Let’s talk scales | Why should I think about getting one?

Any scale is better than no scale.

And once you have one there truly is no looking back! It does not matter if you are using a kitchen scale or a fancy coffee scale with a built in timer. They all work. The built in timer is simply for convenience and ease of keeping track of many moving parts.

Importantly, a scale allows you to start playing around with ratios. A good place to start is 1:15. This means that for every gram of coffee, you will use 15 grams of water (example: 22 grams of coffee to 330 grams of water). Regardless of what method you use, be it pour over, batch brewer, french press, or moka pot (you name it!), using a ratio for your cup of coffee will allow you to consistently improve your brew.

Try this recipe at 1:15 brew ratio:

1. Boil your water to 90 C (about 30 seconds off boil if you do not have a thermometer)
   
   
2. Get set up:
   a. Put your dripper on your carafe, or mug
   b. Insert paper filter
   c. Wet the paper filter with hot water. *Why? Removes the paper taste that naturally occurs when using a paper filter. It also pre-heats your cup!*
   
   
3. Weigh out 20g of coffee and grind to a medium grind (should appear sea salt like.)
   
   
4. Place your carafe and brew device on your scale and add your freshly ground coffee. Tap the dripper to distribute the coffee to create an even bed. 
   
   
5. Tare your scale and start your timer
   
   
6. Add 50 grams of hot water to the coffee. This is your bloom. The goal of the bloom is to wet all the coffee to start the brewing process. Use slow concentric circles to ensure even water distribution – you want to ensure you are not just dumping the water over the grounds. You are trying to soak the coffee grounds as much as possible.
   
   
7. Once you’ve reached 60 grams, wait 30-40 seconds and then add additional hot water to reach 200 grams total of poured water.
   
   
8. Wait for 1:15-1:20 minutes and pour enough hot water to reach 320 grams total of poured hot water.
   
   
9. Lift the coffee dripper and swirl for a final agitation, and set back onto the carafe/mug with a bit of a “thump.”
   
   
10. Once all the water has passed through the dripper, remove and swirl coffee. *Hope to be done between 3-4 minutes.*

Enjoy your freshly brewed cup!