Wondering why your brew just don't taste quite as good as the what you get from the cafe? Here are a few tips to can up your coffee game and match the pros!
The optimal water temperature
The temperature of the water affects what kinds of flavors you extract from the grinds. Boiling water is too hot, and over-extracts the coffee, leaving the final cup with unpleasant bitter notes. If the water is too cold, it under-extracts your grinds, and leaves you with a bland cup and sour notes.
"Blooming" your coffee
After coffee is roasted, the beans release carbon dioxide, which is called "degassing." After the beans are ground, the degassing happens even faster. This process is further accelerated when the grinds come in contact with hot water. The blooming step helps the carbon dioxide escape into the air, rather than going into the coffee. Carbon dioxide leaves a sour taste if it gets into your coffee, so blooming helps you brew a smoother, less sour cup.
Your choice of mug
If your mug is deep and tall, the pouch sits above the coffee level in your cup throughout the whole brewing process, so the hot water is only extracting from the grinds as it drips through the pouch. However, if your mug is smaller or shallower, then towards the end of your brew the pouch is sitting below the waterline of coffee in your mug, which means the grinds are getting immersed in your coffee, and you will extract a bit more flavor this way. Neither is better or worse, but you will likely get a stronger and slightly more bitter cup if you use a smaller mug. Check out this blog post for more info!
A mid-afternoon coffee break is a shared experience across so many professions and workplaces. Level up that experience with one of these activities below! Whether you're working from home or back in the office, we've got ideas to for you.