An alternative way to brew coffee. Alternative Brewing Methods
Quick table of contents:
To complete the picture, I think it is necessary to talk about methods of brewing coffee, which are conventionally called an alternative, i.e. alternative methods: Chemex, Hario, Aeropress, siphon and cold brew. Many people consider the French press an alternative.
I consider it necessary to immediately note that I personally am quite skeptical about the “alternative”. I will explain why as the text progresses. Nevertheless, such options have a right to exist; many people really like this type of coffee, so it is necessary to talk about it. In addition, the alternative is also a fairly economical method of cooking.
First, a little history to understand where the alternative came from. These are all the fruits of the so-called third coffee revolution. In the original English it is actually just “the third coffee wave,” but in Russian it is the translation “revolution” that has taken root.
It started in America, and to be precise, in Seattle. It was on the northwestern coast of the States that, since the 1970s, their own crowd had formed, which knew a lot about coffee and gradually accustomed Americans to delicious coffee. It would be more accurate to say that I started to get used to it, since people in this country still drink mostly filtered coffee, and for my taste, most of it is quite mediocre. Even in New York, espresso appeared en masse only in the 2000s, also thanks to immigrants from Seattle.
After becoming fascinated by classic espresso and drinks based on it (cappuccino, latte, etc.), advanced Americans began to invent new or remember long-forgotten devices for brewing coffee. I assume that this was due to the fact that the general public could not like strong espresso and they needed a better way than filter machines to brew weak coffee in large mugs, that is, the original filter coffee, nicknamed “Americano” in the Old World.
It is worth recognizing that the alternative, indeed, allows you to reveal the subtle nuances of taste a little better (but not radically!) than a conventional drip coffee maker, and in some cases even obtain a slightly higher strength. But it is also necessary to recognize that all the alternatives are variations of either the drip brewing method or the French press. That is, the whole process boils down to the fact that hot water (and with cold brew, which is also described separately below, completely cold) is mixed with ground coffee and brewed under natural atmospheric pressure. There is no pressure or temperature applied to increase extraction.
In short, none of this has anything even remotely to do with espresso. The alternative is a product of the American coffee school and is, in fact, an “improved” Americano.
In addition to the use of other equipment, the third wave also has ideological characteristics:
- Almost complete rejection of Robusta in favor of Arabica. Roast - light. I won’t argue, but I’ll suggest trying it first.
- Lack of automation, approaching drinking coffee like a tea ceremony.
- Manic desire to weigh ground coffee accurate to tenths of a gram. The same applies to the volume and temperature of water. Without a measuring cup and precise calibrated scales, a real “alternative” coffee maker will not brew coffee.
- Lack of bitterness and strength, sourness and its variations rule the roost. They prefer light-roasted Arabica beans with a distinct sourness. Apparently, this is due to the fact that the extraction is very weak, and in order for the sourness to be felt in the final product, it is necessary to choose beans that produce extremely sour espresso on a regular coffee machine.
- In most cases, paper or fabric filters are used, designed to filter out the smallest particles of coffee and coffee oils to the maximum. No suspension in the cup!
- The idea is that while brewing coffee and water, they should be saturated with air as much as possible. As far as I understand, oxygen is needed for more oxidation. And according to the philosophy of alternative, this allows you to maximize the facets of taste.
- Desire to use freshly roasted coffee from local roasters - I can’t help but support this!
- Pay special attention to the coffee grinder and grinding degree — I support!
- In American culture, alternative is also closely connected with the concept of sustainable development. This is generally a popular idea among them in recent years, which calls for using products from local producers, buying coffee directly from farmers, bypassing large companies, not using non-degradable packaging (a striking counterexample -), using filters from organic materials, and the like. But I won't go into that.
Particularly radical supporters of the third wave generally claim that (attention, verbatim quote) “traditional espresso is garbage, and in Italy they brew very bad coffee.” No comments here, as they say.
