Software History

Earlier this week, I received a package containing some coffee. Unlike other coffee deliveries I have received, this one contained two bags of the same coffee. But, the end product was not the same. Both coffees had been roasted to different degrees, allowing me to get an insight into how roast influences the taste of a bean. One bean was roasted lighter—more traditional for speciality coffee—and another was labelled

Over the last few weeks, I have been brewing some cold coffee at home. In my research, I have come across three different types of cold coffee: iced, iced drip, and cold brew. I had a few questions about cold coffee so I decided to reach out to PuckPuck, who make a slow iced drip coffee adapter for the Aeropress. James, who currently runs PuckPuck, got back to me and we had a chat about cold brew coffee, iced drip coffee, the PuckPuck, and more. Our chat is below. I hope you enjoy our discussion.

I have written in the past about my experiment using a French press grind on the Aeropress. Recently, I've been experimenting with coarser grinds. Not as coarse as a French press, but a bit coarser than usual. I am now convinced a grind closer to the one I use for my Kalita Wave produces a better brew than the traditional

While I have been brewing with pour-over devices for over a month, I have not forgotten about my Aeropress, the first coffee brewing device I purchased. The Aeropress introduced me to the world of brewing coffee at home and as I used the device I found myself interested in learning more about how to improve my cup.

My cleaning routine for the Aeropress used to look like this:

One of the (many) reasons I love using the Aeropress is that there are so many ways you can brew coffee with the Aeropress. There is not a single

Over the last few days, I have went back to brewing filter coffee using my usual brewing devices. And I also brewed an Aeropress at the local park, which was a fun activity. I decided to go back to filter brewing because after a lot of trial and error I was not able to get to an espresso shot that I was particularly proud of using the Flair Espresso brewing device. I tried different doses and grind sizes, developed a consistent distribution technique, but although my shots got better I got to a point where I had tried to many variables that I could not avoid the elephant in the room: my grinder.

In hindsight, I have not been brewing my best cups of coffee lately. I noticed this when I brewed a cup of coffee with my new grinder. When I pushed my Aeropress down to decant the coffee into my mug, I noticed the plunger was much easier to push down. The plunger did not push too quickly; it felt just right.

Based in Glasgow, Dear Green has been roasting coffee in Glasgow for ten years. Lisa Lawson, the founder of Dear Green, takes on many roles to make sure that Dear Green delivers a consistent quality of coffee. I spoke with Lisa over email to learn more about how Dear Green roasts coffee. We discussed everything from equipment to what skills you need to be a successful coffee roaster. You can read our chat below.

I bought an Aeropress months ago. It seems like it's been part of my daily routine forever. I brew one cup of coffee in the morning and one in mid-afternoon. I've written about my Aeropress extensively on my website. I've published the recipe I try to follow for anyone who is interested in learning about how I brew coffee.

A few weeks ago, I discovered Bean Thinking, a blog devoted to the intersection of science and coffee. Karen, the owner of Bean Thinking, has conducted various experiments that describe effects we can see in a cup of coffee. In this interview, I talk with Karen about how she plans and executes experiments and the philosophy behind her blog.

A few days ago, I asked myself the question whether it was possible to brew a French press-style coffee in an Aeropress. I thought this would be possible because both the French press and the Aeropress are immersion brewers. Water is soaked in grounds and left to steep for a period of time. Then, the grounds are separated from the coffee. A French press does not do as good a job at removing the grounds as an Aeropress—this is on account of the size of the holes in a French press metal filter—and so the cup profiles are a bit different.

It's almost essential that you start brewing coffee from a humble beginning. I don't have an origin story where I sat drinking bitter diner coffee into the early hours of the morning. I drank instant coffee for a while but I gave up on it. Instant coffee was good because it felt like it packed a punch. I felt a bit more adult drinking instant coffee than tea, which I had been allowed to drink for a long while before coffee.

