Every part of the world has its own distinctive coffee equipment; some, though not invented locally, have been perfected there. Ethiopia has the ceramic coffee pot, Turkey has the ceaselessly bubbling cezve, Italy has the moka pot, and Vietnam, with its "phin," has made drip coffee popular around the globe. This article will walk you through the structure and use of the Vietnamese phin, teach you step by step how to make an authentic cup of Vietnamese drip coffee at home, and answer the question of which coffee beans to use for drip coffee grounds. It will also include bean recommendations from Front Street Coffee to help you choose the right beans for your phin, so your brew comes closer to the flavors of a Vietnamese street stall. [more…]

In coffee cultures around the world, almost every producing region has its own distinctive brewing device. The Vietnamese phin is one of the most representative examples—simple in structure and easy to use, it is an essential tool for making Vietnamese condensed milk coffee. This article begins with the phin's construction and historical origins, then explains its standard method of use in detail, and, drawing on Front Street Coffee's actual extraction parameters, explores an interesting question: can this drip brewing device be used for pour-over coffee? If you are interested in exploring the many ways to use brewing devices, why not follow along with Front Street and give it a try. [more…]

In hot weather, a glass of cold brew coffee always brings a refreshing coolness. Front Street Coffee's cold brew has recently been in short supply, and many people choose it not only because its flavor differs from ordinary iced coffee, but also because they feel they can't make it at home. In fact, with just a dripper, a few filter papers, ground coffee, and ice cubes, you can put together a simple "home-version cold brew tower." This article breaks down in detail the equipment, parameters, operating steps, and common mistakes of this method, while also explaining the extraction impact caused by the structural differences between a dripper and a cold brew tower, and providing a list of Front Street beans suitable for making cold brew. Finally, it will also explain how long cold brew coffee needs to be refrigerated and fermented after it is formed, as well as how long it can be stored under refrigeration and at room temperature respectively. [more…]

There are many ways to brew coffee, and cold drip is one of them. Cold drip coffee is also a type of iced coffee, and in summer, iced coffee is even more of a favorite among coffee lovers. Cold drip coffee is naturally not brewed with hot water, but with low-temperature water, which is different from our usual pour-over coffee. [more…]

For coffee enthusiasts who pursue convenience without sacrificing flavor, besides the parameter-focused pour-over method, drip bags, French presses, and moka pots are also brewing tools worth mastering. In its in-store brewing experiments, Front Street Coffee tends to favor simple, direct methods to bring out the true character of beans from different origins. This article will explain the operating procedures for these three devices one by one: how to tear open a drip bag, spread it out, pour water, and discard it; how to select beans for a French press, determine the grind size and coffee-to-water ratio, steep, and press down slowly; and how a moka pot uses steam pressure, from adding water to the lower chamber, distributing the grounds, heating, to judging when to turn off the heat. The article also includes Front Street's grind size reference standards and specific parameter suggestions to help you consistently reproduce a good cup of coffee. [more…]

Although cold brew coffee is not common in everyday home brewing, its clean taste and rich fermented aroma have made it unforgettable to many coffee lovers. Making cold brew coffee requires a dedicated cold brew pot and takes a long time, which is also why it remains relatively niche. However, the core of a cold brew pot is actually just the flow restriction valve—as long as you can control the dripping speed of the ice water, you can make cold brew coffee at home even with an ordinary dripper. This article will cover the choice of roast level for cold brew coffee beans, grinding and coffee-to-water ratio, extraction time, and a simplified method that does not require a professional cold brew pot. It also includes Front Street Coffee's bean list recommendations and practical parameters for friends who want to try cold brew at home. [more…]

For many coffee enthusiasts, their first brewing device is often a moka pot—it's aesthetically pleasing, affordable, and easy to use. But some people prefer the lab-like ritual of a siphon brewer, or rely on the ever-present home drip coffee maker. What exactly are the differences between these three devices? And how big is the gap in the flavor of the coffee they brew? Front Street Coffee will analyze them one by one, from principles and construction to operation procedures and flavor performance, and include detailed brewing steps for the moka pot and siphon brewer to help you find the cup that suits you best. [more…]

Cold brew coffee is a brewing method that uses cold water for low-temperature extraction over a long period of time, producing a full, smooth, non-astringent and rounded cup with lower caffeine content than other brewing methods. Its history can be traced back to the Dutch invention on the island of Java in 1699, and today it has become a highly sought-after drink among coffee lovers in summer. This article will systematically introduce the origin of cold brew coffee, the extraction principle, the differences from pour-over coffee, detailed preparation steps and key points for controlling the drip rate, and share three cold brew recipes often used by Front Street Coffee — the dark berry type, the clean and crisp type, and the sweet and pleasant type — while also explaining the best drinking period and storage recommendations for cold brew coffee. [more…]

Want to easily make a smooth cup of Americano at home, but don't have an espresso machine? In fact, the moka pot and the drip coffee maker are two alternatives that are very suitable for home or office use. This article focuses on these two devices, explaining in detail the coffee grind size, reference ratios of coffee dose to water volume, water temperature control, and specific operating techniques, to help you avoid the common problems of over-extraction and weakness. At the same time, we will also compare the taste differences between making Americano with a moka pot and a drip machine, and based on different flavor preferences, provide suitable coffee bean roast levels and specific Front Street Coffee bean recommendations. Whether you like it rich and full-bodied, or prefer it fresh and clean, you can find the cup of black coffee that suits you. [more…]