Chemex
This is generally a manual drip coffee maker in its purest form; it is a vessel like a large laboratory flask and a filter. In fact, in the original this is a flask, and that’s where the name comes from ( chemex, a derivative of “chemistry”) - a method of imparting was invented by chemist Peter Schlubom in his laboratory. That is, naturally, an ordinary drip coffee maker, only you need to pour hot water from the kettle yourself.
To achieve a more convincing extraction, it is usually customary to preheat the flask with hot water. Especially the narrowing point, at the level of which the coffee will be located during brewing. To avoid getting burned, there is an elegant wooden ring around this narrow neck, which you can use to hold this Chemex while brewing. In addition to warming up, water is poured in portions (according to the “pour and wait” principle, an analogue of pre-wetting in terms of coffee machines; by the way, this function is implemented in a coffee maker) and the entire area of coffee is poured, and not just in the center, as in cheap drip coffee makers. All this allows you to achieve a slightly fuller taste than the latter.
Simply put, a Chemex is a specially shaped vessel plus a filter for preparing filter coffee manually. The manual mode allows you to control the process a little better than an automatic drip coffee maker, due to which the coffee turns out to be one iota tastier.
It’s worth noting that Chemex is actually a brand. Original American Chemex costs some inadequate money in Russia (,), non-original analogues are already divine,. But this is only a flask, without filters. They also exist on sale, but true admirers of the third wave consider this to be trash.
Chemex coffee turns out weaker than the average Americano. Even the color is noticeable:
But at the same time, the taste is more or less full, the shades are felt, and for lovers of light coffee in large mugs, this method can, in principle, be recommended. It’s kind of like honest filtered coffee, but it’s difficult to get a distinctly better taste from the same beans than in a normal drip coffee maker.
Hario = pourover = funnel
"Hario" is also a trademark. It is... the top funnel from a Chemex, only originally from Japan and with extras. function. Under additional By function I mean special grooves in the upper part of the vessel where the coffee filter is placed. These notches on the pourover are needed to, firstly, supply air to the place where coffee is extracted, and secondly, to achieve uniform extraction. Coffee from the top of the pile is immediately removed by grooves, rather than flowing down (otherwise, an over-extracted “lump” may form at the bottom of the filter).
In short, the same eggs only in profile and with minimal modification. The most iconic and popular model is the Hario V60 funnel. You won’t find this designation in the names of specific models, that is, V60 is the name of the series, and specific models have the prefixes VDC (ceramics), VDG (glass), VDM (steel), VDPC (copper) and simply VD (plastic).
The cheapest plastic ones are usually not sold, ceramics can be bought for 2-3 thousand, on Aliexpress it will be cheaper, since they also sell plastic (it is heat-resistant, by the way). Although here it is. But these are only funnels, without the bottom flask, it will come with it.
The final result is very similar to a Chemex, both in taste, strength, richness, etc. Trying to make radical differences based on equipment (rather than grain, grind, water and hand curvature) seems like a marketing juggle.
Funnels are sold in the online store, where, by the way, you can buy freshly roasted coffee.
Aeropress
Aeropress can be bought at Tasty Coffee, I repeat, they also sell freshly roasted coffee.
Siphon
The siphon is straight out of a history textbook. It was invented and used a little in Europe before the classic lever and electric espresso machines were developed and perfected. Speaking, again, in terms of classical options, a siphon is a geyser coffee maker without a middle flask, in which a coffee tablet is formed.
As in a geyser, the water in the lower bowl is heated (with an alcohol stove or a gas burner, of course, everything is hardcore), then it rises using the geyser method into the upper bowl. This is where the ground coffee is waiting for him, and where it is brewed. The entire structure cools down and the brewed coffee flows back into the lower flask in the same way.
I personally don’t like the siphon because due to the practically boiling (and it is extremely difficult to detect the moment of overheating) of the water in the lower flask, the final drink takes on a pronounced shade of boiled water. The strength of coffee from a siphon is comparable to a Chemex, maybe a little weaker. But subtle notes such as sour shades appear minimally, everything is neutralized by the high wateriness of overheated water.
