The Perfect Cup
You’d think that something with essentially only two ingredients — water and coffee — wouldn’t be too hard to master. If a coffee shop in the area can get $7 a cup, then you might concede it’s not easy. So is it possible to brew an awesome cup at home? Of course, with the right ingredients and equipment.
Just like wine, the different kinds of coffee are called varietals. And also just like with wine, personal taste will play a key role in brewing the perfect cuppa. Play with different varietals, the ratio of coffee to water, and the grind size to find the combination that tantalizes your palette.
Part 1 – The Ingredients
Use Fresh Beans. Like with most ingredients, freshness and quality are the keys to a great result. Once coffee beans are roasted, their flavor starts to dissipate (so don’t grind until you’re ready to brew.) Some brands in the grocery store now putting the roasting date on their packaging. But to get the freshest, buy from a local roaster like Edison Coffee Co. in Lewisville, Parks Coffee in Carrollton, or Novel and Avoca coffee roasters in Fort Worth. Many have several locations, and all can ship fresh coffee to you.
Use Clean Water. If you wouldn’t drink your tap water, don’t use it to make your coffee. Filtered water makes a great choice, but don’t use distilled because it lacks minerals that are needed to extract the best flavor.
Part 2 – The Equipment
The Grinder. It may seem counterintuitive, but the coffee grinder is arguably more important than the maker. Grinding coffee beans to release their tasty goodness is violent — beans are either sliced up like they’re in a Fruit Ninja battle, or crushed between sliding metal plates like your recycled cans would be.
There’s two basic kinds of grinders — blade and burr. Blade grinders slice the beans into random sized chunks. However, for a great cup of coffee, you’re aiming for uniform pieces, which you’ll get from the second kind of grinder, the burr grinder.
Burr grinders use metal to crush the coffee beans into uniform pieces. The two kinds of burr grinders are conical and flat plate, which refer to the shape of the grinding plates. You can’t really go wrong with either one.
Another advantage is the ability to preset the size of the final grind — course for French press or cold brew, medium for drip or pour-over brewing, or fine for an espresso machine.
In addition, burr grinders don’t produce as much heat as blade grinders. The more heat, the more the final coffee can taste burnt and bitter. The absolute best will be a low-speed (less heat) burr grinder, but you’ll have to pay for the crème-de-la-crème. Simply switching from a blade to a burr grinder will improve your home coffee brewing significantly, and you can find one that fits your budget.
Coffee Maker. For your morning pot of joe, you’ll want a drip coffee maker. The number of features and possible options seem endless. The OXO Brew coffee makers are certified home brewers of the Specialty Coffee Association. (Learn more at sca.coffee)
Ideal coffee makers heat the water to 195-205 degrees, as boiling water is too hot and will intensify coffee’s bitterness. They also have a blooming feature, which adds a small amount of water to the coffee,
then pauses for 20-30 seconds so the ground coffee can release carbon dioxide before brewing.
Consider if you will keep coffee in the pot, and if so, get a thermal. The heating plate under a glass carafe will continue cooking your coffee, which will impact the flavor and the aroma.
Part 3 — The Process
Grind the beans to the right size for your maker. The general rule of thumb is you’ll need two level tablespoons of grounds per six-to-eight ounce cup of coffee. (Bonus – many burr grinders allow you to create a preset for each grind.) Put the grounds in a clean, pre-wetted filter, hit start, wait a few minutes, and enjoy.
If you love your coffee, it’s worth it to invest in fresh ingredients and the right equipment. Then take some time having fun experimenting to find the right ratios to brew your perfect cup.
