It doesn’t take much digging through the vast array of coffee-making apparatuses, either at your local kitchen store or online, to get overwhelmed. There are drip machines, pod-machines, French presses...
When selecting the best brewer for you, you’ll want to consider a variety of factors: How fast is it? How much cleanup is required? How much coffee does your household consume? And of course, there’s taste.
Each method starts with freshly roasted coffee ground specifically for each method.
•Method: Drip Machine•
Time: 8 minutes Flavor Rating: 5/10
(Credit: Joe Lingeman)
This is how many people brew their coffee. It‘s on many countertops and even allows you to program your future brew. Brewing coffee on a drip machine doesn‘t allow much manipulation and though the end result is your standard cup of coffee. Compared to others it tends to be the weakest cup that very rarely shows the true taste of the beans. •Method: French Press•
Time: 5 minutes
Flavor Rating: 7/10
(Credit: Joe Lingeman)
Start by adding 42 grams of coffee, freshly ground to the French press setting on your grinder, to the carafe. Then, pour in water just below boiling, around 175°F. Let it steep for four minutes, using a timer. While steeping, swirl the grounds in the water, which gives a better extraction than stirring. Depress the plunger to trap the grounds at the bottom, and pour your coffee. Brewing this way gives lighter color and aroma than pour over but a more smoother cup that tradition drip.
•Method: Moka Pot•
Time: 10 minutes Flavor Rating: 8/10
(Credit: Joe Lingeman)
The Bialetti Moka Pot, that iconic little metal two-story hexagonal stovetop coffee maker, uses pressure extraction — similar to espresso. This is the classic Italian method of brewing coffee. The base holds water that should be just below boiling before you put it on the stove. When the water boils, it generates steam, which forces the water up through the basket of grounds resting on top of it and into the top chamber. It makes a darn good cup, too: The coffee is steamy, thick, and dark brown with a strong, pure aroma. A sip delivers that classic robust, slightly bitter flavor to my tastebuds. •Method: Pourover•
Time: 5 minutes Flavor Rating: 9/10
(Credit: Joe Lingeman)
Start by placing a paper filter in your pour over and pour right-off-the-boil water in to wet the filter to remove any paper taste. Then add the grounds, 21 grams of a medium-fine grind, the consistency of table salt. The first pour of the pourover process is supposed to “bloom” the grounds, or wet them and allow them to release their flavors. Stirring the grounds occasionally. Then add more water in a longer, swirling pour, followed by smaller quick hits until the mug is full. It’s slow, making only one cup at a time, but with practice it almost becomes second nature — and the results are unbelievable. The pourover yields a dark, thick liquid with a rich, robust taste.
•Method: AeroPress•
Time: 2 minutes Flavor Rating: 10/10
(Credit: Joe Lingeman)
It certainly doesn’t look fancy. It looks like a plastic bike pump and works somewhat like a French press. After adding a paper filter to the bottom of the chamber, you put the coffee (ground midway between espresso and a drip coffeemaker) and hot water in, stir, and then use the plunger to force the water through the grounds into your cup. While a French press, requires a four minute steep, this method only sits 10 seconds before plunging. The AeroPress, like a pourover or Moka pot, makes only one cup at a time, but it’s one superb cup. It’s dark, smooth, and rich with very little bitterness.
Which have method do you use?