By the way, “kosher” siphons are also produced by the company Hario, an approximate company with an extract from abroad. In Russia, prices for siphons are depressing...
Cold Brew or cold extraction method
This is actually something strange. We decided that it would be cool to brew coffee not with hot water, but with cold water. The thesis, in principle, has a right to exist - if it is overheated, the coffee will burn out and may begin to taste bitter, but you need to know when to stop, 60-80 degrees is enough to avoid burnout.
It is claimed that coffee brewed using the cold brew method contains fewer harmful substances, namely ketones, esters and amides. But the main thing is that it turns out less sour; in this sense, the cold method differs from other alternative brewing methods.
Since no extraction actually occurs when using cold water, the logical solution was to increase the contact time between water and coffee, that is, either A) increase the brewing time to 12 hours (I'm not kidding, but they usually set it to 7-8), or b) lengthen all tracts, increase the volume of coffee (up to half a kilo per brew), increase the brewing vessel itself. In the second case, you get things like the one in the photo on the right. This is, of course, a commercial option, not for home use. In the commercial case, 50 or more liters are brewed per batch, then bottled and cooled in refrigerators.
And for the first option, when we “brew” coffee for 12 hours, they sell these basins for home use called Platon Filtron. In Russia they are found only through intermediaries who resell goods from the American Amazon; in their homeland they cost about $40. By the way, you need to use 500 grams of coffee at a time:
conclusions
In my retrograde opinion, alternative coffee brewers are beautiful utensils that can be used to make filter coffee, but filter coffee itself does not allow you to get a rich taste. This comes with a fair share of “philosophy,” marketing, and the aura of belonging to a fashion subculture. If desired and with some skill, approximately the same result can be achieved by the banal method of brewing in a cup. And by taking an ordinary Soviet kitchen funnel from the mezzanine, you can achieve a similar result.
Illustration copyright Future Publishing Image caption Chemex is one of the most labor-intensive, but at the same time impressive in terms of its ability to reveal flavor, brewing methods.
Will the fashion for alternative coffee become a temporary phenomenon, or has the “third wave” come to the world in earnest and for a long time?
The global leader in coffee consumption in the world is Finland, which accounts for about 12 kg of coffee per person per year, while the average Russian consumes only 1.7 kg per year.
Coffee is so familiar to humanity that biologists have already deciphered the genome of Arabica, the most widespread coffee shrub, announcing this on January 13. Genetics cracked the code of its closest relative, Robusta, three years ago.
This global drink, as we know from Rosneft, may turn out to be more profitable at gas stations in terms of cost than petroleum products themselves.
Roasting as a reason to think
Whatever the brewing methods, the selection of the beans themselves had little control until the so-called “third wave” of coffee arrived: this is how they designate the period after the “first” - the spread of home-made coffee in packages, and the “second” - the mass popularity of coffee shops with espresso machines, in particular, those same transnational corporations like Starbucks, which bought any beans in the countries of the equatorial belt for next to nothing.
Next, such companies will roast coffee beans powerfully, “in Italian,” and put them into circulation through coffee machines, where they, taking the form of the usual espresso and Americano, will give bitterness in the morning to those who want to cheer up. Or it will have to be diluted - with milk, cream, syrup, sugar - to modify the taste.
Of course, some people like the dense, dark “Italian” roast, but its lovers may not be aware of what the coffee bean is capable of.
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In this video, enthusiast Yaroslav Kiryukhin tries alternatively brewed coffee for the first time in his life and shares his feelingsBy heating the coffee not so much, coffee lovers, on the one hand, achieve the release of all the substances that we are so accustomed to by knocking over the cup, and on the other hand, it allows us to avoid bitterness.
True, one of the BBC journalist’s colleagues said that he would drink Robusta until the end of his days, because he wanted to feel the power in the drink that made him wake up.
