How to Make Delicious Cafe-Style Coffee at Home

If you're a coffee connoisseur, you might be looking for simple yet effective techniques to make delicious café-style coffee at home. Your mood is set for the day by the cup you choose. Brewing coffee at home can be as sophisticated or as simple as you want it to be, depending on your preferences and lifestyle. The ultimate goal is a liquid that isn't excessively bitter, sour or burned. This may take some trial and error, and it will vary depending on the products and methods you use to make your brew. You also need some equipments like French press or Moka pot, a Force tamper, a milk frothing pitcher, and an espresso machine for making a café style coffee at home. You can buy all these things from your nearby store or online websites like Baristaswag.

Good Coffee Comes from Good Beans

The first step in making the perfect brew is to invest in the highest-quality, well-roasted beans you can afford. If you are looking to try something new at home, why not invest in some Kopi Luwak coffee beans? Kopi Luwak coffee is known for its balanced flavor that is smooth, rich, and pleasing for the taste buds. It is known to be the costliest coffee in the world, and every sip reveals its richness. Rather than sticking with the one you've always used, experiment with new styles, brands, and blends. Whole bean coffee is more delicious and fresher than ground coffee. Don't grind the entire bag of coffee beans all at once. Only grind the amount of coffee beans you want to use to keep your at-home coffee as fresh as possible. The chemicals in your beans will break down faster the longer they are exposed to oxygen. So, it's preferable to grind beans right before brewing to get the finest aroma, consistency, and flavor in your cup.

Water

When you are aiming to make delicious café-style coffee at home, the water quality is very important. Many people do not like or drink tap water (for whatever reason) and this water should ideally not be used to make coffee either! The best water to use is filtered tap or bottled spring water. These offer a cleaner, better-tasting coffee that is free of unpleasant chlorine or impurities. The temperature of the water is also significant, depending on your chosen coffee-making process. Some experts recommend that you keep a pitcher of filtered water in the fridge and use this when brewing coffee, heated to between 195°F and 250°F. If you're using water from a kettle, let it cool slightly after boiling to avoid burning the coffee.

Methods and Ratios

It's all about proportions when it comes to brewing the perfect cup of coffee. You must be able to accurately measure two things: the amount of coffee you've ground and the amount of water you're using. The most common proposed ratio is 1:17. For every gram of coffee, add 17 grams of water. Experts agree that using a scale (rather than a spoon) can help you make café-style coffee at home. 

Having several coffee-making methods at home to meet your changing tastes throughout the day is a good idea. The basic drip machine, the French press, and espresso and Nespresso machines are the most prevalent brewing methods. All make somewhat different kinds of coffee, and the option is yours based on time, effort, cost, and convenience. A pour-over, on the other hand, would suffice if you just want a smooth cup for one. Pour just enough water to wet all the beans and let them "bloom.” The bloom permits the grounds to expand and release gases that were trapped during roasting. This should take about 15-20 seconds. Then, start pouring from the outside and work your way in, producing smaller and smaller circles until you reach the center. Maintain a calm and steady trickle of water until you have poured the desired amount.

Storage and Cleaning

Storing coffee at home plays a large part in its end taste. The beans should be kept cool, dark, and dry in an airtight container or canister, preferably made of ceramic or glass. Coffee is porous and absorbs moisture and other flavors, thus most experts strongly advise against freezing it. 

To avoid residue build-up that could impact the taste, all coffee equipment must be kept clean. It's preferable to drink your coffee within 30 minutes of making it. Coffee should never be reheated in the microwave or kept on a warming dish for more than an hour. Coffee that has been overheated has a harsh, unpleasant flavor. You might even put it in the refrigerator to enjoy an iced coffee later.

Making coffee is a skill that is much easy to master than you would believe. When you go to your favorite coffee shop, observe, and learn from the barista. All you need is a basic understanding of the formulae to make delicious café-style coffees at home.