Coffee – most of us can’t get through the day without a cup or two. Whilst we all love picking up a cuppa from our favourite coffee shop, it is nice to be able to create something similar at home now and then. Dan Burgess from Island Roasted artisan coffee and Caffe Isola gives us the lowdown on the perfect brew without leaving the house…
Cafetiere is the simplest extraction method and best suits medium roasted coffees
How to make the perfect cafetiere.
Equipment needed – a cafetiere, a kettle, digital kitchen scales, a stopwatch, a grinder or pre ground coffee.
- Boil the kettle and leave to cool for one minute, freshly boiled water is too hot and will scorch the coffee.
- Weigh out and grind your coffee. Use 30g of coffee per 500ml of water as a guide and tweak to personal taste. The grind should be coarse, a bit smaller than instant coffee granules. Freshly ground coffee is always better, as air and moisture start attacking the coffee much quicker once it’s ground.
- Tip the ground coffee into the cafetiere and pour the water upto a couple of centimetres above the level of the ground coffee, making sure all the coffee is soaked. Start the stopwatch and leave for 30 seconds, the coffee will “bloom”, this is where it expands as it gives off CO2.
- Pour in the rest of the water and stir briefly, then leave to infuse for four minutes. Depress the plunger firmly and your coffee is ready to pour.
The flavours become more apparent as the coffee cools slightly, particularly if you are using a single origin with a distinct character.
