Instructions provided by Stone City Coffee Roasters.

In this section of our website, we are going to talk about the basics of brewing good coffee. We would like to demystify the coffee brewing process and make it easy for anyone to make gourmet coffee at home. Making coffee at home has many advantages:

It saves you time. You don’t need to drive to the coffee shop for an excellent cup of coffee.

It saves you money. Even though your initial investment of buying a coffee maker and coffee grinder might set you back a little, in the near future you will be saving money! Just think how many pounds of fresh roasted coffee (which translates into many cups of coffee) you can buy for the price of a few cups of coffee. Also, with the price of fuel being so high, the less driving you have to do the better!

It allows you to become the coffee expert. With a little time and practice, you can wow your friends with your excellent, top quality coffee! Use your imagination and create your own signature coffee drink!

There are many different methods of brewing a good cup of coffee, and we would like you to be the judge of which is best. We understand that there is not one technique that is right for everyone. You should choose the one that you prefer, according to your needs and preferences. We are going to give you the information that you need to make an informed decision. Do you like your coffee mild or more robust? Do you like a plain mug of hot coffee, or a small shot of rich espresso? There are so many options.

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Coffee Brewing Basics

There are a few basics that apply to all brewing techniques that we are going to touch on before talking about the specific brewing methods.

Fresh Roasted 100% Arabica Coffee

Arabica coffee is a type of high quality coffee that is grown at an elevation of 3000 – 6000 feet, close to the equator. Many coffee connoisseurs will not drink anything else. This is all we roast at Stone City Coffee Roasters since we believe in using only the best!

Our coffee bags come with a valve and a zipper to ensure optimum freshness. Make sure the zipper is always sealed or you can store your coffee beans by putting them into an airtight sealed container, such as a canister or glass jar with lid. Then keep them out of the sunshine and away from heat.

Coffee Grinders

Some people think that grinding their own beans is a waste of time. It does take a little bit more time, but it greatly affects the quality of the coffee. When the coffee bean is still whole, it acts as its own storage container, trapping the flavor inside. As soon as it is ground, the air attacks the flavor and quality of the coffee. So do yourself a favor, and grind your coffee just before brewing.

There are two common types of grinders, blade and burr.

The blade grinder is very inconsistent, giving you some tiny grounds, some large, and a lot of others somewhere in between. A consistent grind is essential to making good coffee. This type of grinder also has a tendency to heat the coffee as it grinds, which compromises the quality of the coffee. Obviously we do not recommend this one.

A good quality burr conical coffee grinder provides a very consistent grind, without heating the coffee in the process. This is what we recommend using.

Fresh Cold Drinking Water

When you consider the fact that the majority of your cup of coffee is actually water, you realize why it is so important to use good tasting water! We recommend using filtered drinking water. You can use a filter system that fits onto your tap, a pitcher with a filter, or you can purchase good tasting, filtered, drinking water.

Correct Water Temperature

The perfect water temperature for brewing coffee is 195 – 205 degrees Fahrenheit. If you are heating water in a kettle or pot, this is water that is just off the boil about 20 seconds.

If you are using an auto drip coffee maker, check the manual and see what temperature your machine brews at. If the water is too hot (boiling), it will be over extracted and you will have bitter tasting coffee. However, if the water is too cool, you will have an under extracted cup of coffee that is weak and flat.

Correct Brewing Time

The ideal length of time for the hot water to be in contact with the ground coffee is 4-6 minutes. That is important if you are using a manual brewing method such as the French press, where you can carefully control this.

Keeping Equipment Clean

Always wash your equipment with hot soapy water. Coffee has a lot of oil in it, which can build up in the equipment. This oil will turn rancid over time, and then you will have bad tasting coffee!