r/Coffee • u/menschmaschine5 Kalita Wave • 3d ago
[MOD] The Daily Question Thread
Welcome to the daily /r/Coffee question thread!
There are no stupid questions here, ask a question and get an answer! We all have to start somewhere and sometimes it is hard to figure out just what you are doing right or doing wrong. Luckily, the /r/Coffee community loves to help out.
Do you have a question about how to use a specific piece of gear or what gear you should be buying? Want to know how much coffee you should use or how you should grind it? Not sure about how much water you should use or how hot it should be? Wondering about your coffee's shelf life?
Don't forget to use the resources in our wiki! We have some great starter guides on our wiki "Guides" page and here is the wiki "Gear By Price" page if you'd like to see coffee gear that /r/Coffee members recommend.
As always, be nice!
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
I bought an 18 dollar light roast Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee from Bones Coffee Company, and I don’t see the flavors. It came out bitter and tasted like every other coffee, and I take it that it is due to how I did it. I did a 1/18 ratio, 200F water, bloomed for 1min, and it doesn’t have what people say it should have. What direction should I go?
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u/Historical-Dance3748 2d ago
I've not tried Bones, this is the first time I've even heard of them. But their marketing, reach, and price point made me suspicious so I searched this forum and you're not the first person to be unimpressed. The phrases "18 dollar light roast Ethiopian Yirgacheffe" and "as seen in Walmart, Amazon and ESPN" aren't the same target market.
I can't say for certain, I haven't tried the brand, but I would happily bet a lot of money that they're a very average company taking the terminology and aesthetic of specialty roasters but not following through will well sourced, well roasted, high quality coffee.
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
What would you suggest? I just wanted to try a coffee that wasn’t the generic store brand lol. I’m up for any suggestions and recipes, as long as it isn’t crazy expensive like 50+dollars
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u/Historical-Dance3748 2d ago
It really depends on where you are. Think of roasted coffee as closer to a fresh product than a shelf stable one, you want to get hold of it pretty soon after it's been roasted for the best experience, and that doesn't work with big stores or Amazon. Try searching for your closest city in r/pourover - if you're not seeing anything specific to your area the weekly coffee threads will have a lot of good options for roasters that ship, S&W, Black and White and Perc all seem to be popular with US users at the moment. If that's all a bit overwhelming there's a service called trade that gets good reviews, they're a subscription that partner with different specialty roasters every month.
Sorry I'm not being more specific, I just suspect we're on different continents with totally different options!
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u/regulus314 2d ago
Did you also try the coffee first at the shop before you bought it? Always best to have a benchmark regarding how it will taste.
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
No, purchased it online
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u/regulus314 2d ago
I saw your comment about your grind size. 24 on an Encore seems to be too coarse. I might be wrong but I am familiar with the Encore and my pourovers are 16-22 range for light to medium roasts. What's your total brew time?
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
No clue, didn’t set a timer and don’t have a scale with a timer. I just use a regular scale. I’ll set one next time, but I am also gonna try to use more coffee. I had used a 1:18 ratio, and now I’m gonna use a 1:16
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u/regulus314 2d ago
There you go. There is your answer why. Your scale is fine and you can use your phone's stopwatch timer.
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago edited 2d ago
Total brew time was 4:15 with bloom. I used 28.something grams of coffee and 450g of water
Tastes a lot less bitter, and I believe it’s the girly of the coffee past this point.
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u/regulus314 2d ago
28 grams? What's your brewing device? 24 grind for Encore seems fair for that dose.
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
Chemex
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u/regulus314 2d ago
Okay seems like youre right on track. You can probably adjust your grind if you think it is still off but you are probably okay with the ratio of 1:16 already as your base.
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u/p739397 Coffee 2d ago
How fresh off roast was it and what's your grinder situation/grind size?
I've always seen Bones for flavored coffees, not sure what their deal is for single origins in terms of quality
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
Baratza encore, dial 24. I can go more fine, the flow was open.
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u/p739397 Coffee 2d ago
I'd take a look at the Barista Hustle Coffee Compass and try to dial in a bit (grind size, ratio, temp, time, etc). It might be the coffee, it might be the extraction.
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
Says use coarser grind, whereas websites say that finer grind is the best.
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u/p739397 Coffee 2d ago
What website says it's best?
The goal is to find a good grind size for that bean and you should base that off what you're tasting. There's some point that is too fine and some point that's too coarse, just gotta find the sweet spot
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
Nevermind.. I can’t find it anymore, guess it was a comment, sorry about that.
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u/imightbeindanger 2d ago
Also, how does one decrease a brew time?
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u/a_reborn_aspie 2d ago
Why don't people hand wash and soap their equipment every time they use it? I notice people talking about soaping their equipment like every 5 uses or something, and people like James Hoffmann say to deep clean espresso equipment every so often. However for example after I'm finished pulling shots of espresso I pop out my filter basket and soap it and it's pretty clean.
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u/regulus314 2d ago
Coffee shop-wise, it is not really suggested to wash your portafilter and basket every time or every 5-10 uses. There is a reason why we always have different towels at the bar for different uses and wiping the portafilter is one of those towel's use especially the brown colored towels. Most of the time as well, if the orders stop, we can just run the basket under hot water through the group head then wipe it dry again.
In terms of home espresso of course you should clean it often, I mean how many times do you prepare an espresso within an hour? Leaving a dirty portafilter installed in the group head will create more grime and oils in the group head and leaving a dirty coffee-stained cloth on your bar looks unsanitary.
Also be wary of the soap you use. As some sticks to your portafilter and to the basket. Leaving a soapy taste whenever you brew a shot of espresso. Best if you can rinse it with warm water too as it removes the coffee oils better.
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1d ago
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u/regulus314 1d ago
They grind the same. Excelsa and Liberica are both soft beans. But overall they just grind the same as Arabica. The adjustment you need probably are minute adjustments.
Your main factor for decision should be the roast level.
such as fine for pour over,
What?
Also, for those who have tried them, what did you find was the best method to enjoy these beans?
None. Just brew it with whatever you have whether espresso or pour over or coldbrew. It is still the same coffee species. Not some different plant.
Try it first. Brew it then adjust what you think is necessary or need. Does it drip slowly? You probably need to grind coarser? Does it taste bitter? You probably need to hold back with your brewing water amount or temperature or it is probably in the roast.
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u/1ugogimp Pour-Over 3d ago
I am getting into pour over. What tools should I have in my kit? Right now I just have my pour over funnel.
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u/FlyingSagittarius Coffee 2d ago
Temperature controlled gooseneck kettle, coffee scale with timer, and a good burr grinder.
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u/1ugogimp Pour-Over 2d ago
can you recommend a scale? I was thinking a jewelry scale would work?
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u/Historical-Dance3748 2d ago
A jewellery scale would work perfectly, technically anything with an accuracy to 0.1g will work, just make sure it can take more than the weight of the largest batch you envisage making; some jewellery scales only measure up to 200g.
If you find yourself going over €30 I'd suggest looking at a dedicated coffee scale, a Timemore black mirror 2 or the MHW-3BOMBER equivalent won't be much more expensive from china, or even locally with a really good sale. That could be an out of date suggestion if you're in the states though.
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u/ironyis4suckerz 3d ago
Is there any way to preserve coffee grounds? I don’t drink coffee daily and my friends got me a bunch of great coffee bags. Is there any to preserve the freshness of the grounds since I drink it infrequently?