coffee

My Coffee Journey

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Welcome! I'm Ben. I made this page to talk about my coffee hobby. Pull up a seat, let me pour you a cup, and let's chat.

How I got Started

circa 2011

The AeroPress was my gateway into third-wave coffee. It’s a unique, quirky brewer with a cult following and perfect for someone starting their journey because it requires no extra equipment and is very forgiving.

my kit contains an AeroPress, filters, mug, and beans and fits in a child's lunchbox

I started by microwaving the water in a mug and getting beans ground at my local café.

This remains the brewer in my travel kit because it is so compact, and all I really need is access to near-boiling water.

My next purchase was a hand grinder. A conical burr grinder is usually touted as the first thing to invest in because, after high-quality beans, it has the most impact on the flavor.

Being able to grind your own beans also means you can minimize the time between grinding and brewing.

I also had a frothing wand, but it was around then I realized I enjoyed coffee without any additives.

It Good!

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Speaking of flavor, the realization I had after I started brewing my own coffee was that it doesn’t have to taste bitter. Think of it more like tea. The whole thing with this third wave of coffee is that you can pull all sorts of flavors out of coffee.

I've read that coffee is more complex than wine, and just look at how much wine-tasting is a thing.

Coffee tastes good on its own.

by the way, those flavor notes are just hints. I used to think they meant it indicated what was included in the process. like, it might say cherry, and I thought they used cherries to roast them or something.

Nutty, woody, fruity, flowery—those are just a few adjectives you might encounter. Roasters usually put some flavor notes on the bag. Over time, you will discover what your preference is. Or not—I like variety so I constantly cycle through.

What were the first and second waves?

I think the first wave was freeze-dried flavor crystals, and the second wave was Starbucks, essentially. but it's just an internet search away...

Cafés

Your local third-wave café is a great resource. I have always found the baristas to be helpful to give advice and answer questions. They are like guides for your journey.

How do you tell if a café is “third wave”?

Do they serve single origin espresso? If they serve food, are they staffed enough to focus on coffee?

Any establishments mentioned in https://sprudge.com/ are good. They do guides to coffee in various cities, but even if a city was not featured, often you can search and find a specific one.

And not just about coffee. When I travel to other cities, I make it a point to visit a local café—not just to get good coffee, but usually the folks there are plugged into the local art & music scenes and can give non-touristy recommendations on stuff to do!

Current Setup

These days, my daily setup consists of a Kalita Wave 185, scale, grinder, and electric gooseneck kettle. I brew every morning for me and my wife, and this affords greater capacity than an AeroPress.

When we have company, I use my 6-cup Chemex. It works fine for everyday use as well.

I don't get too fussy about the recipe these days. I make sure I have around 1:16 coffee-to-water ratio and that's about it.

to be specific, I grind 30g of coffee at "medium fine", put it in the Kalita, pour in water, wait for it to draw, pour more. Repeat until I get up to 500g...

'Spro Tho?

I originally used this image to represent espresso. I was informed that this is a kopi cup.

What about espresso? To me, it's a different category than brewed “coffee.” It's a different process that produces a thicker, more concentrated drink. Because of this, it is often paired with varying amounts and kinds of milk (that is, cappuccinos, lattes, etc.)

A good barista prides themselves in making a good espresso. It takes work to know the equipment and “dial it in” on a daily basis. For this reason, I make it a point to order a plain espresso whenever I'm out.

Drinking an espresso shot is intense and it's definitely an acquired taste. Even with a decent barista, it can sometimes turn out just okay. But every now and then you get a shot that is exquisite. I look forward to those. It's better to drink it as soon as it's made. The flavor changes as the temperature drops.

Cheers

🙌🏻

thanks for reading

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published may 24, 2021

updated may 3, 2024