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Brewing the Perfect Cup The recipe for a great cup of coffee every time is a combination of water, fresh roasted quality coffee, grind and proportion. Follow the guidelines for each and you are on your way to a perfect cup every time. 1. Water Start with cold fresh water, preferably filtered and heated to just off the boil. A cup of coffee is 98% water. Therefore the water you use should taste clean, fresh and pure. Water heated to just off the boil (90°-96°C or 195° to 205°F) is perfect to extract the full range of flavours from coffee. Any cooler will not do the job. Since most automatic coffee makers preheat the water, make sure you buy one that gets the water hot enough. 2. Use Fresh Roasted Coffee Buy only fresh roasted coffees in quantities that you can use quickly and grind it just before brewing. Whole bean coffee stays fresher than preground because there is less surface area exposed to oxygen. Think of coffee like fresh baked bread or fresh produce. The enemies of coffee are oxygen, heat, light and moisture. Store your coffee in an opaque, airtight container (like our zippered valve bags) in a cool dry place. Storing coffee for daily use in the refrigerator or freezer will destroy the taste. Every time the container is opened, warm moist air condenses on the beans. In addition coffee is hydroscopic (it absorbs moisture) so storing it next to your frozen fish or leftovers is not a very good idea. 3. Grind Use the right grind of coffee for your preparation method. The shorter the brewing process the finer the grind. Different brewing methods have different requirements, so grind your coffee for the method you use. The amount of time that the coffee and the hot water spend together affects the flavour elements that end up in your cup. For instance, for a coffee press or plunger pot the coffee should be coarse ground because the water and coffee are in direct contact for about four minutes. But for an espresso machine the coffee must be ground very fine, in part because the brew cycle is only 17 to 22 seconds. 4. Proportion Use the right proportion of coffee to water. This is THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP in making a great cup. For the best results measure two tablespoons (10 grams) for every six ounce cup (180 ml). Skimping on this measure will result in an overextracted, bitter cup. If the coffee is then too strong for your taste, you can moderate it by adding hot water after brewing.
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