If you are not satisfied with the quality of the brewed coffee, please think carefully about what parameters you want to change. I suggest you start by changing the grind size. If the coffee tastes bitter, it may be over-extracted. The grind scale must be changed to coarser the next time you brew. Try grinding it a little bit finer. In no time, you will find the grind size setting that works best for you.
Stove-top Moka Pot
The moka pot was patented in 1933 by its inventor, Alfonso Bialetti, and the company Bialetti still manufactures these popular brewers to this day. Moka pots are still mostly aluminum (you may have heard some rumors about aluminum a few years ago), although most people expect stainless steel to be available.
The moka pot described below works a little differently than those that most people use, but it's likely to work even for people who are already happy with the coffee they've made. One of the things I don't like about the moka pot is that it heats the water too hot, extracting very bitter compounds. Some people may especially love the bitterness, but others would hate moka pots because of it. The brewing techniques described below can help people rediscover the reason for this long-forgotten brewing device to be respectable and enjoy Moka pot coffee from a different angle.
To brew a good moka pot coffee, choose a lighter espresso roast or a slightly lower-altitude brew coffee to avoid overly bitter taste.
However, due to the high water-to-powder ratio and relatively short brewing time of the moka pot, it is still difficult to brew some coffees with light roasting, high density, or particularly good sour and fruity flavors. I recommend using the lighter roasts from the espresso, or using beans from slightly lower altitudes, and I would avoid darker roasts as the moka pot is inherently prone to bitterness.
Water power ratio: 200 g/l. Most of the time, you can't really control the water-to-ground ratio, you just fill the filter with coffee grounds and pour water into the base that doesn't reach the pressure relief valve, so there isn't really much room to change the brew quality.
Grinding size: finer grind/fine salt, I don't recommend using a fine grind scale like espresso, this is a topic of debate, I prefer a slightly coarser, because I want the bitterness in the coffee to be minimized.
1. Grind just before you start brewing. Fill the filter with ground coffee and level the ground without pressing.
2. Brew a pot of fresh drinking water suitable for brewing coffee, low in minerals. The advantage of using hot water is that the entire moka pot is heated on the stove for a shorter time, and the coffee powder will not be damaged by heat, which can reduce the intensity of bitterness.
3. Pour hot water on the base of the Moka pot until it reaches the water level under the pressure relief valve. Never allow water to exceed the pressure relief valve, which is a safety device that will allow excess pressure from the base to vent, as shown in Figure A.
4. Put the filter filled with ground coffee in place, make sure the round rubber gasket is completely clean, then carefully assemble the whole moka pot. If the upper and lower seats are not fully seated, the brewing process cannot proceed smoothly, as shown in Figure B.
5. Put the moka pot on the stove, turn on medium-low heat, and keep the upper lid open. When the water in the seat starts to boil, the pressure generated by the steam will push the hot water up from the hollow tube in the middle to the position of the coffee powder layer. The greater the firepower, the greater the pressure and the faster the brewing process will be completed. It should not be too fast, as shown in Figure C.
6. In the upper seat of the moka pot, you should see the coffee come out slowly. Listen carefully, and when you hear a purring sound it is time to turn off the heat and stop brewing. This grunt means that most of the water has risen and that steam is starting to pass through the coffee grounds layer, which creates more bitterness.
7. To stop brewing and continue, cool the base of the moka pot with cold water from the faucet, the water vapor will condense and the internal pressure will disappear, as shown in Figure D.
8. Enjoy your coffee.
Be sure to cool down to a safe temperature before taking the moka pot apart for cleaning. After cleaning, make sure that all parts are dry, and do not lock all structures when storing, which will cause the rubber gasket to age faster.
The Electric Filter Machine Method
The biggest advantage of an electric filter coffee machine is that it saves a lot of hesitation and improves a lot of reproducibility, but you still need to maintain a stable amount of coffee grounds and pay attention to adding a fixed amount of cold water to the machine. Those two points aside, we can trust the machine for the rest of the work.
However, most home electric filter coffee makers (especially the cheap ones) often make bad coffee, mainly because the cheap models don't heat the water to the correct temperature. Before buying a filter coffee maker, make sure it can reach the proper brewing temperature. Organizations like the Specialty Coffee Association of America and the European Coffee Brewing Centre certified coffee machines, and I highly recommend buying a brewer certified by both organizations.
In the same way as hand-brewed coffee, it is better to adjust the taste of coffee by changing the grinding thickness.
We will also try to avoid buying machines with thermal insulation pads. Put a pot of coffee on the thermal insulation pad to keep it warm, and the flavor of the coffee will be boiled out, resulting in some unpleasant flavors. You can choose a double-layer vacuum thermal insulation pot. model.
Water powder ratio: 60 g/l. I recommend starting with this water powder ratio for all hand and filter coffee brewing methods, but remember to experiment a bit to find your favorite water powder ratio.
Grinding size: medium/fine sugar-like thickness, if you want to brew 500ml to 1 liter of coffee at a time, the grinding scale should be coarser, there are many models that can brew to 1 liter or more at a time.
1. The coffee beans are weighed and ground before brewing.
2. Put the filter paper into the filter cup, turn on the hot water button to wet the filter paper.
3. Push the filter cup back into position in the machine and pour in fresh, low-mineral drinking water suitable for brewing coffee.
4. Turn on the power. Always pay attention at the beginning of the brewing process, as soon as part of the coffee grounds is not wet, stir with a spoon as soon as possible.
5. Wait for the brew to finish.
6. Discard the coffee grounds and filter paper.
7. Enjoy coffee
In the same way as hand-brewed coffee, it is better to adjust the coffee taste by changing the grind size.
Milk? Cream? Sugar?
Now that we have a cup of coffee at hand, do we need to add milk and sugar? Many coffee lovers have noticed that the coffee industry workers look milk and sugar as a no-no. Many see this as snobby, and adding milk or sugar is often a topic of debate between coffee practitioners and consumers.
One thing that coffee practitioners often forget is that most coffees actually need to be added with something to make it easier to drink. Inexpensive commercial coffee that is improperly roasted or brewed tastes rather bitter and has no sweetness at all. Milk or whipped cream tends to decrease bitterness, while granulated sugar makes coffee easier to drink. As a result, many people are used to the taste of milk and granulated sugar in the coffee, even when they are handed a cup of carefully brewed coffee. This can lead to frustration for a barista, a professional roaster, or a simple coffee lover.
Coffee professionals do not like to use milk and sugar to cover the flavor of coffee. If you want to be part of the coffee world, it is recommended to taste the original brewed coffee first, then add milk and sugar.
Good coffee should have its own sweetness. Milk can decrease bitterness, but it will also take away the flavor and personality of coffee, covering the crystallization of coffee producers' hard work and the coffee personality from the original terroir. I would recommend trying the original flavor before adding any sugar or milk, and adding milk or granulated sugar further if the flavor in the black coffee state is overwhelming for you. If you want to explore the wonderful world of coffee, you must start with drinking black coffee, otherwise it will be difficult to understand the magic of the coffee world. It will surely pay off to invest your time and energy in learning how to appreciate the wonder of coffee.