If you read our blog often you'll know how much Rachel and I love coffee. I'm a bit obsessed if you look at my instagram feed. Awhile back we did a post on how to make french press, and since then I've learned a new method, and want to share it with as many caffeine crazy creatives as I can. I'm still experimenting alot, and thats half the fun. This post is some of the basics, I hope you will try brewing with a Chemex or Pourover method, its amazing how many flavors and tastes are present in a good coffee that you would hardly taste most of the time. This post combines two of my favorite things, Polaroids and Coffee:) The polaroids had too cool of a color cast since I took them early morning (buuurrrr) and so I turned them black and white for this post.
Step 1: Assemble your tools, you will need:
Good coffee beans, the fresher the roast the better. I try to stay away from blends.
A Burr Grinder. Seriously this has made a huge difference. A normal blade coffee grinder gives inconsistent partical size, and heats up the beans due to friction. It's nearly impossible to get a good consistent cup from a normal blade grinder. The one I use is the Hario Mini Mill which I got off amazon for about $30 bucks.
A Chemex Coffee maker as pictured above, or a similar pourover.
A long spout Kettle: We still use a crappy old kettle, which works ok if you have a steady hand, but it would be alot easier with a long spout kettle.
A kitchen scale: It should let you measure in grams
I've used about 42 grams of coffee for Rachel and I in the morning. I'm thinking of trying a smaller amount, but Its a good starting point. Most people say you should use about 12 grams per cup of coffee you intend on making, or about one heaping tablespoon. Grind 42 grams of coffee to coarse sand consistency. You can "tweak" the grind as you go to see what you like:) Bring water to a boil.Place the filter in the Chemex with the doubled up portion of the filter in front of the spout. Once the water is hot take it and pre wet the filter. This is super important as it gets rid of any papery taste from the filter. Put it back on and once it boils take it off the heat for about a minute so the water can reach a temperature of around 200 degrees F.
Step 2: Put the ground beans in the filter. Pour a small amount (about 60-100 grams) of water on the beans, as evenly and slowly as possible. The goal here is to saturate the beans and allow the bloom to happen. The bloom is what allows for the even extraction to take place. The coffee expands and after about 30-45 seconds should be finished.
Step 3: After the bloom is finished, slowly begin pouring the rest of the water over the beans, with a circular motion. After it's filled I usually give it a once around stir with a spoon. I wait till its drained about half way, then slowly pour the rest of the water.
Step 4: The coffee should take about 4 mins to drain into the Chemex, making the beans form a conical shape. After 4 mins take the filter out and pour a delicious cup of coffee:)
All images captured on my SX-70 Polaroid camera on Impossible Project film
