretty warm here so I did a batch of iced coffee using Rogue Wave's Doi Seket. 55 on the ZP6, 28 grams of coffee, 300g of water, 200g of ice, doing a simple 5 pours of equal size.
This coffee has been a bit tricky to brew for me, with a papery astringency that has been tricky to avoid, so I dropped the temp down a little bit in brewing, which seems to have helped somewhat.
Aeropress loosely following James Hoffman's recipe at ~18g/300ml. Using a Knock Aergrind at 1:8, and the Aeropress stainless steel filter.
Technivorm Moccamaster
Depends on the mood a bit, mostly a variety of Moccamaster machine, Bialetti or small French press. Cheaper Beans for the machine, and the quality stuff for the two others ☕
I want to move some days from v60 to something easier….. so my wife could make coffee for me once in a while lol. Apart from a machine or a French press… what good and easy?
The Hario Mugen works pretty well with one-pour recipes, so that's one of the easier options for a pourover.
Flat bottom brewers (Kalita/Orea/Timemore B75) are probably more forgiving than a V60, but not necessarily easier in terms of the number of steps / workflow. Aeropress would probably fall into this category as well.
I've been pretty busy the past year, and most recently I've just been lazy, so lately I've just been using my French press. I have a cheap calphalon espresso machine but I guess at some point I'll clean it and use that again.
Edit to add: I also use a bialetti moka pot for laziness.
