A Crash Course in Brewing Coffee

Written by: Christine Seah

Do you look awesome in a leather apron? Do you feel more at home in cafes than your actual home? Then maybe being a barista is your one true calling!

But if you don't know how to make a perfect cup yet, fret not because this article is going to give you a crash course in brewing coffee.

Brewing 101

“Extraction” is the one word that can sum up every coffee-making process in existence. You add a solid (coffee grounds) into a solvent (water), and voilà, you produce an infused liquid (coffee).

As a rule of thumb, here are some important facts that you can rely on when it comes to creating your perfect recipe:

1. The more finely ground your coffee is, the more easily extracted it is
2. The higher the ratio of coffee:water, the more concentrated the flavour
3. The hotter your water, the more coffee it extracts

Now it’s up to you to seek the perfect balance between over-extracted (bitter, astringent) and under-extracted (sour, weak).

Step-by-Step: A Barista’s Recipe

To get you started, this is one of my recipes, and one that I love.

Kenya AA ala Chemex:

I love African coffees because of how fruity they are. Kenyan coffees in particular, are especially known for their berry-like sweetness and wine-like flavours. I like using them roasted light-medium, to strike a balance between fruity acidity, and the oomph of bitter complexity that makes coffee, well, coffee.

I like brewing with the Chemex, a narrow, conical glass flask that is coupled with thick filter paper that thoroughly removes oil and sediments. It's a method that creates a clean mouthfeel and brings a tea-like quality to the drink.

Step 1: Prep your equipment

You'll need:

• A weighing scale (super, super important)
• A Chemex, with paper filter
• A coffee grinder
• A pour over kettle, or a kettle with a narrow spout
• A timer
• A serving cup

Step 2: Grind your coffee

I use a grind size similar to kosher salt. I like using a hand grinder, but if you’ve got an automated one, go for it. I’m grinding 13g of coffee.

Step 3: Prep your water

Now heat up your water by bringing it to a boil, and then letting it cool to about 94°C - remember, water that’s too hot might extract too much of the coffee, making for a bitter drink.

Step 4: Soak your filter

Pour hot water all over your filter and let it soak up as much as it can, brewing straight over dry paper can often lead to the paper’s flavour ending up in your coffee - this is a really important top tip.

Let the runoff water heat up your brewing device too, this makes for better consistency in temperature.

Step 5: Pour away the runoff, and place the grinds in the filter

Now you’ve got a nice warm Chemex jug, and a nice evenly distributed bed of coffee resting in the paper cone.

Step 6: Bloom

One of the major components in coffee is carbon dioxide. The fresher your coffee is, the more CO2 is in it. CO2 is a naturally acidic compound, so you don’t want too much of that.

Pour 50ml of your water over the grounds and let them soak it up. You’ll start to notice them swell and bubble a little - that’s the CO2 escaping. Wait about 40 seconds for this process to finish.

Step 7: Pour over

Now slowly pour in more water, in 50ml/15 second intervals. You want to shoot a consistent, thin stream of water, in small circular motions. This ensures that the coffee is evenly extracted.

I continue this process until the weight of the drink is 200g, and the process has taken 2 minutes and 15 seconds. Pay close attention to the weight and the timing! If too much water is added, or if you’ve poured too quickly, the coffee will taste diluted and under-extracted. On the flip side, if you’ve added too little water, or if you’ve poured too slowly, it’ll be bitter and over-extracted.

Step 8: Chuck the filter, swirl and cool

Now give the glass a couple of good, strong swirls. It might seem silly to cool down a drink that’s supposed to be served hot, but burning your tongue on a flaming hot cup of anything is simply not pleasant. The aeration also brings out the flavours of the coffee.

I like to cool the coffee down to 67°C, which the human tongue registers as warm, but not scalding.

Feeling inspired?

The art of making coffee can be a lot of fun, and if you enjoy brewing a cuppa joe for yourself and others, being a barista might be right up your alley! It'll take a while for you to really master the art, but it'll be a journey that you'll find very satisfying and rewarding when your customers love your product.

While we've only covered one way of making coffee, being a barista also allows you to use sophisticated machines and techniques to further your craft. If you still need help on your first steps, the Singapore Workforce Development Agency has basic F&B courses you can take to level up. Source

You'll also need a Basic Food Hygiene Certificate which you can easily attain by attending a one-day course, which is compulsory if you prepare food or drinks. But don't sweat it. Your employer will send you for it once you have the job and there are heavy subsidies if you go through that route.

Having said that, there's no better way to get better at making coffee than getting some real industry experience. Find barista jobs on FastJobs! The F&B section contains tons of cafe job opportunities.

What are you waiting for? Hop on to FastJobs to get yourself on board the exciting world of coffee culture!

Photo credits: Timothy Jay Alexander (@timjcoffee) & Stumptown Coffee

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