rjacobs
New member
First post here. Seems to be the place to go for coffee info...
Im dealing with what I would call "poor brew quality"... I try to stay consistent with my variables for a few pots instead of chasing something. Some times I get watery coffee, some times way strong, and some times bitter/sour(over extracted). In almost 100 pots with my setup I cant seem to get "good" coffee... or if I feel I do, its a fluke and I cant repeat it.
I have a Technivorm Moccamaster and a Fellow Ode 2. I have an electronic gram scale(cheap, but I am sure accurate enough for my use). So in theory I "think" I have good quality equipment.
I have run beans through it from cheap-ish grocery store coffee all the way up to The Roasterie Reserve line beans and everything in between. Im sure some dont consider The Roasterie Reserve line to be anything special, but thats my most expensive coffee. At least 90-100 pots total.
Originally used paper filters(Moccamaster brand) and currently trying a Quell stainless filter. Paper was "better tasting" but flowed slow(no matter the grind) and seemed to almost always be over extracted due to slow flow(even on a really coarse grind) and I had a few tear at the bottom and completely ruin a brew, hence the stainless filter, but I dont think it was an improvement honestly. I think water flows through it TO FAST no matter the grind, hence watery coffee.
Grinding has been anywhere from a 7 to around 8.75. The light roast beans(I think I have 5 or 6 different ones from The Roasterie) seemed to be "better" with the finer grind to get a little more brew time on them. Most everything darker has been "better" at like 8.25 or 8.75.
Im using water out of my filtered refrigerator which I believe is just a single stage carbon filter. Its around 150ppm hardness. I first tried a Zero pitcher and it was horrible and I learned taking "everything" out of the water generally led to over extraction. My tap water is not really great tasting. I have not brewed with straight tap water. Its about 250-270ppm hardness. I have no clue about the overall mineral content of our city water.
My brew process is:
1 liter filtered water
~66-67g of coffee beans
I generally turn on the Moccamaster and let it brew about 1/4 liter without the pot so the water stays in the brew basket. Let it sit a minute like that to let it bloom and release CO2, give it a stir, then continue with a normal brew cycle. The shower head on the Moccamaster leaves a lot to be desired as far as water distribution goes. When I was first brewing and would just leave it alone I always had dry coffee left in the filter so for me a stir was mandatory...
So I am about at the end my knowledge on how to brew decent coffee with what should be a good setup of equipment so I believe its simply down to me and my technique.
I am interested in any and all advice that anybody might have to improve my lackluster coffee.
Im dealing with what I would call "poor brew quality"... I try to stay consistent with my variables for a few pots instead of chasing something. Some times I get watery coffee, some times way strong, and some times bitter/sour(over extracted). In almost 100 pots with my setup I cant seem to get "good" coffee... or if I feel I do, its a fluke and I cant repeat it.
I have a Technivorm Moccamaster and a Fellow Ode 2. I have an electronic gram scale(cheap, but I am sure accurate enough for my use). So in theory I "think" I have good quality equipment.
I have run beans through it from cheap-ish grocery store coffee all the way up to The Roasterie Reserve line beans and everything in between. Im sure some dont consider The Roasterie Reserve line to be anything special, but thats my most expensive coffee. At least 90-100 pots total.
Originally used paper filters(Moccamaster brand) and currently trying a Quell stainless filter. Paper was "better tasting" but flowed slow(no matter the grind) and seemed to almost always be over extracted due to slow flow(even on a really coarse grind) and I had a few tear at the bottom and completely ruin a brew, hence the stainless filter, but I dont think it was an improvement honestly. I think water flows through it TO FAST no matter the grind, hence watery coffee.
Grinding has been anywhere from a 7 to around 8.75. The light roast beans(I think I have 5 or 6 different ones from The Roasterie) seemed to be "better" with the finer grind to get a little more brew time on them. Most everything darker has been "better" at like 8.25 or 8.75.
Im using water out of my filtered refrigerator which I believe is just a single stage carbon filter. Its around 150ppm hardness. I first tried a Zero pitcher and it was horrible and I learned taking "everything" out of the water generally led to over extraction. My tap water is not really great tasting. I have not brewed with straight tap water. Its about 250-270ppm hardness. I have no clue about the overall mineral content of our city water.
My brew process is:
1 liter filtered water
~66-67g of coffee beans
I generally turn on the Moccamaster and let it brew about 1/4 liter without the pot so the water stays in the brew basket. Let it sit a minute like that to let it bloom and release CO2, give it a stir, then continue with a normal brew cycle. The shower head on the Moccamaster leaves a lot to be desired as far as water distribution goes. When I was first brewing and would just leave it alone I always had dry coffee left in the filter so for me a stir was mandatory...
So I am about at the end my knowledge on how to brew decent coffee with what should be a good setup of equipment so I believe its simply down to me and my technique.
I am interested in any and all advice that anybody might have to improve my lackluster coffee.