Coffee Brewing Introduction

Coffee plant

As I mentioned in the article before, it's painful to watch some home baristas boil the life out of their. In this article, I will explain to you a little of my perspective on 'Coffee Brewing' including ,brewing factors, brewing category, and many more! Read more to find out!

What Is Coffee Brewing

Now, before we start on the subject, what is coffee brewing anyway? Scientifically speaking, coffee brewing is the process of extracting the soluble material in roasted and ground coffee. In a simple way, how to make your coffee go yum-yum.

Coffee Brewing Category 

To make it simple, coffee brewing can be categorized in two categories, which is Hot Brewing and Cold Brewing.

Hot Brewing

Hot brewing, as the name suggests, uses a high temperature water to extract the chemical components of the coffee. There are so many ways you can brew coffee with these categories. I will briefly explain some of the most popular ways.

• Pour Over or Drip Method

Kalita Wave

Pour over or drip method is a very popular method among us coffee lovers. This method generally can be done by directly pouring hot water  into your mug through a dripper and filter. It can be done manually or automatically, but usually I prefer to do it manually purely because i can control the results and its quite therapeutic for me. Some of the most famous drippers of this method are V60, Vietnam Phin, Kalita Wave, Chemex, and our own dripper Sengkedan.

• Steeping or Immersions

French Press

This one method is the most common way Indonesians brew their coffee. Steeping your beans will allow you to extract plenty of flavour and caffeine. If you’re looking for strong, dark flavor coffee, you may want to try one of these full-immersion methods, which put your beans in direct contact with water for at least a few minutes. Some of the most famous ways of steeping or immersion brewing are Tubruk or Cupping, French Press, and Siphon. 

• Boiling

Turkish Coffee

Okay, I know what you're thinking. 'Aren't you telling me not to boil the coffee and kill its soul?'. Yes, but this method actually exists for a reason, okay? Because it's the most simple, and yet effective if done properly. This method is quite easy, you basically mix the grounds, water, and put it on a heat source. Some of the most famous boiling methods are Turkish Coffee and cowboy coffee.

• Pressure

Espresso

This method is one of the most popular in the world, with espresso as one of the most recognizable coffee as a product of this method. Pressure-based methods typically require a little more machinery to work well. Most use pressure to move water quickly through coffee grounds. Some of the most famous are espresso machines, moka pot, and aeropress.

Cold Brewing

Cold Brew Coffee

As the name suggests, unlike hot brewing, in cold brewing you will brew the coffee with cold temperature water or even with an ice cube! This method has one of the most famous coffee products called Cold Brew Coffee. Using cold water immersion will allow the extraction to be slow and gentle. This brewing method takes a longer time compared to hot brewing method, but resulting in a smoother and slightly sweeter coffee! You can also infuse it with nitrogen and make nitro coffee.

Factors of Coffee Brewing

There are a ton of factors that can affect your coffee brewing, but for "simplicity" sake, I will explain it in the most simplest way. They are 3T, 1G, 1W, 1R, which means: Time, Temperature, Turbulence, Grind sizes, Water quality.

• Time

Time is considered one of the easiest one to control. The longer the time the more extraction will happen. 

• Temperature

Temperature is very crucial because it depends on the roast level and what kind of coffee you want to brew. This will change the temperature rapidly.

• Grind Size

You have to consider the grind size based on what beverage and method you will use. This basically increases the surface area, making the extraction going faster.

• Turbulence / Water Flow

Have you ever seen a barista pour the water clockwise, counter clockwise, or even do not swirl at all? We usually use this on pour over method because it very much affects the results.

• Water Quality

PH and mineral level will affect the flavour profile. So, make sure you're using good water.

• Grounds to Water Ratio

This one kinda explained itself, the higher the water ratio the lighter the coffee will get. It also depends on what kind of beverage you wanted to make.

How Do You Know That Your Coffee is Good?

The coffee geek or coffee nerd will use TDS meter to count the total dissolved solid in the coffee. You may ask yourself, 'What if I don't have those devices?'. Always trust your senses, smell, and taste. If it tasted good, then congratulations! You just made a good cup of coffee.

Which One is The Best Method?

Then, the next question, which one is the best one to brew your beans? At what ratio should I do it? Do I need expensive gear for it? So on and so forth. The answer is simple, do whatever method you want to do! But please do keep in mind the factors that I mentioned before.

Does My Cup Affect My Coffee?

The short answer is yes, the longer answer is depends on your question. Is it about the material or the general shape? 

The cup material has a major effect on how you taste the coffee. If your cup was made with paper and you're drinking a pour over coffee, your coffee probably will have a papery taste even after you rinse your paper filter properly. 

The shape of the cup itself will have a "minor" effect on how you enjoy your coffee. The first one is how much is the cup headspace. This is the space between the top of the coffee and the lip of the mug. The more headspace there is, the more the coffee has room to aerate, when you take a sip of your coffee. The second one is the tilt of the cup. If the surface area is greater and closer to the nose when the drinker tips tilts the cup, they can experience more of the aroma. 

In Backus ceramic, we have a variety of beans and cups for you to choose! 

See you soon!