The Perfect Cup of Coffee

As temperatures steadily decline, it’s imperative to consider how one can fend off the bite of the cold weather. Extra layers of clothing, a good pair of wool socks, and a reliable heater are all smart provisions to have in the fight to stay warm, but there’s one indispensable ally that shouldn’t be overlooked: a good cup of coffee.
No matter how you choose to brew your cup of joe—and there are myriad methods—make sure you take a little time to research how to do it properly to ensure that your coffee is not only warming and energizing, but tasty, too.
One of the easiest methods of making coffee at home is the pour over method. I spoke with Filip Makara, one of the roasters from Five Elephant Coffee Roastery in Berlin to get a few expert tips for using the pour over method at home. He recommends taking the following steps. Before we get started, though, here’s what you’ll need:

a coffee dripper
paper filters
a coffee grinder (preferably burr mill)
a digital scale
a stopwatch
a cup or carafe
high quality coffee beans of your choice
a thermometer, if you’ve got one on hand

Step 1

Heat up 20 oz / 590 ml water to approximately 91 - 94°C / 195 - 201°F. If you don’t have a thermometer on hand, simply bring the water to a rolling boil and then allow it to sit for approximately 2 – 3 minutes.

Step 2

Coarsely grind 21 g / 0.75 oz of coffee using a burr mill grinder—this type of grinder allows for a more uniform grind. Adjust coffee grind size to reach desired strength and flavor

Step 3

Place a paper coffee filter in the dripper. Pour one third of the hot water over the filter, making sure to wet all of it. Allow the water to drip through and then discard.

Step 4

Set either a carafe or cup on top of a digital scale, place the dripper on top, add 21 g / 0.75 oz ground coffee to dripper, and set tare to 0.

Step 5

Start the timer from 0 seconds. Slowly pour the water, starting at the outer edge and moving inward in a spiral. Stop pouring after 15 seconds, once the scale reaches a weight of 50 g / 2 oz. All of the coffee grounds should be wet; a spoon can also be used to stir the grounds and saturate them. This is what is known as the coffee bloom. At 0:30, move onto the second pour.

Step 6

Begin pouring the water again, this time starting in the center and moving outwards. Stop around 0:50 and when the scale reaches a weight of 150 g / 5.25 oz.

Step 7

Now, at 1:00 pour another 100 g / 3.5 oz. of water over the dripper and stop at approximately the 1:20 mark.

Step 8

Finally, at 1:30 min add another 100 g / 3.5 oz. of water. At approximately 3:00—when the water has fully filtered through—remove the dripper from the carafe or cup.

Step 9

Enjoy!