From this point of view, Robusta can indeed be useful - however, most modern baristas claim that taste is more important to them than the ability to “hit the skull with a hammer.”
So, the alternative
All beans used by alternative coffee shops around the world are Arabica.
Okay, you might say, did alternative brewing vessels come out of nowhere? Not at all.
Image caption Coffee may be more profitable to sell than oil - but not everyone will taste betterMoreover, for example, a cezve, often called a Turk in the Russian-speaking space, or a siphon for brewing, rather, can themselves be considered primary sources in relation to a coffee machine - simply by virtue of seniority.
Proponents of alternative brewing methods prefer to roast coffee much lighter in order to more gently trigger the Maillard chemical reaction, when amino acids and sugars react with each other during caramelization, and not to lose the latter in the final drink.
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In this video, TABLE cafe employee Alena Choi explains how to give an alternative to try to a person who has come to eat to their heart's content.The export and delivery of coffee beans by roasters to “third wave” coffee shops, including those in Moscow, occurs in accordance with the principles of the Fairtrade movement - in other words, farmers and roasters negotiate directly, bypassing intermediaries and transnational corporations.
At the same time, coffee grown on nearby plantations may differ significantly in characteristics from its neighbors growing at other levels.
All these nuances can be lost if defective grains are selected, if they are incorrectly stored, carelessly transported and, finally, overcooked during calcination.
Only by avoiding these “scylla” and “charybdis” can coffee reach the consumer’s table rich and interesting.
So, the grain is selected, brought from distant countries, fried and ground. Is it possible to spoil the drink at the next stage? Of course yes.
To get an excellent balance of taste and quality, it is necessary to pour water over the coffee at a certain temperature and let it brew, and for different types of vessels the waiting time will be different, as well as the taste that the same beans will give in different vessels.
Brewing methods
We have already mentioned some vessels in which you can brew the notorious “alternative”. Let's take a closer look at them.
The oldest method of brewing is the same cezve, often called Turka in Russia.
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In this video, the founder of the Cezve Coffee coffee shop, Marina Hyuppenen, talks about how the cezve, which thousands of families across Russia call Turk, appeared.Originating in Arabia at the dawn of the Islamic era, it came to Europe through Turkey, where its current name came from, which coffee importers themselves consider not very correct.
You can brew coffee this way on coals, sand, or on a home stove.
In 1840 appeared siphon Louis Gabe, who improved the work, supposedly patented by a certain Berliner a decade earlier.
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In this video, Roaster Coffee chef barista Ilya Komarov demonstrates how to brew a drink in one of the most conservative and bulky vessels - a siphon, also known as a gabetteThe extremely long brewing process requires concentration and attention from the barista: in 16 minutes it is necessary to light the burner, boil the water, and stir the result with an everlasting despondency with a spoon.
The saddest thing is that coffee brewed in this way does not reveal the fullness of its flavors.
Hario, also known as V60, pour-over or simply a funnel, is the most common “fashionable” brewing method, known since 1908.
Illustration copyright Boston Globe Image caption Hario, aka V60, aka pour-over, is one of the most popular alternative brewing methods on the planetThe word “hario” itself is an eponym that has become a common noun for the Japanese manufacturing company Hario.
This type of coffee is prepared using the drip method: the funnel has special grooves so that air actively participates in the brewing process.
Then came onto the stage of history Chemex- a large vessel patented by a native of Germany, Peter Schlumbom, in 1941. Since then it has appeared in a number of films, but its popularity has hit the world of coffee only recently.
Illustration copyright LIFE Picture Collection Image caption Peter Schlumbom became famous as the inventor of the ChemexVery young compared to previous containers aeropress is a cylindrical piston driven into a vessel with coffee, where steam is released under high pressure. Its author is Stanford University graduate Alan Adler, who came up with the piston design in 2005. In this video, the barista of the Black Milk coffee shop, Valentin Nagaytsev, explains what clover is in the coffee world, and the chief barista of the Double B coffee chain, Ilya Petelin, demonstrates the closest relative of this vessel - bonavita
Don’t forget about cold cooking methods: the so-called cold brew it is infused for 16-25 hours in the cold, and some craftsmen pass nitrogen under pressure through the coffee and serve it to the astonished consumer as closely as possible to kvass. This drink is called nitro.
