It exists and it probably isn’t going to be found at Starbucks.
What you really need to make a good cup of Joe: good water, good heat source for your water (with temperature control on it if you can,) good beans, good bean grinder, good coffee maker, and a little patience first thing in the morning.
This is 2021 and we are all obsessed with coffee. Might as well take a look at how good we can actually make it better. Michael Pollan wrote that we are a caffeinated society and that we actually have a different mindset when caffeinated, in “This Is Your Mind on Plants.” I tend to believe him and will admit I love the taste, the ritual, and the feeling of my caffeinated mind.
Beaujy Coffee Chemex-style.
The Chemex is the ultimate pour over. I love me a good cappuccino, but for me it’s the classic American full cup of coffee that I go to.
Start with the water – this is the majority of what you are going to be drinking. This needs to be pure and somewhere around 204 degrees. We have a Reverse Osmosis filter at the house, and it makes a damn good cup of coffee. I start with filling up my kettle with the RO water. For the kettle I also went big. I got a Fellow Stagg kettle that you can preset the temperature to, and it will hold the temperature. This thing is pretty pricey, but it is so beautiful. Couple tips – don’t fill it too high or it will spill, also it forces you to be patient during the pour over, pour slow my friends or face the wrath of spilled boiling water. Takes a little getting used to, especially if you’re waking up in the dark, but IT’S WORTH IT!
We got the water sorted, it takes a couple minutes to get to your desired temp. Time to sort out the beans. This can be a big debate, and you can get very into buying beans from a single site and roasted to your liking. I like a strong cup of joe. I like Peet’s Coffee beans, and I can buy them relatively cheaply from Costco. Isn’t that a big chain that mass produces coffee? No. It’s mainly a roasting company that focuses on getting high quality and fresh beans direct to your cup of coffee. There is a roasted date on each bag and it is generally very recent.
Grind those beans! Most burr grinders will do, get a semi rough ground on them, and make sure that the ratio of beans to water is accurate. 2 tablespoons for every 6 ounces of water, this part is important, don’t be making any weakass coffee.
We got the water heating up, we got the grounds a grinded, and we probably woke up anyone in the house at this point.
Take a Chemex filter, they are thick, and need to be wet down a little bit before being placed in the top of the glass Chemex.
Why use a filter? Well we use a filter because it’s delicious and according to Dr. Rhonda Patrick it is the best way to drink your coffee if you are at all concerned with longevity. “Filtered coffee has been linked to a 15% lower all-cause mortality, 12% lower heart disease risk in men, and 20 % lower heart disease risk in women.” She says this and you can read the full story HERE, she tweeted about it, study seems solid. Something about the filter that Chemex makes actually creates a somewhat sweeter flavor for the coffee also. It’s delicious.
So we wet down the filter, put it in the glass carafe, now it’s time to unload the beans into the filter and get pouring!
The pour over will likely take a little time. Start pouring the water right into the middle of the beans in the filter, once it starts mushrooming out you can start pouring in small circles making sure to wet all the grounds. I pour in a clockwise manner, unless your brewing some sort of potion, it probably doesn’t make a difference which way you spin it.
Once you get close to filling up the top of the carafe with water, set the kettle back on the heater to ensure your water temp is going to be accurate and wait a bit until the liquid level drops. DO NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT let those beans get dry. It will ruin the whole batch, and the last 10 minutes of your morning. Keep it wet, when the level gets low, start the process again and pour more water getting all grounds wet. Repeat until the water is all out, and you got yourself some fresh brewed liquid gold!
Now it’s time to pour that into your mug of choice, I always recommend as big of a cup as you can handle.
Dress as needed. Here’s where coffee snobs will get triggered; I put a little Stevia and half n half in my coffee.
One more tip is to enjoy this cup of coffee without interruption for the next 10-15 minutes. Put on a nice podcast, turn on some spa music, this is the perfect start to the day and will allow you to have at least a 10% better day.
The Better Life 