Brewing Coffee
basics of Good coffee
Four essential factors have to come together to make a perfect cup of coffee: the freshness of the coffee, the grind, the proportion of coffee to water, and the water itself.
Freshness
Coffee needs to be kept away from light, heat and moisture. Oxygen will
speed its deterioration, so store roasted beans in an airtight container
and keep it in a cool, dry place for up to two weeks. Since ground coffee
begins to lose flavour quickly, coffee should be ground only in the quantities
needed for a few days. Never store your coffee in the refrigerator as the
moist environment will turn the delicate oils rancid, thus spoiling your
coffee.
Grind
The whole point of grinding coffee is to get the most flavour out of the
bean. To ensure the best-tasting coffee, buy the beans of your choice and
grind them yourself just before brewing. A burr or mill grinder is preferable
because all of the coffee is ground to a consistent size.
If your coffee tastes bitter, it may be over extracted, or ground too fine.
On the other hand, if your coffee tastes flat, it may be under extracted,
meaning that your grind is too coarse.
It is essential to grind coffee to suit the brewing method. The shorter
the brew time the finer the coffee needs grinding, espresso being a very
fine grind, French press a very course grind.
Proportion
For the perfect cup of coffee, use two tablespoons (10g) of ground coffee
for each 6oz of water. This produces the optimal extraction of flavour.
Too much coffee will create an over extracted bitter brew, too little and
your coffee will be under extracted and will lack flavour.
Water
Use filtered or bottled water if your tap
water is not good or imparts a strong odour or taste, such as chlorine,
any strong flavours in your water will taint your coffee.
If you are using tap water let it run a few seconds before filling your
coffee pot. Be sure to use cold water. Do not use distilled or softened
water.
The ideal temperature for your brew water is between 88*C and 93*C. If the temperature of the water is too low, under extraction will occur and the coffee will be too weak. Under extraction will cause the coffee to have a sour flavour, since the acids from the beans are the first substances to dissolve.
If the brew water temperature is too high then over extraction will occur and the coffee will taste bitter
If you are brewing the coffee manually, let the water come to a full boil. Turn off the heat source and allow the water to rest a minute before pouring it over the grounds.