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In this video, Skuratov coffee shop barista Andrey Antipov shows the beauty of iced coffee with nitrogenManufacturers of alternative vessels do not intend to stop there and are looking to the technogenic future: someone has already thought of valves that squeeze out the drink at high speeds, or vessels that allow you to control the creation of the drink remotely.
Subculture of free access
At first, the alternative seems clear and diluted compared to the usual espresso, but as consumers drink it, they become more and more accustomed to it.
“Thanks to the cooperative, I have become much more aware of coffee and appreciate the taste of black coffee,” -
Surely you have already heard about alternative methods of brewing coffee and even know about Chemex, funnel, Aeropress, and at home you brew coffee using a pour over? If you don’t know, then let’s find out. And to begin with, according to good tradition, let’s prepare ourselves a cup of aromatic coffee from freshly roasted grains and get comfortable.
Alternative brewing methods, as the name suggests, involve making coffee not in a coffee machine, but a fundamentally different method. This can be a drip method, a funnel (aka pour-over, from English pour over- pour from above), Aeropress, siphon, and even Turkish and French press can be classified as alternative cooking methods. It's worth noting that most of these methods do not involve creating pressure when water passes through the coffee (a small amount of pressure will only be created when brewing in an AeroPress), while an espresso machine brews at 9 bar of pressure.
I'll start with traditional American coffee, prepared drip method- using a drip coffee maker. The principle of preparation is very simple: a filter (paper or iron, although other materials are possible) is installed in a cone-shaped funnel, freshly ground coarse coffee is poured into it, then hot water is supplied to the ground coffee, which, passing through the coffee, picks up soluble particles and, along with them, falls into a vessel from which the drink is poured into cups.
Remember the old American films, when in a cafe the waiter walks around the room with a coffee pot and pours black coffee into mugs. And there were only two options for coffee back then: either black or with milk.
Digging a little from the topic, let me remind you about the success of Starbucks, because it was this company that gave a powerful impetus to the development of second-wave coffee shops. She was one of the first to offer Americans variety in coffee drinks. At Starbucks, for the first time, you could choose a variety of lattes, cappuccinos, coffee smoothies, and everything that these coffee shops are still famous for today. Looking at the success of this chain, many began to copy their product range.
The name of a drink like Americano, in coffee shops where they use espresso machines, also has its own history. I'll tell you a little about her. It appeared during the Second World War, when Italy was occupied by American troops and the bars were full of American soldiers and officers. Those who simply did not understand the small volume of espresso drink and asked to dilute it with water. Dissatisfied baristas prepared it, disparagingly calling it “Americano.” This is where the tradition of cooking and calling it this way came from.
Let's return to our main topic and now let's talk about this brewing method. This method is also called “pour over”, and here you need to clearly understand that such names as Chemex, Hario, Tiamo are not separate cooking methods!!! These are manufacturing companies, each of which has added individual features to the design of their coffee makers. Some of these companies have been on the market for decades.
Both drip coffee makers and pour overs involve passing hot water through freshly ground coarse coffee. The only difference here is that in the latter case the water is spilled by a person, and not by a coffee machine. The recipe for making coffee this way is simple: 1:15, for 10g of coffee you need 150 ml of water. You also need to keep an eye on the cooking time. I cook for no more than 2.5 minutes.
Due to the coarse grinding, the taste of this coffee will be dominated by sourness. When brewing, coffee is saturated with oxygen and this helps to reveal the flavor notes given to it by nature. For example, coffee from Ethiopia will reveal berry notes, coffee from Kenya will sparkle with floral tones, and Colombia will seem nutty. When enjoying this coffee, you should not rush, because as it cools, the drink will change and its taste will become sweeter.