The same coffee beans, extracted with a different approach, will yield a completely different flavor in the cup. From the perspective of Front Street, this article systematically reviews the characteristics and suitable scenarios of four common extraction methods—drip, immersion, pressure, and siphon—and focuses on answering frequently asked questions such as how to brew drip bag coffee, how many times it can be brewed, whether it counts as Americano, and how it differs from instant coffee. Using a 10-gram Front Street drip bag as an example, the article provides a three-stage pouring plan with a coffee-to-water ratio of 1:15 to 1:18 and a total water volume of 150 to 180 milliliters, along with Front Street bean recommendations for each extraction method, helping coffee lovers consistently produce a clean cup of drip black coffee in the office or while traveling. [more…]

Want to easily make a good cup of coffee at home, but don't know which brewing device to start with? Front Street Coffee has recently welcomed quite a few new customers who are no longer satisfied with simply drinking coffee, but instead want to master different extraction methods. This article systematically sorts out commonly used home coffee brewing methods, covering espresso, pour-over single-origin, drip bags, siphon, moka pot, cold drip, AeroPress, French press, and the Clever Cup, along with equipment selection, operating points, and flavor characteristics. It also introduces the specific flavor performance of several of Front Street's espresso blends, helping coffee lovers, on the basis of understanding the principles, find a brewing solution that suits their own taste and pace. [more…]

Want to brew a delicious pour-over coffee? How exactly should you set the grind size, water temperature, and coffee-to-water ratio? This article first outlines the general principles of coffee brewing, then breaks down one by one the operating details, advantages, and disadvantages of eight brewing methods, including siphon, water drip, espresso, paper filter, piston pot, Belgian pot, and moka pot. No matter which device you usually use, you can find reference parameters and steps here. At the end, it also gives specific suggestions based on Front Street Coffee beans to help you put theory into daily practice. [more…]

Want to enjoy a refreshing glass of cold brew coffee but don't want to buy an expensive cold drip tower just for that? In fact, you can rig up a simple cold drip setup using the coffee gear you already have on hand. This article starts from Front Street's hands-on experience, breaks down the structural principles of a cold drip tower, shows how to replace the original equipment with a V60 dripper, a flat-bottom dripper, and a server, and explains in detail every step of the process: distributing the grounds, pouring water, adding ice, and cold-brewing in the fridge. It also covers how the size of the dripper affects your choice of coffee dose, and the key role that ice cube size plays in the extraction, so you can easily make a full-flavored cold brew coffee at home. [more…]

Can filter paper only be used for pour-over? In fact, in cold brew, ice drip, espresso, and even moka pot brewing, filter paper also plays an important role, just with different functions emphasized. This article compiles the practical experience of Front Street Coffee and explains one by one the specific uses of filter paper in different extraction methods: why cold brew needs secondary filtration, what roles the upper and lower filter papers in an ice drip brewer each play, what changes adding filter paper above the puck or at the bottom of the portafilter basket brings to espresso, whether a moka pot should use filter paper, and the correct approach to using filter paper to filter coffee grounds. Whether you are just starting out or want to refine your technique, you can find practical reference solutions here. [more…]

For more specialty coffee knowledge, please follow: Front Street Coffee (Frontsteet Coffee). Many customers who come to Front Street to drink coffee discuss whether there is a difference in taste between ice drip coffee and cold brew coffee. Both are common methods of making cold coffee. Today, Front Street will conduct an experiment on these two [more…]

Ice drip coffee and cold brew coffee are two common cold coffee methods, and many coffee enthusiasts discuss the taste differences between them when drinking coffee at Front Street. This article, through actual experiments, uses the same Front Street sun-dried Huakui coffee beans and employs both ice drip and cold brew methods to make coffee, conducting a comprehensive comparison from production time, equipment, coffee-to-water ratio, extraction scheme to the final flavor performance. Ice drip coffee is clear and bright, with a clean and refreshing taste, carrying fermentation notes and a vinous charm; cold brew coffee, on the other hand, has a full body, obvious fruity sweetness, and a uniform flavor. Through this experiment, the significant difference between the two in terms of a clean and refreshing taste can be clearly identified. [more…]

Every morning, many office workers start their day with a cup of Americano—it wakes them up and pairs well with breakfast. But have you noticed that the price of Americano varies hugely from shop to shop, and some even offer free refills? Behind this are actually two common "American" methods: diluting espresso with water, or brewing with a drip pot. The two differ in ingredients, equipment, flavor, and cost. From the perspective of Front Street Coffee, this article breaks down the broad definition of Americano, compares the differences between espresso-machine and drip-pot output in taste, consistency, and price, and explains why some Americanos come with free refills. Whether you're a coffee enthusiast or just need your daily fix, you'll find the answer here. [more…]

In the world of coffee, brewing methods are incredibly diverse. Thanks to its simple operation and clean flavor profile, the drip method has become the most common brewing choice in offices and homes. This article will systematically sort out the definition of drip coffee, its similarities and differences with pour-over coffee, and how it compares with espresso, immersion, and decoction extraction methods, while also explaining practical points such as water temperature control and equipment selection in detail. The article also combines Front Street Coffee's brewing experience to recommend suitable water temperatures and dripper types for beans of different roast levels, helping coffee lovers find their own cup of good flavor in daily brewing. [more…]

Front Street Golden Mandheling is produced in Sumatra, Indonesia, and is a premium choice within the Mandheling family. It presents herbal notes, caramel sweetness, and steady fruit acidity, with a rich, wild spice flavor and a lingering finish; even when released before second crack, it maintains excellent clarity and sweetness. This article will start from its flavor characteristics, screening process, and roasting interpretation space, explaining in detail the diverse extraction methods for this single-origin coffee, and focusing on the moka pot brewing steps and safety points to help enthusiasts better experience its sweet, mellow richness. [more…]

Front Street Coffee has recently welcomed many new faces to its stores. People are no longer just drinking coffee—they're also learning different brewing methods. The simplest brewing method is none other than pour-over coffee. Compared to the expensive and space-consuming espresso machine, a simple [more…]