When we start to be interested in coffee, we must have questions about how coffee is made. There are so many ways to make it, which is the best way to make it?
By observing the people around you who like to make coffee, you will find that no matter which method they prefer to use, they will have studied pour-over coffee.
Pour-over coffee, in the coffee field, is known as "the most original and purest form of coffee expression".
What is Pour Over Coffee?
Pour-Over Coffee Also known as drip coffee, this method was invented in 1908 by Mrs. Melitta Bentz, a German. To promote this new way of coffee extraction to the outside world, Mrs. Melitta also established the Melitta Company in the same year, selling various coffee appliance products.
Pour-over coffee is made by injecting hot water to dissolve the coffee powder in water and then the extracted liquid drips into the container at a free speed through a filter paper or screen to get the coffee liquid.
Although the making of pour-over coffee looks simple, it brews a very clean coffee that fully extracts the aroma and sweetness of the coffee.
Generally speaking, coffee beans under medium roast are suitable for pour-over extraction, so it is a very common and popular extraction method in daily life. Of course, because there is a layer of filter paper or filter cloth in the middle, the extracted coffee is less creamy and more clear.
Essential knowledge for making pour-over coffee
When you know more about coffee, you will find that the same batch of ground coffee powder, is not able to brew the same coffee, so why? Before understanding how to make pour-over coffee, let us understand the essential knowledge of pour-over coffee.
What is the "extraction rate"?
The "extraction rate" refers to the substance extracted from the coffee. Normally, we recommend an extraction rate of 18% to 22%. This means that if you use 3.53 oz of coffee powder to make coffee, then ideally you should extract 0.71 oz or less of the coffee flavor from the powder.
Coffee extraction is a "development process", which can be directly imagined as a progress tape, and this progress tape takes a certain time to complete, and through the three stages of acid - sweet - bitter.
If the time has not come, the coffee flavor substances are not fully extracted, this is called under-extraction. Under-extraction is a progress tape that is not fully completed, so it will mainly present the first part of the flavor. In other words: under-extraction is acidic.
So when we say "proper extraction rate", it means a good cup of coffee with a balanced taste; but to make a good pot of coffee, you have to start with these three indicators: "water temperature", "grind coarseness" and "powder to water ratio".
I. Water temperature
At the same grind level, different water temperatures will affect the flavor direction of a cup of coffee.
【High water temperature】 tends to make the coffee powder over-extracted, so that the coffee will have a bitter taste, and most of the bitterness comes from caffeine, bitterness also has a relationship with other chemical effects. Dryness is also easily extracted in high water temperatures, very strong and lasts a long time; and blandness and hollowness, which means that the freshness and light of the coffee are taken away, killing the good substances and lacking flavor.
【Low Water Temperature】Brewing is easily under-extracted and does not bring out enough substances, such as foul acidity, lack of sweetness, strange saltiness, and a short finish, which are all signs of under-extraction.
【Proper Water Temperature】 Good extraction shows aromas and flavors that are positive and comforting, such as acidity that is rich, like the sweet and sour sensation of plums or drupes, overall cleanliness, clarity and transparency, the ability to drink more clearly what the flavor is, delicate, rich sharp acidity, and reminiscent of a certain fruit or even wine, lingering in the mouth with a long-lasting finish that makes people reminisce.
Generally speaking, I am used to 194 °F as the base temperature, if the bitterness is too strong, you can slightly lower this temperature; and the general coffee temperature of 181.4 °F ~ 204.8 °F are very good to present the flavor of the temperature range.
II. Coffee powder grinding coarse and fine
The coarseness of coffee powder grinding is related to the contact area between the powder and water, if the finer the grind, the larger the contact area with water, the more coffee substances can be dissolved.
【Coarseness is directly proportional to extraction time】
the coarseness of the coffee grind will affect the length of extraction time and the extraction rate. The finer the coffee is ground, the longer the extraction time and the higher the extraction rate; the coarser the coffee is ground, the shorter the extraction time and the lower the extraction rate.
【The darker the roast, the finer the lighter the roast】
the darker the roast, the more the fiber is destroyed, and the easier it is to extract, too fine a grind will be too bitter, so a slightly coarser grind is appropriate; the lighter the roast, the opposite.
【Coarseness can control bitterness】
The finer the coffee is ground, the higher the extraction rate, and the easier it is to extract the high molecular weight of bitter substances such as chlorogenic acid, quinic acid, caffeine, etc.; on the contrary, if the coffee is ground too coarsely, it is not easy to extract the high molecular weight of astringent and bitter substances, but the medium molecular weight of sweet taste will also be left in the coffee grounds because of insufficient extraction, which is a waste.
III, the ratio of powder to water
This factor can be said to be the most obvious impact on coffee, can be said: a tiny lapse can lead to a huge difference! How to say?