Let's take a closer look at AeroPress, a device for quickly preparing classic black coffee at home. It was designed in 2005 by American Alan Adler and is manufactured by Aerobie Inc. They prepare it by manually pressing ground coffee filled with hot water through a filter using a pneumatic pump. The drink turns out more rich than in a funnel, although, of course, it is far from espresso. This method is very convenient for those who travel, because with it you can easily make coffee even while hiking in a forest area, for example.
And the most spectacular method will be the brewing method using (or gabette) - a device for brewing coffee and tea, which has been used since the 30s of the 19th century. It consists of two siphons that are balanced during initial loading on a balancer. In this case, one of them is filled with cold water, which holds open the lid of the alcohol burner, which is ignited to heat the same siphon. Ground coffee is poured into another siphon. Both siphons are connected by a balance tube, through which hot water flows from the first siphon into the second, irrigating the coffee. In this case, the second siphon lowers, and the first rises, extinguishing the alcohol burner. As the first siphon cools, compressed air draws the brewed coffee from the second siphon back into the first. The first siphon is equipped with a tap for dispensing the drink.
French press- a glass flask with a metal piston, the base of which is a metal sieve. A very simple preparation method: pour freshly ground coffee into a flask and fill it with hot water. Close the lid with the piston, after 3-4 minutes lower the piston down, pressing the coffee to the bottom of the flask, and pour the drink through the top.
So, answering the question about preparing coffee using alternative methods: is it tasty or fashionable, I will say that, first of all, it is a variety of taste. These devices have been on the market for a very long time, and to prepare coffee in such devices you definitely need coffee of the highest quality, since their designs were invented to improve the taste and bring it out to its brightest. Also important is the ability to use them, choose the right grind, and brewing time. In essence, all this is no more complicated than brewing coffee in a Turk. It’s just that the method of brewing in Turk has been known in our country for a very long time, while all other methods came to us much later.
Alternative methods of preparing coffee can be found in third wave coffee shops, where coffee preparation is a philosophy of taste. Where the barista knows exactly everything about the coffee he prepares and works with understanding with the tools he has.
The more new coffee shops open in Minsk, the more obvious is the progress of coffee culture in a single Belarusian capital. And while a true coffee drinker might not be fooled by the words “Chemex,” “Hario,” or “v60,” those new to caffeine can sometimes have a hard time navigating them. We remove the veil of mystery from professional names and briefly talk about existing ones alternative methods of brewing coffee.
CHEMEX
An hourglass-shaped Chemex coffee maker ( Chemex) was invented by chemist Peter Schlumbohm back in 1941. It was based on an Erlenmeyer flask and an ordinary laboratory glass funnel, connected by a rim made of wood and leather.
The Chemex produces delicate, oxygenated coffee. The drink is prepared from coarsely ground coffee, through a filter moistened with hot water, slowly pouring water at a temperature of 88-93°C into it. Cooking time - 3-4 minutes.
FRENCH PRESS
The device, popular for brewing tea and drinks from berries and herbs, has migrated into coffee life. The first French press appeared in the 1840s, but a piston coffee maker with a built-in filter that does not allow coffee particles to pass through was completed only in 1929 in Milan.
Coffee in a French press does not require any special skill and is prepared by infusing and squeezing: a few spoons of coffee are poured with hot water, infused and pressed. The drink turns out rich and dense. Cooking time is about 4 minutes.
AEROPRESS
The Aeropress was designed by engineer and professor at Stanford University Alan Adler in 2005. The method is a little similar to a French press, but thanks to the paper filter, the drink turns out very light and clean, without suspension. Of all the alternative brewing tools, the AeroPress is the most practical; you can easily take it with you on a picnic.
There are classic and inverted methods of making coffee in an AeroPress. IN classic In the Aeropress version, place the filter down on the mug (the bottom of the cylinder is first closed with a perforated lid and covered with a special filter), pour in coffee, pour in hot water at a temperature of 88–94°C and press with a piston. The coffee grounds remain on the filter and the coffee ends up in the cup.
