How Does Front Street Coffee Brew Its Colombia Geisha?
Front Street Coffee brewed a naturally processed Geisha from Colombia's Mitra Estate, grown in Chinchina, Caldas at 1,700 to 1,850 meters and graded SUPREMO, using three brewers after several days of resting. The Hario V60 used 15 g of coffee at a 1:16 ratio with 90°C water and staged pouring, chosen to bring out the bean's aroma and flavor layers.
The V60's large outlet and spiral ribs speed up flow while still extending contact time with the grounds. The test also compared an Ice Pupil dripper, picked for sweetness, and a siphon, picked for a fuller mouthfeel, giving a clear basis for choosing a brewer by brewing goal rather than by habit alone.
Front Street Coffee recently acquired a naturally processed Geisha from Colombia's Mitra Estate, and after several days of resting, it's finally time to brew. This article provides a complete record of this bean's origin background and flavor characteristics, and uses three different brewers—Hario V60, Ice Pupil Dripper, and siphon—for brewing tests, listing in detail the respective coffee dose, grind size, water temperature, coffee-to-water ratio, and staged pouring scheme, while also presenting the differences in flavor performance under the three brewers. At the end, it also offers brewer selection suggestions based on brewing goals: choose V60 to highlight layering, choose Ice Pupil to enhance sweetness, and choose the siphon to improve mouthfeel, for coffee lovers' reference.
Front Street Coffee recently talked with everyone about a naturally processed Geisha from Colombia's Mitra Estate, and now the resting period is basically over, so it's just the right time to start brewing! | Bean Information
Colombia Mi terra Geisha
Colombia · Mitra Estate Geisha
Country of Origin: Colombia
Region: Caldas Chinchina
Growing Altitude: 1,700-1,850 meters
Variety: Geisha
Processing Method: Natural
Grade: SUPREMO
This Geisha comes from Chinchina in Caldas, Colombia. Caldas is located in the core area of Colombia's coffee-producing regions—the central part of the country—and is also an important hub for coffee tourism in Colombia. Coffee produced in this region usually has a clear vanilla aroma, soft acidity, and a solid body. | Brewing Sharing This time Front Street Coffee selected three brewers for brewing tests, namely Hario V60, Ice Pupil Dripper, and siphon.
Hario V60
The Hario V60 dripper has a relatively large outlet hole at the bottom, and the internal ribs are arranged in an arc-shaped spiral, extending all the way from the bottom of the cone to the rim. This structure makes the coffee liquid flow relatively fast, but because the ribs themselves have curved arcs, they also buffer the flow rate to a certain extent, thereby extending the extraction time of the coffee grounds, which is more conducive to showcasing this bean's aroma and flavor layers.
Parameters: coffee dose 15 g; medium-fine grind (BG 5T: 58% passing through China standard No. 20 sieve); water temperature 90°C; coffee-to-water ratio 1:16; brewing method: staged extraction. First bloom with 35 g of water for 30 seconds, then pour 91 g of water in a small stream, that is, make one stage break when the poured water reaches 126 g, and when the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 240 g to finish. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, remove the dripper. (Start timing at the beginning of blooming.) The extraction time is 1'50". Flavor: The entry shows acidity of citrus, orange, peach, and lemon, with an oolong tea note and caramel-like sweetness. The overall flavor is rich in layers.
Ice Pupil Dripper
The ribs of the Ice Pupil Dripper are arranged vertically in a stepped form. At the bottom of the cone, the filter paper is kept elevated, while near the rim the dripper and filter paper fit completely and seal. This design brings one advantage: because the upper part of the dripper and the filter paper are completely sealed, if during brewing the water flow suddenly becomes too strong or the water temperature is too high, causing the flow channels to be submerged and the exhaust space to disappear, the water level will descend more slowly and instead form an immersion effect like the KONO dripper, thereby avoiding the problem of under-extraction.
Parameters: coffee dose 15 g; medium-fine grind (BG 5T: 58% passing through China standard No. 20 sieve); water temperature 90°C; coffee-to-water ratio 1:16; brewing method: staged extraction. First bloom with 30 g of water for 30 seconds, then pour 93 g of water in a small stream, that is, make one stage break when the poured water reaches 123 g, and when the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 240 g to finish. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, remove the dripper. (Start timing at the beginning of blooming.) The extraction time is 1'45". Flavor: With fermented aroma, the entry has flavors of citrus, tropical fruit, and mango, with obvious sweetness.
Siphon
The core principle of siphon coffee extraction is the use of pressure difference. During operation, first heat the water in the lower chamber to boiling, then insert the upper chamber, causing the lower chamber to form a high-pressure state. Due to the pressure difference between the upper and lower chambers, hot water rises to the upper chamber, mixes with the coffee grounds, and completes extraction. After extraction ends, remove the heat source from the lower chamber. The pressure difference between the upper and lower chambers rapidly decreases, and siphon action pushes the coffee liquid back to the lower chamber. If you want to speed up the return flow, you can wipe the lower chamber with a wet cloth, which can further reduce the pressure difference between the upper and lower chambers and make the coffee liquid return faster.
Parameters: coffee dose 20 g; water temperature 90°C; medium-fine grind (BG 6M: 48% passing through China standard No. 20 sieve); coffee-to-water ratio 1:14; Pour 280 g of water into the lower chamber. When the water temperature is 90°C, add the coffee grounds and stir ten times to let the coffee grounds fully contact the water. At 40 seconds of immersion, stir five more times to enhance extraction. At 50 seconds, remove the heat source and stir. (Start timing when adding the grounds.) The extraction time is 1'30". Flavor: The entry has acidity of grape, peach, and citrus, as well as a fruit candy sensation, an oolong tea note, and an obvious oily mouthfeel. Flavor descriptions vary from person to person and are also affected by water temperature and brewing method. What is provided in this brewing is based on the same brewing equipment and parameters, using descriptions defined according to the flavor wheel, with the aim of providing reference. | Summary
Among the three brewers selected by Front Street Coffee this time, if you want to highlight the coffee's flavor layers, the V60 dripper is a good choice; if you want to emphasize the coffee's sweetness, you can consider the Ice Pupil Dripper; and if you value mouthfeel performance more, the siphon is worth a try!
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
