Grinding 

The grinder is probably the single most important part of making coffee. There are two general types of grinders, Blade, and Burr. Burr grinders are broken up into two categories as well being flat burrs and conical ones. There are slight differences in performance for different roast levels and one can really home in on what they like if they use a variety of these many times.

Blade Grinders: These are usually under $50 and they have a metal blade that spins when you press the button. Generally, the grind from coarse to fine is determined by how long one holds the button down. Shaking the grinder while it’s operating does help significantly however these grinders almost always produce an inconsistent grind. Yes, you’ll get a cup of coffee but it might not be as good as you’d like. By inconsistent I mean there will be many large pieces (boulders) and many small pieces (fines). The size of them determines the overall surface area of the ground mass. Surface area is where the extraction happens and you can imagine a multitude of flavors instead of one consistent one.

Burr Grinders: I use a conical burr grinder daily and my wife uses a flat burr grinder. I think the difference is nearly imperceptible but others may disagree. In general, flat burrs are best for lighter roasts, and conical burrs are best for darker roasts. To me, I find there is a difference in the mouthfeel of the cup. I find the flat burrs make a “cleaner” cup and the coffee tastes thinner. I find conical burr grinders produce a richer and heavier cup albeit there’s usually some sludge in the last tablespoon of coffee in the cup. I usually spill it out and am still satisfied because 99% of the cup was excellent. I recommend one invests at least $100 in their grinder. In the end, it will pay for itself - you’ll use less coffee because you’ll get a more consistent grind than you can possibly get from a blade grinder.

 

Water

Water is super important as well. Many of us have harder or softer water from out taps.

The minerals in the hard water can influence the flavor of the cup. When in doubt, spring, or filtered water is best.

I happen to like the taste of the municipal water in Westborough MA and if you’ve tried our samples, that’s what you’re drinking.

The rule of thumb is if the water doesn’t taste great on its own, it will likely produce an inferior cup.

Temperature: The temp of the water is also very important for proper extraction. I use a French press as my daily driver.

When I’m making a light roast cup, I pour the water in while it’s still boiling.

For a medium roast I switch off the kettle and let it sit for 30-60 seconds until the boiling stops.

For a dark roast, I let the kettle sit for two minutes before I introduce it to the coffee in the press. 

Extraction time is four minutes for a French Press.

Even if it’s not insulated, 4-5 minute is fine because in that time it’s too hot to drink anyways.

 

Fresh Roast Coffee vs. Store-Bought Coffee

Fresh Roasted Coffee: This is best used within three months of the roast date. It will still be superior to most store-bought coffee for the next three months but after that it will also begin to go stale. Stale coffee has the hallmark of being bitter. A nice life hack is to put a pinch of table salt in your cup if you find the coffee is bitter. You don’t want to add enough to make it taste salty, just a pinch will do. This masks the bitter receptors in your mouth. The coffee will still have the bitterness to it but you won’t taste it as much. Fresh roasted beans, especially light roasts are denser than ones that have been sitting around for a long time. I know my light roasts will give any grinder a good workout, and with my manual 1Zpresso grinder I have to put some muscle in it to grind it down. My electric one powers through it, but it’s an expensive grinder so I do expect that.

Store-bought coffee: Almost every supermarket in America requires wholesalers to put a “best by” date on their products. This is misleading when it comes to coffee. One could drink ten-year-old coffee and it won’t make them sick. It might taste bad but it won’t make you sick. Most of the time a store-bought coffee is six months old before it even hits the shelf. Many of them sit there until the best by date which is a date that doesn’t give you the complete information to make the best choice. It’s not the best result for the consumer but if one wants to sell in supermarkets they have to play by their rules. Store-bought coffee that has been sitting for a long time will also be drier and produce more fines when ground. This is helpful for coffee that isn’t that great to begin with because the fines will produce a stronger extraction and kind of hide the fact that it was an average, or
below average roast.

 

Grind Size

This ultimately comes down to preference. When making espresso one usually needs to “dial in” the grind. Most grinders capable of make a fine espresso or Turkish grind will have upwards of two dozen settings. Some coffees taste better a step or two up or down from the previous coffee. This is really a trial-and-error process and you’d need to pull several shots and adjust accordingly to avoid over or under extraction. Once you find the setting you like best, leave it there…until you switch coffees. I find this holds true with a French press method as well. Conventional wisdom says that a coarse grind will be best suited for a French press. Personally, I disagree and use a medium grind setting for my full emersion coffees. I go a bit finer for pour-overs and a bit more course for percolator brews and cold brews. Even with cold brew and percolators I still go a step or two finer than the “coarse” setting.

 

Coffee Ratio  

Finally, this is something that most people just eyeball.  You'd do yourself a favor by using a small scale.  One can purchase this at a place like Target for about $20.  A scale that measures in grams is more accurate in my opinion.  Weigh the coffee and weigh the water.  The hot coffee samples I make have a ratio of 15:1 (water: coffee) and the cold brews have a ratio of 10:1. Admittedly, this is a stronger ratio than most prepared coffees at a shop.  At home, one can do whatever they want but that's the beauty of it. My cups comfortably hold 400g of water which is approx. 14oz. and I use 27g of coffee for that amount of water.

Caffeine Content

Light roasts have more and that is ubiquitous.  This is the case because some of the caffeine sublimates in the roasting process.  The air temperature can reach 600 degrees and the final bean temperature can come in at around 400 degrees.  Some caffeine is lost in this process but hey, the angels need to get theirs somehow.  The biggest contributor to final caffeine content comes because most people measure their coffee with a scoop...by volume.  Lighter roasted beans are smaller and denser so one would get more beans per scoop than a dark roast.  Yes, the beans gain about 25% in volume from their green state yet they lose 18-20% of their weight in the roasting process.  For this reason, I always titrate my coffee with a scale. There still is a difference in caffeine content however it is minimal using this method. Cold brew contains about 50% more caffeine than hot coffee due to the ratio used to make it.

 

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I hope that you find something helpful here and it improves your overall coffee experiences.