At upside down In the Aeropress method, place the piston down, brew coffee in a flask, and only after that put a filter on the flask and turn it over to pour coffee into a mug.
The only problem with an Aeropress is that you can’t keep coffee in it for more than 4 minutes - then it starts to lose its taste and aroma.
PUROVER, HARIO, V60
Purover(from the English “pour over” - “to pour”), aka Hario, aka V60(named after the Japanese company that manufactured the Hario V60 pourovers) was invented in 1908 in Japan. The peculiarity of the famous pour-overs is the cone angle of 60° and special grooves, thanks to which air circulates freely and participates in the brewing process (the main difference from the Chemex).
For Hario, choose a slightly smaller grind than for a press or Chemex, and use water of 88-93°C. Coffee is prepared using the drip method, resulting in aromatic and more “compote” taste. Cooking time - 4-4.5 minutes.
KALITA
Kalita ( Kalita), like Hario ( Hario) is a name derived from the brand. The gate has a flat bottom with three holes for more uniform extraction. This feature makes cooking in a kalita slightly different from brewing in a V60: the vessel does not allow water to be poured evenly, it lingers in the funnel and additionally brews coffee.
Unlike the Hario, the filter in the gate does not fit tightly to the funnel, due to which the air oxidizes the coffee. Cooking time: 2.5 minutes.
FRETTA
Fretta ( Fretta) - a jug with a funnel from the Hario company. Coffee prepared in a fretta is prepared using the pour-over method, but it turns out to be richer in taste and is additionally cooled with ice.
The coffee in the vessel is first filled with hot water and then passed through ice. The result is a cool, smooth, summery drink - ideal for hot-weather coffee drinkers.
MELITTA
The method was named after the German housewife and entrepreneur Frau Melitta Benz, who invented the paper coffee filter. According to legend, she was not satisfied with the coffee sediment in the cup and she filtered the coffee brewed in a Dutch coffee pot through a blotter. In 1908 Melitta received a patent, which marked the beginning of an entire coffee empire.
In general, the method is very similar to Hario, only the funnel is slightly different in shape.
SIPHON
The siphon is considered the most ancient and spectacular of the alternative methods of brewing coffee. A similar device was invented back in 1841, but due to the fragility of glass, the coffee maker did not gain popularity in those days.
The Japanese again saw the beauty of the siphon, where this method of brewing coffee is very popular. It consists in the fact that hot water passes through the coffee under pressure. Boiling water is poured into the lower vessel, and medium-ground coffee is poured into the upper one. When the siphon is heated by the gas burner, the water brews the coffee. Cooking time - 5 minutes.
COLD BRU
Cold brew- literally "cold brew". The peculiarity of this method is that the drink is brewed with cold water, as a result of which it turns out very rich and soft. The brewing process takes place using a drip method and requires patience: the coffee takes a very long time to brew.
Photo: by Google search
In the world when coffee machines were just beginning to appear, there were so-called alternative methods of brewing coffee in today's world. Now that the coffee machine has become no longer a luxury, but, so to speak, a means of transportation, the coffee world, for variety and the search for newer taste sensations, began to return to brewing methods that existed even before the advent of coffee makers.
Let’s be clear right away that alternative methods mean brewing coffee without using coffee machines.
So, the first method is
TURKA
Turka or (Cezva), according to some, is the most ancient method of brewing coffee. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that it is brewing, not cooking! Because boiling has a detrimental effect on coffee. With this method, the coffee is brought almost to a boil, and then removed from the heat, this is repeated several times, while the coffee gains strength and richness. The narrowed upper part of the Turk is needed so that the foam formed during the heating process does not occupy a large area. For the cezve, you need to use very fine grinding of the grain, so that the coffee gives the MAXIMUM to the drink! The coffee becomes thick and rich. If desired, you can collect the foam with a spoon and throw it away, but the correct way is to carefully collect it and place it in a preheated cup, and then fill it with coffee.
