Level Up Your Morning Coffee
If there is one thing that this stay-at-home pandemic has allowed me to do, it would be leveling up my morning coffee. Typically, during the work week I do the bare minimum to make my coffee. A quick and dirty pour over in my to-go mug and I’m out the door. However, being able to work from home has allowed me to take the time and really dive into experimenting with pour over coffee.
I’ve spent a decent amount of time watching YouTube videos, reading articles, and experimenting with my pour over coffee that I could probably get a job as a barista at this point. During this time, I’ve shared my morning coffee routine on social and always get a bunch of questions about what I use, what I like, and all that so I’m breaking down my pour over coffee essentials so you too can be your own at-home barista.
One of the responses I continually get when I share my coffee routine is, “that’s too much work for coffee.” Ha. I used to think the same thing but now I love it.
So if you don’t know what a pour over is, it’s just another method to brew coffee. Just as using a standard coffee maker, Keuring, or French Press is a method so is this.
Specifically, what the pour over method does is that it allows for more control in the brew process from water flow to temperature so you can extract the best flavor to create a truly good cup of coffee.
Before using the pour over coffee method, I didn’t really make coffee at home. I would sometimes use a French Press but for the most part I would just get coffee out. What I liked about the pour over method is that I could make just one cup for myself.
If you can believe this, my coffee order waaaayyy back in the day from Starbucks was one of two drinks: a triple grande caramel macchiato with 3 pumps of caramel, extra foam, extra caramel, 180 degrees; and the other was a triple grande 1 pump raspberry, 180 degree, extra foam latte. I mean talk about high maintenance and pretentious. Asking for my coffee to be a certain temperature; I’m mildly embarrassed for myself. I think if I drank one of those right now I’d probably go into shock. Once I started realizing I actually like coffee for the taste I would just get a simple cappuccino.
At the time though, it’s what is known in the coffee industry as the second wave. Where places like Starbucks were popular for making espressos and lattes popular. Specialty coffee roasters and shops weren’t popular and if they existed they were far and few between. It wasn’t until what is considered the third wave of coffee (which is now) that specialty roasters hit the scene and coffee became more about the process of roasting, brewing methods, and flavor profile.
For me, I’m loving this third wave of coffee. It has introduced me to the pour over and has sparked a new interest. The pour over process has become part of my morning ritual. I know it sounds a bit odd but I love the connection to the coffee and the calmness the brewing process brings me.
Grinder
In order to get the best flavor from your coffee beans you need to grind them fresh each time you brew. And using just any old grinder won’t do. It’s important to use a burr grinder. The typical grinders are blade grinders and they tend to grinder beans unevenly and some tend to heat up the beans during the grinding process. The burr grinder provides a consistent grind and doesn’t heat the beans. This is a great article that talks about the differences. I settled on the Baratza Encore grinder, which I think is good entry level grinder. Mine is about three years old and it’s held up great. You adjust the grind size and it’s very easy to use. Oh and they just released one in white that is so chic looking. That is definitely on my coffee bar dream list. One tip that I started to do with this grinder is that it actually sits in a plastic container (this one) to help catch all the coffee grind run-off. Each time I pull the container that holds the ground coffee out, there would always be remnants of grounds all over my counter. Even after wiping them up they seemed to be everywhere. So I use this container to catch any grounds and at the end of the week I clean it out.
ScalE
I was very adamant when I first started exploring the process of making pour overs that I wasn’t getting a scale. I felt it was introducing to much “math” into my coffee routine and an attempt to do any calculating before I had coffee seemed impossible. However, once I figured it out (thank you, Internet) I was good to go. And now there is no math in my morning coffee ritual.
I started with the Hario V60 Drip scale. It’s a great beginner scale but after about two years it broke; honestly, the craftmanship isn’t that great in my opinion. The top part of the scale broke from the bottom and I would shimmy it together each time I made coffee. Then one morning it just all around stopped working. So I went without a scale for awhile. I finally bit the bullet and got the Acaia Pearl scale. Oh my gosh. I love this scale. It definitely has a higher price point but in my opinion it is worth it. There are several different weight measurements, it’s bluetooth capable with an app, and I use it for measuring baking ingredients as well. So it’s definitely multipurpose and being put to good use.
Hario V60 Drip Scale | Acaia Pearl Scale
BREWER
There are many pour over style brewer options out there to fit your style. I started with the Bee Hive Dripper as I was the only one really drinking coffee in the house. It’s perfect for those single serve days. I can sit it over my to-go mug for work, make my pour over and I’m good to go.
Once the husband started wanting to have coffee as well, I got a CHEMEX Classic brewer. Did you know that this glass brewer dates back to 1941 and the design has been unchanged for 70 years? That’s crazy but if it ain’t broke, right?! There are a few options in terms of how many cups they will brew along with some new models that don’t have the wooden collar. So there is definitely something for everyone. I use the classic 6 cup CHEMEX which easily makes about 24 oz of coffee. I think you could make more but this is enough for two cups.
Bee Hive Dripper | CHEMEX Classic Brewer | CHEMEX Square Filters | Bee Hive Filters (not pictured)
KETTLE
You might be wondering why you couldn’t just use the kettle you already have. Well for pour over coffee, a goose neck kettle is key to help control the amount of water, getting the water into the brewer, and ensuring the grounds get saturated. Just like my scale, I started with a good beginner and very popular version; the Hario Buono Stovetop Kettle. Then when I decided to really level up my pour over game, I got the Fellows Stagg. To be honest, I had been drooling over this kettle for awhile. I had been wanting an electric kettle that heats up fast especially on those mornings when I’m quickly heading out the door. And I wanted to be able to control the temperature of the water in order to perfect that morning cup.
