Hi, this sounds like a dumb question, but how should I “get into” coffee? Most of the time, I just use a Keurig and whatever pods I find at Costco. I know there’s an entire world out there of people who know exactly what they’re doing, but it’s all quite confusing.

If I’m typically only ever making coffee for myself, what should my brewing method be? Nespresso? Pour-over? French press?

And should I be looking to try everything black, or are lattes and whatnot a good way to learn what my tastes are?

  • jochem
    3·
    1 year ago

    This would also be my advice. Aeropress has been my daily driver for many years. Such a simple satisfying process (especially ejecting the coffee puck), forgiving in nature and a really smooth cup of coffee. It’s also extremely sturdy: I still use an old version with the blue markings.

    My recipe is slightly different. I stopped doing the inverted method, as it felt clunky and caused a mess once. Didn’t notice a change in flavor.

    My recipe for light roasts:

    1. Boil water to 100c.
    2. Grind 15g of coffee quite fine (I have the Wilfa Svart and I usually go a few notches finer than its Aeropress setting). Feel free to start with preground coffee, but get it at a place where they grind it for you when you buy it (they’ll ask which brew method you use, so they can adjust the coarseness). Make a cup the same day you bought it so you get the full flavor. Notice how the flavors deteriorate over time. This is when you probably want to get a grinder. When I was on a budget, I used a manual Hario.
    3. Set Aeropress on a cup, add coffee and 200ml of water right when it’s done boiling.
    4. Stir a bit to let any clumps fall apart and let it brew for 2 and half minutes.
    5. Slightly swirl the cup with the Aeropress on top of it, like you’d do with a wine glass. This settles the bed of coffee evenly according to James Hoffman.
    6. Press, remove coffee puck, rinse the Aeropress parts and enjoy your coffee.

    Light roasts are great with boiling water. Darker roasts are better with ~90c water. I rarely drink dark roasts, although recently I had a light to medium roast with an interesting flavor profile.

    15g to 200ml seems to be my sweet spot for most coffees. I do experiment with the grind settings and brew time when I get new coffee, but my starting point is the recipe above.