CHEMEX
In pursuit of the perfect coffee in 1940, German-born chemist Peter Schlumb created a hybrid flask and funnel and called it “Chemex.” The name Chemex comes from the English word “chemistry” – chemistry. The basis was a heat-resistant Pyrex kettle. The coffee pot met consumers' expectations: the drink it produced was truly amazing. However, the Second World War prevented the development of its production. Then, for official permission to start producing them, Schlumbom turned to President Roosevelt, a famous lover of good coffee, and received the go-ahead. But, unfortunately, it was only in 1990 that coffee connoisseurs paid attention to it and began to actively use it. A special cellulose filter is inserted into the upper part of the flask, folded twice, and coarsely ground coffee is poured here. Then boiling water is slowly poured through the coffee, the brewed coffee is poured into the flask through a filter. Chemex is called a coffee decanter (by analogy with a wine decanter), believing that contact with oxygen enriches and reveals the coffee bouquet. Due to the dense filter and coarse grind, the coffee turns out to be very light, unlike espresso (it’s like comparing fresh and compote). There is an opinion that it was created precisely to emphasize the sweetness of coffee and neutralize the bitterness. Of course, it also has a drawback - to prepare coffee for a group, for example, half a liter, you need to spend about 5 minutes, about three of which you just need to stand and slowly pour water.
AEROPRESS
A fairly new and not common brewing method, invented in 2005. It is similar to a syringe, only for brewing coffee. Medium grind coffee is brewed in a flask and allowed to brew for 50 seconds. Then slowly press on the piston in the flask, thus filtering the coffee. The coffee turns out brighter and more concentrated due to the pressure. The advantages include the ease of the device and the high speed of the brewing process. AeroPress is very good as an alternative for Americano lovers or even as a base for coffee drinks, such as Irish coffee. The method is not as aesthetically pleasing as pour over, Chemex or French press. It’s especially difficult for baristas: in order to push the piston, you have to make physical efforts and remember to be patient. It’s not easy to do many Aeropresses in a row. And so far only one company produces Aeropresses - AerobieInc.
SIPHON
Based on the cooking principle, the siphon is similar to a geyser coffee maker. It consists of two vessels: hot water at about 95 degrees is poured into the lower one, ground coffee is poured into the upper one. Then the whole thing is heated from below by a burner. The water gradually moves into the upper vessel, passing through the ground coffee, thereby brewing it. The drink is allowed to brew for a minute, stirring constantly, after which the siphon is removed from the heat. The coffee moves through a paper filter into the lower vessel. Thanks to the high temperature, the drink turns out rich, thick and strong; some experts even draw the following analogy: a Chemex is like wine, and a siphon is like port wine. Watching the process of making coffee using this device, the barista seems like some kind of chemist) . Siphons are quite bulky.
PUROVER
Purover, aka Hario. In fact, Hario is one of the manufacturers of coffee funnels with a 60 degree angle (that's why they are also called V60). The brewing method using this method is as follows: a funnel is placed on a cup or coffee pot (if a Chemex is cut into two components, you will get a similar picture), a paper filter with large pores is inserted into it. Water pours over the top of the cone, and the coffee falls into the prepared container. Cone bowls come in plastic, glass and ceramic. Plastic ones are the cheapest, glass ones are the most beautiful, since the entire brewing process is visible through them, and ceramic ones preserve heat better than others. A pour-over brews coffee for each cup, while a filter or French press can allow the drink to sit for hours. The pour-over looks impressive on the table in front of guests. The advantage of pour over over Chemex is the speed of brewing. A cup of coffee will be ready in 2.5 minutes, of which the barista will spend about 30 seconds pouring. The result is a more concentrated drink than in a Chemex, bright, clean, but less expressive than in a French press.
If you are interested in these methods, write in the comments and each cooking method will be discussed in more detail.