Not only is this kettle gorgeous it checks all the boxes. Filled to the max water line, it has enough water for both morning cups of coffee with a little bit left over. I ended up getting the Stagg EKG+ that connects via bluetooth to the Acaia Pearl scale. There is also an associated app where you can control the kettle, scale, and track your brew process. I mean you can really geek out on coffee. You can control the temperature to the exact degree and it will hold it there for an hour. One of the features I love is that I can start the kettle from the app on my phone. I imagine staying in a bed a few minutes longer while my water heats up.
I want to mention that when I first got this I was setting my temperature to 195 degrees and it kept wavering two degrees below the set temp. I searched online to see if that was normal and couldn’t find anything, So I reached out to Fellow and they were amazing. They said it could be the heating element in the kettle and within a few days I had a new kettle (not base). The new kettle still wavers a degree from the set temperature. I went back online to do more research and finally found someone that said their’s does the same thing, so I think that’s just how it works.
They also have a stovetop version and a non-bluetooth electric version as well. That one comes in different colors too.
Hario Buono Stovetop Kettle | Fellow Stagg EKG+ Electric Kettle
FROTHER
I don’t use my frother everyday. I use my handheld frother the most but when I make espresso in my Moka pot I’ll use the Nespresso frother. Mine is old and I actually got it before I really got into coffee. It really does froth my NutPods non-dairy creamer very well. I love using it in the winter when I want more of a latte style coffee. The handheld frother doesn’t really make that coffee shop style foam but it does add a little bit of froth.
Nespress Frother | Handheld Frother
COFFEE
Good coffee starts with the beans and while my coffee palate isn’t close to being able to pick up on all the tasting notes, I have been able to start tasting differences in different coffee beans. I love to try small batch roasters. And I always research coffee shops and roasters before traveling so I can try a new place and pick up a bag of beans. Checking out new coffee shops is one of the things I love to do when we travel.
It wasn’t until I tried La Colombe coffee that it got me to appreciate the flavor of coffee and I started drinking it black. If you follow me on Instagram then you know I am obsessed with La Colombe. I am so obsessed with them that when they only had cafes in NYC, Philly, Chicago, and DC I made it a mission to visit every single one. At that time I believe it was around 10 cafes across those cities but now they have over 30 across the US. That was all pre-SMT days.
They also make THE best cold brew in my opinion and their nitro lemon cold brew, which sounds odd, is actually pretty amazing especially in the summer. And while my true coffee heart belongs to La Colombe, I love to find specialty coffee roasters. A few I’m loving lately are local to the DC area and they are Ceremony Coffee Roasters (specifically their Antithesis blend) and Commonwealth Joe (their Blue Ridge Bluff blend). I’ve learned through trying out a bunch of different coffees is that I prefer a darker roast and I don’t like coffee that has fruity undertones. I’m actually surprised that I can pick those notes up in a brew. I must be doing something right.
I haven’t dived into single origin coffees yet which from what I’ve read and watched on YouTube is those flavor profiles really come out when brewed as a pour over.
La Colombe Coffee | Ceremony Coffee | Commonwealth Joe Coffee
ACCESSORIES
My go-to coffee accessories of course starts with my Gun Snob mug. Nothing like starting your morning with a fresh brew and supporting the 2nd Amendment. When I’m taking my coffee to go, such as to work, I love my HydroFlask; I can toss it into my backpack and I don’t have to worry about it leaking or getting cold. My other favorite item that I love is my Koffie Straw. It’s specifically perfect for my La Colombe cold brew cans but I also do use it when drinking my coffee black. I love that they are thin enough that they slip right into the coffee shop to-go lids. My last thing is pretty basic but it’s an airtight container for my coffee beans. There are a lot of coffee specific airtight containers but I didn’t really like them. I wanted something that would keep my coffee fresh but also allow me to have a few different coffee bags open and in rotation. So this container is perfect. I can fit about four bags of coffee beans and because I visit a lot of coffee shops when I travel, I love to pick up a sticker and I slap that on my bin. It’s a fun reminder of my coffee travels.
Gun Snob Mug | HyrdoFlask To Go | Koffie Straw | Lock & Lock Container
SUPPLEMENTS
Obviously these aren’t necessary but they are what I use almost on a daily basis. I’ve been putting collagen protein in my coffee for the past few years. I know some say they can taste it but I can’t. You can read more about why I use collagen protein in this post. On days when I want my coffee to feel a little more cozy, I add NutPods non-dairy creamer. I have dried sooo many non-dairy creamers and always come back to this one. I love that it has zero sugar. I also love Oatly’s Oatmilk Barista blend creamer. Out of all the non-dairy creamers oat milk is supposed to complement coffee the best and not mask it’s flavor. Most specialty coffee shops have switched to using oat milk. As much as I love it, I don’t like that it has sugar. NutPods come in a bunch of flavors and the flavor from the ones I’ve tried are faint. I saw they just released a limited flavor called Toasted Marshmallow that I want to try. But honestly, since I love coffee because I love the taste of coffee, flavored creamers are not really my thing. Besides, Oatly’s Barista Blend Oatmilk, NutPods is also the best non-dairy creamer that I’ve found that froths really well.