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Customers who often come to Front Street for coffee sometimes ask the barista if there's a lazy-person coffee machine suitable for home use, preferably at a reasonable price. Well then... let's get to know the American drip coffee maker! The American drip coffee maker (Drip Coffee Maker) is currently one of the more commonly used coffee machines, suitable for coffee beginners to use at home or in the office; it is simple to operate, convenient to use, and the process is basically very standardized. Generally, brewing a pot of coffee takes only 5-8 minutes. Are you, the viewer, also tempted? Next, Front Street will give you a detailed introduction to common American coffee makers, as well as their operating standards and usage methods.

Coffee maker is a general term for brewing equipment. Classified by brewing method, there are two types in total: drip coffee makers and espresso machines. Before World War II, what was more popular in the United States was the household drip machine. Its body was small and operation was very easy, making it all the rage in American households. The American coffee we buy in coffee shops now is all made with espresso. What is the difference between this kind of espresso and American coffee?

The Americano made with an espresso machine is made by adding water to espresso. During World War II, American soldiers in Europe were not used to drinking Italy's traditional espresso, so they mixed hot water into the small shot of espresso, diluting the coffee and deliberately making it have the same taste as drip coffee. This way of drinking was despised by Europeans and only liked by Americans, so Europeans called this kind of coffee "Americano." After hearing the story of American coffee, everyone can follow Front Street to learn about American coffee makers.

What coffee beans are used for American coffee makers

In fact, there is no fixed answer for what beans to use in an American coffee maker. Whether it is single-origin coffee or espresso blend coffee, both can be used, so we just need to choose according to our own preferences.

If you like black coffee with floral and fruity flavors, then focus on medium-roast coffee beans. Front Street Strawberry Candy espresso coffee beans are recommended, and you can place an order directly on Taobao or Tmall stores. This is a blend based on two major origins: Front Street Costa Rica Tarrazu, famous for its honey process, and Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee. On this basis, with the addition of Colombian coffee beans, the espresso produced this way is not only not harsh, but under extraction by the coffee machine, it has good crema and a velvety texture, while also having a sweet-and-sour taste like strawberry gummy candy.

For friends who like mellow coffee, Front Street Classic Espresso Blend is recommended. This is a formula composed of three origins: Brazil, Indonesia, and Vietnam. It uses a deep roast, which can highlight the mellow aroma of the coffee to the greatest extent and also allows everyone to easily extract rich and dense coffee crema. Whether making an Americano diluted with water or a latte paired with milk, it is very suitable. For grind size, Front Street chooses a fine sugar level, so the black coffee brewed this way has a moderate mouthfeel.

American coffee maker models and capacities

American drip coffee makers generally have two common models: 5-cup and 12-cup, meaning they can brew a maximum of 5 cups or 12 cups of coffee at one time; usually the glass carafe capacity and water tank capacity of a 5-cup coffee maker are 550ml-650ml; the glass carafe capacity and water tank capacity of a 12-cup coffee maker are 1.2-1.3L;

Water usage standard for American drip coffee makers

The one-cup measurement standard referred to above is based on 100-120ml/cup, which means brewing one cup of coffee uses between 100-120ml of water; generally, American coffee makers should brew at least 2 cups at a time. Water level markings

Ground coffee amount standard

Generally, for American coffee, one cup of coffee is 100-120ml/cup and requires adding 5-7g of ground coffee. Each American coffee maker has its own dedicated coffee scoop with markings. One cup of coffee generally corresponds to one scoop of grounds, and if brewing several cups of coffee, add several scoops of grounds; no matter what kind of coffee beans, as long as they are ground into powder, they can be used.

Standard for matching water and grounds usage

To brew 1 cup of coffee, add 100-120ml of water. Referring in detail to the markings in Step 2, add water to the coffee maker's water tank up to the corresponding marking; and to brew one cup of coffee, add 1 level scoop of ground coffee, generally about 6g. You can increase or decrease the amount of ground coffee according to your own taste.

Steps for using an American drip coffee maker

Step 1: Grind the coffee beans into ground coffee. If what you have prepared is already ground coffee, omit this step. According to the number of cups of coffee to be brewed, determine how many beans to grind. It is recommended to grind as much as you drink and brew as much as you grind. Brewing 1 cup of coffee requires about 6g of ground coffee. If brewing several cups of coffee, grind the corresponding amount of coffee beans. Generally, an American coffee scoop is 6g, so you can use the scoop to measure one full scoop of coffee beans for grinding, corresponding to 1 cup of coffee.

Step 2: Take out the glass carafe, open the coffee maker's filter basket, and put the ground coffee into the coffee maker's filter. Note that generally to brew one 100ml cup of coffee, use 5-7g. Put the ground coffee into the coffee filter; of course, different coffee makers are equipped with different coffee scoops, generally 5g, 6g, 7g, and 10g. Determine the amount of ground coffee according to different coffee makers; here the coffee maker we use is demonstrated with a 6g amount of grounds.

Step 3: Close the filter basket, open the water tank, and add water into the water tank; water addition principle: for however many cups of coffee you brew, add the corresponding number of servings of ground coffee, and then add the corresponding amount of coffee water. Add 100ml per serving. You can use the glass carafe to add water to the water tank until it reaches the required water amount on the coffee maker's water level markings. The corresponding parameters can refer to the water usage standard described above; in addition, some coffee makers' glass carafes have markings on them that are completely consistent with the water level markings on the coffee maker, which can accurately help you add the amount of water.

Step 4: Cover the water tank, close the coffee filter basket, put the glass carafe back onto the warming plate, plug in the power, and turn on the coffee maker switch.

Step 5: Wait 5-8 minutes, and a pot of coffee is brewed (when no more coffee liquid drips from the upper part of the glass carafe, the coffee is done brewing). Then turn off the switch and enjoy delicious coffee.

Step 6: According to personal taste, you can add sugar or fresh milk　

Like this, the coffee made with an American coffee maker is all hot. If everyone wants to drink iced Americano, how should iced Americano be made?

Two methods: First, reduce the amount of water and add ice cubes to the extracted coffee liquid, but relatively speaking the coffee as a whole will be diluted a lot. Second, use espresso liquid and mix it into a one-to-one mixture of ice and water.

Seeing this, I believe everyone can make a perfect cup of coffee at home, but here Front Street needs to remind you, the viewer, that the coffee grind size used by an American coffee maker is completely different from that of an espresso machine. What degree of grind should an American coffee maker use? Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) responsibly tells everyone that it is similar to pour-over coffee, because both are drip coffee and their brewing principles are similar, so the grind size of the ground coffee does not need much adjustment. If you do not have a grinder at home, you can ask the store to grind the beans for you when purchasing coffee beans.

What coffee beans are suitable for American coffee makers? Front Street believes that the flavor and mouthfeel of American coffee are closely related to the coffee beans used. Any coffee bean is suitable for an American coffee maker, entirely based on personal subjective feeling. Broadly speaking, light-roast coffee beans have very obvious fruity acidity and a relatively strong juicy feel. Medium-roast coffee beans are prominently expressed in their nutty and balanced, smooth flavor. Dark-roast coffee is more bitter than the above two types of coffee beans, but its chocolate aftertaste still makes people unable to stop. Similarly, the Americano made by an espresso machine is also like this, except that almost all espresso beans are dark-roasted. But the obvious characteristics of the coffee beans can still be detected, such as Front Street's rather special espresso blend coffee beans—Warm Sun Blend has a very obvious fermented aroma, creamy chocolate texture, and rich layers.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.