There are many factors that affect the taste of coffee. During the brewing process, the factors that affect coffee include the coffee-to-water ratio, grind size, water temperature, etc. Among them, grind size can be said to be very important. There is a saying in the industry: "You can buy a cheaper coffee machine, but the grinder must be the best." It has to be said that grind size really has a very important impact on the taste of coffee.
If the coffee grounds are too coarse, the surface area of the coffee grounds is small, making it difficult to extract enough flavor substances from the coffee, so it tastes weak and insipid; if the grind size is too fine, the surface area of the coffee grounds is too large, extracting too much bitter and astringent flavor. Therefore, choosing an appropriate grind size is very important.
Pour-overCoffee grounds coarseness standard
So how should the coarseness standard for pour-over coffee grounds be distinguished? Front Street Coffee uses freshly roasted coffee beans as an example. Experienced pour-over enthusiasts all know that single-origin coffee beans for pour-over are divided into medium-light roast and medium-dark roast.
Among them, medium-light roast coffee beans will show acidity, while caramelized flavor substances are not easily extracted. Therefore, Front Street recommends usingmedium-fine grind size(80% pass rate through a 0.85mm No. 20 sieve, that is, the size of fine granulated sugar). Medium-fine grind size can slow down the time for water to pass through the coffee bed, better extracting the acidic substances, sweet substances, and caramelized substances in the coffee, so that the coffee flavor can be balanced.
For medium-fine ground coffee, the recommended brewing water temperature is 90-91°C. Too high a water temperature will over-extract caramelized substances and produce bitterness; too low a water temperature will under-extract, extracting only some acidic and sweet substances, making the coffee flavor flat and insipid.
Medium-dark roast coffee beans generally tend to have low acidity and obvious body, which means caramelized flavor substances will be more abundant. Therefore, Front Street recommends using a medium-coarse grind size (70% pass rate through a 0.85mm No. 20 sieve, that is, the size of coarse granulated sugar). Medium-coarse grinding can speed up the time for water to pass through the coffee bed, so that caramelized substances will not be over-extracted, allowing the coffee's flavor and mouthfeel to show sweetness and body without producing unpleasant bitterness.
For medium-coarse ground coffee, the recommended brewing water temperature is 88-89 degrees Celsius. Too high a water temperature will make the coffee flavor bitter and difficult to swallow, while too low a water temperature will make the coffee flavor insipid and flat.
The above is the pour-over coffee grind size standard. This is also a relatively scientifically based standard that Front Street Coffee has obtained through repeated practice. So how exactly should the coffee grounds be sifted? Front Street Coffee will tell everyone now.
How to use a 0.85mm No. 20 sieve?
Regarding grind size, Front Street Coffee determines it through the sieving method. Based on the grinding recommendations provided by the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCA) for pour-over coffee, Front Street Coffee then verifies them in combination with actual operation. If there is no sieve at home, Front Street Coffee suggests judging by observing the flow rate: if the flow is too fast, the grounds are coarse; if the flow is too slow, the grounds are fine.
First, prepare 10g of coffee beans for grinding. Based on the size of fine granulated sugar and coarse granulated sugar, initially set a grind size, then pour it into the sieve, cover it, and shake left and right so that the coffee grounds pass through the sieve and fall into the powder receiving tray below. The sieving is considered complete only when no more coffee grounds pass through the sieve. Then prepare an electronic scale and a container, tare it to zero, pour the sifted coffee grounds into the container and weigh them. If the sifted coffee grounds reach 8g01, it is medium-fine grind; if the sifted coffee grounds reach 7g 01, it is medium-coarse grind. If the pass rate is too high, adjust the grind size coarser; if the pass rate is too low, adjust the grind size finer.
Black coffee brewing methods and Front Street CoffeeGrind size coarseness standardSieve pass rate::
Cold drip > Pour-over Siphon 80% > American drip 75-80% > Cupping 70-75% > French press 65-70%
How fine should espresso coffee be ground?
The base of espresso coffee is espresso, which is what we often call espresso. The extraction of espresso is carried out quickly under the 9bar high pressure of the coffee machine. The extraction time generally does not exceed half a minute, so this requiresespresso coffee grind sizeto be much finer than pour-over coffee, so that enough flavor substances can be extracted to support espresso coffee.
The standard for each grinder is also different. Taking Front Street Coffee's grinder Faema 900N as an example, Front Street Coffee's average grind setting is in the range of 1.8 to 2.0. Of course, this is not absolute. Every day, the barista will make adjustments before opening, adjusting extraction parameters, including grind size, according to the resting state of the espresso beans, the weather that day, and the final taste of the coffee in the mouth.
For example, today Front Street Coffee's extraction plan is 20 grams of coffee grounds,grind sizeat 1.8, extracting 40 grams of coffee liquid, with a time between 27 and 28 seconds. The choice of a 1:2 ratio is intended to preserve a more complete coffee flavor, and the choice of this flow rate is to highlight the dark chocolate and aroma of the Front Street Sunflower Warm Sun espresso blend coffee beans used in the shop.
The moka pot also belongs to a type of espresso coffee. It is a coffee tool positioned for home use. When the moka pot brews coffee, it generates 1.5-3bar of pressure. If used properly, it can also produce crema.
Many friends care about what the grind size for a moka pot is. Its grind size is slightly coarser than that for an espresso machine, with a particle diameter of about 0.3-0.55mm. You can use two methods to determine it. The first is to buy a particle size ruler or refer to special moka pot grounds; the second is to debug continuously. Generally, it will not take many times; after 3-5 tests, you can basically figure it out. If the grounds are coarse, the coffee liquid will spurt out rapidly, and may even spray like a fountain. If the grounds are fine, you will hear the humming sound of boiling water, and if the coffee liquid has not come up yet, then it is too fine. It is recommended that you turn off the heat quickly. Remember to take safety precautions when doing such debugging.
What coffee beans are better for use in a moka pot?
Coffee beans suitable for a moka pot generally require medium-dark roasting. Front Street recommends first trying espresso blend coffee beans, such as Front Street Specialty Espresso Blend Coffee Beans. This espresso blend coffee bean uses coffee beans from Brazil and Colombia, and the coffee made has a clean and balanced nutty chocolate flavor, suitable for espresso machines and moka pots. If you want a more special flavor, you can choose Front Street Sunflower Warm Sun Espresso Blend Coffee Beans. This blend uses Front Street Yirgacheffe Sun-Dried Red Cherry and Front Street Honduras Sherry blended together, which can highlight the flavors of caramel, vanilla chocolate, and sherry.
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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