To advance my knowledge of coffee, I have turned to books. There are plenty of blogs online devoted to coffee and it was blog posts and videos that helped me learn the basics of home brewing. But I found myself spending a lot of time looking for articles to read on home brewing and I thought there may be a better way for me to learn. I discovered that hundreds of books have been written about brewing coffee, the history of coffee, and cafes.

I have been using the inverted Aeropress method for months. Recently, I tried out the regular method. The last time I used this method was when I first got started using the Aeropress.

Most of the brewing recipes I have read for the Chemex recommend brewing enough coffee for two cups. The Chemex is suited for brewing multiple cups, so I understand why so many recipes outline how to brew two or more cups. But I like to drink one cup of coffee at a time. If I want another cup, I'll brew one later on. The only time I brew multiple cups of coffee is if I am making a brew for a member of my household.

Earlier in the year, I found a new interest in blogs. Blogs are a home where the author controls both the content they create and the medium through which their content is served. It is this premise which inspired me to create this blog about coffee. I like writing about coffee and I find that a blog is a good place to share my thoughts on coffee. I write about the interesting observations I make as well as what I am learning.

I have written reviews for the last few coffee books I have read. I've enjoyed reflecting on what parts of a book I like. Writing reviews has pushed me to recall some of the knowledge I've read about in each book. So, I'm going to continue writing these reviews.

The Coffee Life was the first coffee blog I read. This was the blog that introduced me to the term

The inventor of the Aeropress, Alan Adler, recommends a slow press on the Aeropress. He uses his forearm to push down on the Aeropress. This imposes somewhat of a limit on the pressure you can exert because if you push down too hard your arm will quickly get uncomfortable.

In a recent Instagram conversation, someone shared with me a brewing tip for the Aeropress. They recommended removing the grounds with a spoon before plunging the coffee, which they said would yield a less bitter brew. I did not think much of this at the time other than

Laboratorio Espresso, which opened in October 2013, has won many coffee shop awards. I have been interested in this cafe after following them on Instagram for a while and I decided to reach out to learn a bit more about the cafe and what goes on behind the scenes. Both founders, Scot and Scott, kindly took time to respond to my questions. Their answers are below.

This is the first post in a three-part series on my adventures learning how to use the Hario V60.

I started drinking pre-ground coffee. I did not want to invest in buying a grinder, many of which were expensive. It was not until much later in my home brewing journey that I learned there are many affordable grinders on the market.

Every so often I sit down and watch a documentary about coffee. From watching documentaries I have learned a lot about coffee. For instance, the Aeropress documentary made me aware of all of the prototypes that were developed before the Aeropress design was finalised.

Over the last few months, I have experimented with a range of brewing methods, from the Aeropress all the way to the lever espresso maker. I now know a lot about some of the most popular brewing methods but at the start of my journey I knew very little about devices like the Kalita Wave or the V60.

It's a lazy Sunday and I'm sitting at my window thinking about the world. I've spent some time over the last week gradually reading more about speciality coffee. I took a break from following speciality coffee while I was on vacation. I find that sometimes my hobbies can become overwhelming. A break was a good reminder of how fun coffee can be. I don't need to think about coffee much. I just need to put the time in when I am brewing to make a good cup.

About a week ago, my cloth Aeropress filter arrived from The Cloth Filter Co. I bought the filter because I was curious about cloth filtration and also because a roaster from whom I was buying coffee, Glen Lyon, happened to sell one. Cloth filtration was on my mind for a while, to the extent that I seriously considered purchasing a Nel dripper, and I thought a cloth Aeropress filter would be the cheapest way to try cloth filtration.

I'm presently drinking Liberacion, a single origin coffee from Union Blend. I've been impressed by every coffee I have had from Union so far. This coffee is different. I've struggled to detect the flavors written in the tasting notes. I've found a few of the cups I have brewed to be flat. This has made me somewhat doubt my brewing skills. I have felt like I've taken a step back in my journey to brewing better coffee.

I am writing this post after the fourth aircraft delay I have experienced today. I’m most likely going to reach my destination tomorrow, taking an unplanned evening in Chicago.