Current wisdom says one tablespoon of ground coffee
per each six-ounce cup. Sound ridiculous?
That's because it IS ridiculous. Think about
your coffee carafe if it is larger than four cups;
if it isn't larger than four cups, you aren't
reading this page anyway.
Start by filling your carafe with water and then
pour that water into a measuring cup and record the
actual ounces of water your carafe is using.
If it is a '12-cup' carafe, it is probably 64
ounces, which is half a gallon. Using the
current wisdom (or lack thereof) mentioned above,
that would have you using 12-13 tablespoons (or
around six ounces) of coffee per pot and that's just
nuts. I like my coffee fairly strong; not
muddy or bitter, but strong and aromatic. I am
using four rounded tablespoons of ground coffee for
the 64 ounce pot I mentioned; sometimes 4 1/2 if it
is a coffee with a lighter roast. After about
five tablespoons, all you are doing is wasting
coffee; it isn't going to get any stronger or more
flavorful if you use three times as much coffee as
you actually need to. Do a few experiments
with your coffee and see what works best for you!
Use distilled water in your coffeemaker, whether you
are making perc, drip, espresso or French press;
your coffee will taste better and your coffeemaker
will last much longer. When you use tap water
you are loading your coffee and your machine with
all the minerals and chemicals that are added to
your local tap water.
Bottled drinking water is little better; the only
difference between bottled drinking water and tap
water is they have run a city's "municipal water
supply" (known as tap water) through a charcoal
filter and maybe a reverse-osmosis process, maybe a
little ionizing too. The result of that is
that most of the odors are neutralized and the
chlorine has been removed; all the stuff that ruins
your coffee machine and your coffee is still in the
water.
Purified water is drinking water that has been
heated; all the junk is still there. Spring
water is water that has NOT undergone charcoal
filtration, osmosis or ionization. It is the
same as well water from the location it originates
in; lots of great stuff to destroy your machine and
your coffee, as anyone with a well will tell you.
Distilled water is better because it is the result
of boiling the water in big vats; the steam from the
boiling runs through cooling tubes and is thereby
separated from the sediments present in tap water,
bottled drinking water and bottled spring water.
Distillation leaves the calcium, lime, chlorine and
everything else behind, giving you only the water.
This is why your steam iron and your clothes steamer
both say to use distilled water only.
Brewing Tip #3: NEUTRALIZING ACIDITY.
Okay, you've found your favorite coffee, maybe a
French Roast or Espresso Roast and you've brewed
a nice big pot. It has all the fabulous
aroma and rich heavy body that you could
possibly wish for, but it has a strong acid bite
that you find unpleasant; what do you do?
Simple! Get out your baking soda (orange
box, NOT baking powder!!) and a teaspoon from
your tableware drawer. Drop just the
smallest amount (about 1/16 of a teaspoon or
less) into the pot of brewed coffee; no shaking or
stirring required, you will now have a perfectly
fabulous, smooth coffee with no bite!
Mixing
Flavors or Roasts.
Mixing your flavors or roasts can open up a whole
new selection of personalized coffees that you can
make for yourself. In the process of bagging
Whole Bean Coffees for my clients, I have noticed
that there are many times two or more fragrances
that blend extremely well together and would make an
incredible cup!
Double Dark Chocolate and Amaretto makes the
loveliest Cordial Cherry taste; mixing the DD
Chocolate with the Hazelnut is beyond amazing!
I am not referring only to half and half mixtures,
but experimental mixes of 60/40, 75/25 or mixes that
involve a whole lot of this with just a dash of
that, so to speak.
The New Guinea mixes extremely well with Ambition
and also with Kona Blend for a remarkable coffee
that lingers pleasantly on the tongue. African
Blue Mountain can be used with any of the French
Roasts to lighten the taste just a bit if you are
just getting into the French Roast venue or even if
you are a Full City drinker who wants just a tad
more out of your coffee.
Customer
suggestions and experiences are always welcome;
please share yours!
Brewing
Tip 1: HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?