I do not obsess over coffee.
I do not obsess over coffee.
I do not obsess over coffee.
Are we clear on that? Good. Now, let me tell you about how I obsessed over coffee recently:
Let’s get experimental! (Photo: Mark A. Zeiger.)
A while back, I told you about my Aeropress® coffee press (see What Defines “Perfect” Coffee?). In that post, I listed the device’s advantages and disadvantages, chief among the latter being that it calls for more—twice as much, according to the included instructions—coffee beans than my normal morning cup.
Largely because of that, I haven’t used the press much. Then, the other day, I checked a Web site I like, I Love Coffee.JP and found new, more specific instructions on how to use the Aeropress.
These instructions specify the amount of coffee beans very minutely: 15-17.5 grams.
“Hey,” I thought, “I have a scale that can measure that!”
Disclaimer: the following experimentation occurred after my morning cup of coffee.
I poured my usual scoop of coffee onto the scale and weighed it, then added beans until I found both ends of the specified range. I then poured the beans from one measuring cup to another until I found one (a 1/4 cup scoop from a particular set) that I have a reasonable chance of filling to the proper level consistently.
All told, the amount of coffee the new instructions call for equals a heaping scoop, much better than two scoops from that measure. This seems much more reasonable from a frugal standpoint.
Also different from the “official” instructions, these new ones call for using more water in the press, which gives one more coffee, with all of the water pressed through the grounds, rather than a small amount, to which one would add regular hot water. Subtle difference, but the new instructions err on the side of coffee!
Of course, the final test came in making coffee with the press from that amount of coffee. The result: very, very nice! So much so that I might join Michelle and Aly using the morning water kettle, and give my beloved Italian espresso maker a rest more often.
For those of you new to the blog, this is definitely not my first rodeo (see Exploring Coffee’s “Magic” Ratio and Coffee Experimentation: Doodles in the Report’s Margins. Note that some of the latter is apparently contradicted by the post above!).