Usually "powder 0.04 oz: water 0.53 oz" This is what we often say 1:15 powder-to-water ratio; using hot milk as an example, the volume of hot water stays the same, but the more milk powder is added, this hot milk will certainly be very strong. Coffee is also the same, so we usually use 1:12 ~ 1:18 as the extraction ratio, we suggest that you try to practice such an interval to practice.
How to Make Pour-Over Coffee?
Now we share how it is made according to the degree of baking, and the utensils we need.
The tools you need.
1. your favorite coffee beans
2. Water (soft water is recommended)
3. Bean grinder
4. Filter paper
5. Filter cup
6. Pour over the pot
7. Electronic scale
8. Thermometer
9. Sharing pot
How to brew pour-over coffee?
Step 1: Prepare hot water
Heat the water, the water temperature is usually controlled at 181.4 °F ~ 204.8 °F.
Step 2: Weigh the coffee beans
The weight of the coffee beans depends on the water-to-powder ratio chosen and the number of servings needed. A ratio of 15:1 is recommended.
Subsequent fine-tuning according to the senses is good, but it is not recommended to exceed 18:1, otherwise, the coffee may taste bland.
So if you are making 1 serving of 10.14 fl oz coffee, weigh .71 oz of coffee beans.
Step 3: Grind the coffee beans
Grind the coffee beans into coarse sugar-like particles of coffee powder.
Step 4: Preheat the sharing pot
Since the coffee liquid is very sensitive to temperature, a sudden drop in temperature will result in a pronounced acrid taste. Therefore, the sharing pot is preheated with hot water before extracting the coffee.
Step 5: Smothered with water
Pour the ground coffee powder into the filter paper and tap the filter cup to distribute the powder evenly and flatly. Then start filling the pot with water. Usually, the first time you put water in, to make the water penetrating and stable, the water column needs to present a 90-degree angle with the spout as much as possible, so that when the hand brew pot is tilted, all the weight of the water is concentrated at the bottom of the pot, making it easy to pour the water out of the pot in a stable manner.
The coffee powder can normally absorb two times its weight in water, so for 0.71oz of coffee powder, the first injection of 1.41oz of hot water is sufficient, and then pause for 20-30 seconds to wait for the coffee powder to steam.
Step 6: Water injection extractionAfter the smothering is over, still slowly inject water from the right in the middle in a circular motion, circulating from the inside to the outside and from the outside to the inside. The speed of water injection is approximately equal to the speed of water flowing out. After the total amount of water is injected 10.14 fl oz, you can stop now. After the water has completely passed through the filter cup into the sharing pot, you will get a cup of pour-over coffee.
Then share our common international hand-pouring methods.
1. the popular European and American stirring and steaming method
Suitable for lightly roasted coffee beans
European and American stirring method: the stewing stage with a stirring bar for cross-stirring, is also a branch of the three-stage, is the 2012 World Brewing Championship winner Matt Perger after the development of hand brewing techniques. This practice can effectively enhance the release of aromatic substances in the coffee beans, amplify the flavor benefits of the beans, and enhance the taste of the coffee without being too thin.
2. Japanese drip water injection method
Suitable for medium roast or darker roast coffee beans
The drip water injection method is also known as the essence of extraction: drip water injection water flow is weak, as little as possible to destroy the coffee powder layer, reduce convection, and increase the time of immersion, this Japanese technique does out of the coffee mellow, sweetness, rich and smooth, sharp texture.
3. three sections of the water injection method
Suitable for medium-roasted coffee beans
Three sections of water injection segment extraction method: When a knife flow level is richer, you can clarify the flavor of coffee before, during, and after the section. Practice is to increase the amount of water injection each time after the smothering, usually, when the coffee liquid is about to fall to the surface of the powder layer of water injection, with a small, medium, and large water flow to do a three-stage extraction, relatively speaking, there will be relatively high requirements for the flow rate and flow of water.
Common Questions & Solutions
Question #1 Why does the coffee taste stale and lacking in aroma?
Solutions: Try raising the brewing water temperature to increase the aroma and flavor level
Question #2 Why does the coffee taste too bitter?
Solutions: Shorten the extraction time to reduce the extraction of bitter substances
Question #3 Why the coffee has a combination of acidity and bitterness
Solutions: Increase the speed of the coffee winding and increase the agitation of the water stream to bring the hot water into contact with the coffee powder
Question #4 Dripping too slowly
Solutions: If it takes a long time for the coffee to drip through the powder bed to the lower pot, the grind is too fine. Try adjusting the grind to a coarser one.
Solutions: If the coffee drips through the powder bed to the bottom of the pot very quickly when you fill it slowly, the grind is too coarse. Try finer grind.
