Often I see a great emphasis on consistency of coffee brewing, which left me wondering how important is it. This article summarizes my thoughts and opinion about it.
Consistency: What is?
Coffee extraction varies based on many parameters right from type of coffee used to grind size, temperature of water, amount of water to coffee, equipment, time of brewing, agitation, etc. Any change in these parameters will change the extraction and ultimately flavor and taste of the coffee. To replicate or tweak the brew, one needs to be able to measure the parameters in the first place. Measurement is the key that one needs to be meticulous about, to achieve the ‘consistent result‘. The combination of measured parameters is often called the brew recipe.
On the other hand, if the coffee was not so great, one can try to improve the brew by leveraging the knowledge of how the parameters work, and keep trying to change one parameter at a time. Just like any experiments with control and treatment.
Note, there are various degrees of measurements and hence degrees of consistency based on how many parameters someone wants to keep a check upon and how precisely. Basics starts with coffee to water weight ratio and time, to water temperature, to complex ones like pouring rate and agitation. Raising the bar on precision can be done with high precision weighing scales, or with kettles that maintain water temperature or skills to pour water at a consistent height & pour rate.
Consistent: To be or not to be?
I haven’t heard of anyone who takes coffee seriously and doesn’t not measure anything at all while brewing. There is at least some degree of consistenty executed by rough guidelines for parameters like coffee to water ratio, water temprateure and brew time. It is so easy to make a cup of bad coffee – especially underextracted sour or overextracted bitter. Some measurement and consistency is essential to avoid bad coffee and wasting good coffee beans.
Consistency is extremely important in a cafe setup, where the barista needs to meet the customers expectation from a brew. Cafe customers expect the same experience every time the order the particular brew – no surprises, thanks.
However, a home brewer based on personal preferences can keep it tight on consistent measurements or let the guard down in a few places. One extreme are the home brewers who like to do it as a habit. For every coffee, they start off with their go to brew recipes, measured meticulously & modified in search for their favorite version of brew. When a particular one blows the mind, then consistency becomes the key to repeat the magic.
At the other side, there are home brewers who want a relaxed brewing style with a hunch, without being so meticulous about the measurements and be ok with variable favors with the same coffee including some mess-up once in a while.
I am sure there is a spectrum between these two streotypes where most people lie, and they switch from one to another path based on mood and situation.
Side note, measurement is highly recommended for brewing with espresso machines, as things can go wrong very easily with that one.
Consistency: What is my take?
In my opinion, for home brewers pursuit of consistency is definitely an effective tool to improve a brew; but but the degree to be followed is a preference.
Initially, I benefitted much by brewing with fixed recipes, avoiding bad brews. Even now, I go with full measurements in cases of new brewing equipments, and try to be consistent in the initial period while building the hunch for it. I guess nothing different from how we develop a hunch for other activities like cooking or switching (manual) gears while driving.
Now, as I brew mostly with Aeropress, Hario v60 or moka pot, I have built a few approximations that work well, while keeping a check on some measurements like weight & grind size. I also incorporate a few extraction fundamentals as well, like varying temperature (approximately) based on roast profile. In case I find the coffee brew unpleasant, I try to fix the brew by tweaking a few parameters roughly or go for full measurements, based on how bad the coffee was.
Most of the time, you will find me going with the flow, with minimal measurements about weight and grind size, enjoying the relaxed brewing process and looking out for the adventure of variations, a new coffee flavor to be tasted.
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This is a part of the overall article – Unofficial Roadmap for a Coffee Enthusiast
I write articles about my beginner to inetermiedate level specialty coffee journey. If you liked what I write you might want to read more from my coffee blog and follow my journey on Instagram @journal_of_a_coffee_enthusiast.
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