Gear
the equipment that makes the biggest impact
understanding how to pick good coffee and brew it will only get you so far
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brewing the best cup of coffee at home is going to take the precision and tuning of the right equipment
as you’ve hopefully learned by now, a perfect brew relies on coffee that’s not only ground fresh, but also ground consistently:
the best way to do this at home is with a burr grinder
WHY?
grinders come in two main options: blade and burr
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blade grinders spin a sharp blade (picture a blender) to chop the coffee into pieces - this is chaotic, random, and has virtually no grind size control and consistency
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this means that the same batch from a blade grinder will have both large and small grinds, leading to coffee that is both over- and under-extracted
BURR'S THE WORD
conceptually, burr grinders work by pressing the coffee beans between two surfaces (known as burrs) spinning relative to each other
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these burrs crush the coffee into smaller and smaller pieces, and only spit them out when they’ve achieved the desired grind size (controlled by the spacing between the burrs)
FLAT VS. CONICAL BURR
the shape of the burrs can be either flat or conical
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one isn’t universally agreed to be better than the other - for instance, it’s argued that flat burrs have better grind size control, but are louder and get hotter while grinding (which could affect the beans & brew)
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bottom line: they’re both significantly better than blade grinders, so pick one that fits your budget until you learn and grow more in your brewing
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
choosing a manual vs electric grinder is mainly a decision between cost and convenience
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decide on what range of grind size adjustments you need - some can grind from super fine (espresso) to coarse (french press), while others might focus on one end or the other for extra precision and consistency
BUYER BEWARE
a burr grinder is a prime example of getting what you pay for (these can range immensely in price)! check customer reviews for:
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ease to clean (any stale coffee bits left inside could affect and ruin future brews)
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reliability (some have a bad habit of not spitting out everything you put in, which means your coffee weight could be skewed)
while any kettle can technically do the job...
the best brewed coffee (in particular pour overs) require the extra precision and controlled pours of a gooseneck kettle
WHY?
the long spout of a gooseneck kettle (which stems from the base) is what sets this apart from other kettles
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this spout gives you a lot of control over the flow of water as well as where you pour onto (which is important for uniformly wetting the coffee)
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
there are some simple kettles that can just be heated on a stovetop
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however, remember that proper brewing requires the water to be between 195-205°F / 90.6-96.1°C, so paying extra for electric kettles that are temperature-controlled could be worth it to save yourself some time and energy
as you’ve probably gathered by now, all this precision in weighing means you need the right tool to measure everything:
the humble (but indispensable) scale
WHY?
in order control the “coffee-to-water ratio“ when brewing coffee, it’s important to use a precise scale to measure both the coffee and water
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using a tablespoon (or other volume-based tool) to measure coffee is extremely inconsistent - a tablespoon of coffee can weigh very different depending on the grind size (in my experience, 1 packed tablespoon of fine grind could weigh almost 10% more than coarse grind)
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
since you’d be measuring down to a 1/10th of a gram up to almost a kilogram, a digital scale would be far more precise and useable
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a scale with a tare/reset function is also important (to separately weigh the brewing vessel, coffee, and water)
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built-in timers are also great (and common) to watch your weight and timing in one place while brewing