Did you know that just a few degrees difference in water can affect how your coffee is brewed? Let's talk about that.
We’ll start off by saying that the end result in coffee brewing is all a matter of personal taste, but we will share what we learned about coffee extraction based on tests we did with various water temperatures and roast levels. The tests were done using a Hario V60 pour over system, a Breville Smart Grinder Pro, and a Fellow Stagg EKG electric kettle. Here's what we learned, the results of the tests, and our recommendations.
Water temperature basics:
-The hotter the water, the more is extracted more quickly from coffee; the cooler the water, the less is extracted more slowly from coffee.
-With more extraction, more flavors are present in the cup; more extraction also yields more bitterness and char flavors in the cup.
-With less extraction, there are less flavors present in the cup, however the acidity in coffee is much more present which yields a weak and unpleasantly puckery beverage, especially with light roasts.
Roast level and extraction basics:
-The lighter the coffee is roasted, the less porous and more dense the beans are; the more dense and less porous the coffee bean is, the more difficult it becomes to extract flavors.
-The darker the coffee is roasted, the more porous and less dense the beans are; the less dense and more porous the coffee bean is, the easier it becomes to extract flavors
Basic conclusion:
The lighter the coffee is roasted, the hotter the water you want to use.
Our water temperature brewing recommendations:
-For light roasts, water temperature between 205F - 210F (or even right off the boil!) is best.
-For medium roasts, water temperature between 200F - 205F is best.
-For dark roasts, water temperature between 195F - 200F is best.
What if you only have a classic brewer and no fancy equipment?
We have a brewing guide for that! Check out "Batch Brewing Guide for All Roast Levels" on our "Brew Guides" page to learn how to get a good cup of coffee with a basic batch brewer!