A Nice Cuppa

Does figuring out how to make the perfect cup of coffee feel like an up hill battle? Have you ever been to your neighborhood coffeehouse, tasted their coffee of the week and liked it so much you bought some beans to brew your own at home but just could not get that same great taste? Follow these no fail tips and you’ll be brewing up the perfect cup in no time.

1. Grinding the beans. Not all coffee makers use the same consistency grind. Take an espresso maker and compare it to a French Press. For espresso the consistency needs to be fine, similar to sand, while coffee ground for a French Press should be much more coarse, similar to kosher salt. Automatic drip coffee makers need a medium grind, which falls somewhere in the middle of French Press and espresso.

2. Water. Take a sip. Will you drink it? If you don’t like the taste of the water, you shouldn’t use it for making your coffee. Coffee is 98% water, so it’s important to like the water you’re using to make your coffee.

3. Temperature. Forget what you’ve heard, forget what you’ve done even - coffee should be stored at room temperature in an air tight container. Some say that coffee should be stored in the refrigerator or freezer to maintain freshness, but that’s false and only lends more opportunity for the beans to pick up the flavor of other items in the freezer or refrigerator. When serving coffee it is recommended that you serve it at a temperature of about 195??F to 205??F, just below a boil.

4. Measure. We’re not talking about making sure you’ve accurately measured out your required 3 teaspoons of sugar into your mug. No, we’re talking about measuring the coffee and the water. A general rule is that two tablespoons of ground coffee to every six ounces of water is the ideal measurement. If you have too much water you’ll overstrip the beans and have coffee that tastes bitter, but make your coffee with too little water and the result will be weak coffee.

In addition, instead of having your beans ground in-store you might want to consider purchasing a grinder. That way you can grind your beans at home, as you need them. You can also take tips from the article Coffee Funk Fix, and clean your coffee maker. It’s amazing what a difference a good cleaning can do. We don’t think about our coffee makers actually needing to be cleaned - we think if we clean the filter basket, the pot and wipe everything down that’s enough right? Read the article and you’ll think twice before you answer that question.