Home > Coffee blogs > intrepid510's blog > RE: Brew Methods. ...

RE: Brew Methods.

 
 
 
 

I read an interesting blog yesterday that has been mulling over in my head for a day now and it just won't escape. It was this Blog about Brew Methods at Jimseven; http://www.jimseven.com/2012/01/28/discussing-brew-methods/

I would suggest giving it a good read, as there is a lot of information there to chew over especially for those like myself that are not totally engaged in coffee at all moments of the day.

I am not sure there is a clear point that James is trying to make with his blog other than perhaps that brewing methods are a little tricky and that for a lot of devices while they may favor one approach are not tied to it.

The blog however was not that really got me thinking, it was a comment that was posted on the blog by Nick Cho of Wrecking Ball Roasters and his take on brewing/roasting for maximum sweetness.

"Why sweetness? Because acidity is easy to extract, sweetness is more challenging. Short extraction times produce sour cups not because they produce comparatively high acidity, but because the acidity is not supported by sweetness, which takes longer to extract. It’s more challenging because in the effort to extract more sweetness, we begin to encounter the unpleasant flavor constituents."

and then this...

"I’ll throw this idea into the mix: in filter brewing, you should always grind as coarse as you can get away with"

I like the last statement and it makes a lot of sense to me, I am not sure about others but I have heard other people say the complete opposite that you should be brewing with as fine a grind as you can get away with. However, it doesn't seem to make a lot of sense to brew that way from my point of thinking.

By grinding as coarse as you can get away with it should allow you to be able to brew for a longer period of time getting out those sweet tastes, which should in turn help soften the acidity in the coffee and by being larger hopefully not get out the bitters.

It just affirms what I have been doing, especially with something like the Clever Dripper where you are advised to use a drip or fine drip grind for the device, but as of late have found myself using a coarser grind. This is going to need a little bit more experimentation on my part. And I think it will need some applications to my espresso pulling. I think I am going to want to try something akin to Bear Pond's technique of pulling espresso, .5 ounce from 23 grams, however that will require a triple basket and bottomless portafilter... how convienent.

PRODUCTS YOU WILL LOVE!

REVIEWS & COMMENTS

  • INTERESTING

    Wakeknot | Thu, 02/09/2012 - 21:15

    I think these guys have really good blogs and comments on coffee and it is fun to see the perspective of people who live coffee.

    12345

  • @SON TON

    intrepid510 | Fri, 02/03/2012 - 13:57

    How coarse can a Vario go when adjusted for espresso? I always wondered that.

  • INTERESTING!

    Son Ton | Fri, 02/03/2012 - 02:04

    that is very interesting idea about the courser grind with longer brewing time. I'll try that with my aeropress and report. One thing about that is my Vario don't grind course enough.

    12345

  • @AVASERFI

    intrepid510 | Wed, 02/01/2012 - 01:05

    I am glad that you enjoyed the read, it would be interesting to know or find out what devices work best for certain coffees.

  • @KARRDE

    intrepid510 | Wed, 02/01/2012 - 00:05

    I agree grind size is probably one of the most important ones and the one that I see a lot of changes affected in taste, it's something that I have started to learn when to dose up and keep the same grind or when to go finer/coarser. It is a bit of feel based on experience.

  • VARIABLES

    avaserfi | Tue, 01/31/2012 - 18:29

    Occasionally, I think about all the variables Hoffmann listed when I'm just brewing a specific method. I think all these factors can be controlled within most brew methods although some excel better in some areas than others. Even so, I think his post was a very enjoyable read.

    12345

  • SO MANY VARIABLES IN COFFEE

    Karrde | Tue, 01/31/2012 - 18:09

    So many variables in coffee preparation. Grind is a big one, I've noticed a big difference in the taste of a coffee based on grind size in the Aeropress (which is supposedly grind size neutral).

    12345

  • @JBVIAU

    intrepid510 | Tue, 01/31/2012 - 17:56

    Bear Pond to me is the logical extreme of updosing, and would like to see where that line of extraction takes you. I am not even sure I should try it at home because I think that it would require a double boiler machine that keeps a constant temperature. But the point is that at a high dose and relatively small amount of water the espresso should be sweet, really sweet not just kind of sweet.

  • @STEVE

    intrepid510 | Tue, 01/31/2012 - 17:53

    If you are a rational person that will then use the guidelines that other people talk about and then adjust according to your own taste then you are of course right.

    However, if you are not and believe in strict dogmas then no. To me the idea of grinding coarser so you keep most of the bitters out of the coffee is something that makes sense to me, but I heard a lot of people talk about grinding finer to get as much as you could from the bean. So the finer you go the easier it is to get the bitter nasty compounds out of the coffee, if you go coarse and simply up dose you are probably not going to get them.

  • RIGHT

    jbviau | Tue, 01/31/2012 - 16:19

    Big YMMV on everything, I suppose, but I like the spirit of the "go coarse" comment. I find myself leaning in that direction for brewed coffee (e.g. http://www.roaste.com/CoffeeBlogs/jbviau/Cleverly-winging-it-i.e.-dont-b...). Why the interest in a gloopy sip of tar...err, espresso again à la Bear Pond?

    12345

  • THE SAME THING?

    Steve Rhinehart | Tue, 01/31/2012 - 15:49

    I can't help but think those two approaches are exactly the same, really. It's like that saying, "it was in the last place I looked." Once you find what you're looking for, you stop looking. The same goes for coffee: once you hit that balance of tastes you were looking for or expecting, you stop experimenting. Does it really matter which way you come from to get there? If a certain coffee will only taste that way at a given grind setting, once you hit it, you won't be going coarser or finer. Sounds to me like either recommendation is just offering a starting point: in Nick Cho's case, it's like recommending starting with a finer grind, and working your way coarser until you're happy. Just my impression, I suppose.

    12345