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nreminder
2
Nov 1, 2017
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Typically, I buy whole beans from a big retailer, grind them in a standard electric coffee grinder, and brew with a cheap drip coffee brewer. I always felt there was a positive return on using freshly-ground beans.
In your opinions, what is the one thing I could use or do differently here that would make a difference? Some people swear by their aeropress/french press/chemex/kettle, I want to know what you feel is most important. Thanks!
Nov 1, 2017
MisterSnell
10
Nov 1, 2017
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nremindera burr grinder is an immediate improvement, and once you have that, start sourcing out local roasters or go online for "fresher" roasts. I started roasting my own beans after buying supermarket whole beans that might have been on the shelf for weeks! Beans have a certain life span for optimal flavour. I also suggest getting a kitchen scale and determining the best coffee to water ratio and weigh your beans before grinding and brewing. These few little and mostly inexpensive steps will result in a better coffee experience.
Nov 1, 2017
pdxguy44
7
Nov 1, 2017
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nreminderI agree with Mr. Snell on everyrthing he mentioned. The reason you want to switch to a conical burr grinder is the uniformity of the grind size. With a blade grinder you get freshly ground beans, which is great!, but the grind size is all over the place. This causes the grounds to extract at different rates, the smaller grounds going quicker than the larger grounds due to the surface area vs volume of individual ground. This also causes some grounds to get over extracted and some under causing the grounds to impart different flavors to the brew, i.e the over extracted grounds causing your brew to be bitter. Having a conical butt grinder helps greatly to improve the taste of your brew!
All of his other suggestions are spot on for greatly improving the taste of your drip machine. If you want to switch up your brewing method I recommend a French press if you generally buy darker roasts because the long steep time really helps bring out the long roast flavors with the longer contact time. If you like lighter roasts than the Chemex pour over devices are phenomenal. It brews a really clean, bright cup of coffee that really highlights the flavors of the beans from shorter roasting times.
I get a little carried away talking about coffee, if there's one thing you can do to really improve your coffee it's to get freshly roasted beans. If you want to change things up then the second thing to do would be to get a conical burr grinder. And for free just do some research on coffee brewing, since it's free you get a huge return on investment! With those three things you can make pretty great cups of coffee with a drip machine!
Nov 1, 2017
Dr.McCoy
345
Nov 1, 2017
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nreminderBurr grinder and buying your coffee from a specialty roaster are the next steps. I would get familiar with grinding and brewing ratios before investing in more equipment. This being said, specialty coffee is more expensive and if you're making huge pots of coffee every day you may save money getting an Aeropress or French Press.
Nov 1, 2017
pdxguy44
7
Nov 3, 2017
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Butt grinder for life bruh.
Nov 3, 2017
jkiemele
222
Nov 3, 2017
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nreminderIt's already been said, but a burr grinder is a game changer. Before I picked up my Baratza, I read that the grinder made the biggest difference in the coffee making process. I was skeptical that a grinder costing a few hundred would truly make that big of a difference. It did. Significantly. It comes down to consistency of grind size.
Nov 3, 2017
jthommarson
59
Dec 29, 2018
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pdxguy44No thanks I’ll keep my butt intact. 🤣
Dec 29, 2018
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