Coffee extraction: drip methods and tools
If you are a coffee enthusiast eager to experiment with new preparation methods, the Drip methods are right for you. These coffee extraction techniques offer a unique way to enjoy an aromatic and well-balanced cup of coffee. From classic Pour Over methods such as the V60 and Chemex, to surprising brewing and pressure approaches such as the Cuccumella, Aeropress and Siphon, to brewing techniques such as the French Press, exploring the world of coffee through Drip methods offers a fascinating sensory experience. In this article, we'll take you on an exciting journey through the world of coffee preparation, get ready to savor new aromas and discover a whole new way to enjoy your favorite coffee.
Drip Methods
The "drip" methods refer to a specific coffee preparation method, commonly known as "brewing method" or "infusion method", often used in drip coffee makers or drip filters.
The drip method involves the use of a paper filter or a permanent filter placed inside a filter holder. A dose of ground coffee is placed inside the filter, and hot water is poured over the coffee gradually and evenly. The water percolates through the coffee grounds and filter, collecting the oils and flavors during the extraction process.
This method of preparing coffee is known to produce a clean and light drink, with a moderate body and good clarity of flavours. It may be suitable for those who prefer a more delicate and less intense coffee than other methods such as espresso.
The drip coffee extraction tools can be of different types:
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Pour over: the coffee is extracted using a technique called “Pour Over”, literally translated percolation or drip. It is one of the oldest brewing systems, introduced at the end of the 19th century and optimized in 1908 by Melita Bentz who introduced paper filters, giving way to manual filter coffee extraction. Extraction by percolation or dripping involves the water passing through the ground coffee to slip into the cup or carafe. It is the category that best identifies filter coffee, which takes its name from the component of the same name, in paper, fabric or metal mesh, present in all percolation coffee makers. This method allows us to bring a very aromatic coffee with a medium body into the cup.
The Pour Over extraction methods are: V60, Chemex and Cold Drip.
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By infusion and pressure: these methods combine both infusion and the application of pressure to extract the coffee from the ground beans. Initially, hot water is steeped in the ground coffee, allowing for an infusion stage. Next, pressure is applied to speed up the extraction of the ground coffee. This type of extraction method tends to produce a more intense and concentrated drink than traditional brewing methods.
Common examples of infusion and pressure extraction methods include Syphon, Aeropress and Cuccumella.
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By infusion: are techniques used to prepare coffee through the process of infusion of water with ground coffee. These methods involve steeping the ground coffee in hot water for a set amount of time, allowing the coffee's flavors and compounds to dissolve into the water, thus creating the final beverage.
Among the extraction methods by infusion we find the French Press.
Pour Over extraction tools
V60
The first v60 was born in 1980 by Hario (a company founded in 1921 with the name Shibata work's) without obtaining success, success which instead arrived in 2004 after making changes to the cone and inserting the internal reliefs. Since then it has started to get the first awards, in 2007 it obtained Japan's Good Design Award and in 2010 it was used by the winner of the World Brewers Cup increasing its popularity among coffee lovers.
The V60, also called Dripper is a manual coffee extraction tool . It is produced by the Japanese house Hario and its name derives precisely from its shape , from the 60° angle of the upper part . This angle allows the hot water to flow towards the center and stay in contact with the ground longer, for a more precise extraction. It has spiral reliefs inside this cone that prevent the paper filter from sticking to the dripper while allowing air to pass through which allows the ground to expand better. It has a hole in the final part of the cone which allows the water to stay in contact with the coffee for less time, helping to regulate the extraction.
extraction takes place by percolation, the water is poured slowly and circularly onto the ground coffee and the extracted coffee percolates inside a jug called placed under the cone server.
The V60 can be made of many materials, mainly glass, ceramic, plastic and metal.
How to use it?
The water is heated with the kettle, the paper filter is inserted into the cone and poured over with hot water to eliminate the paper scents and heat the carafe that will contain the coffee. Weigh the coffee according to your recipe, grind it and put it inside the filter. At this point, pour 2 g of water for each gram of coffee and let it rest for 30 seconds. This phase called “blooming” is very important for eliminating the gases contained in the coffee.
At this point we start the extraction and pour the remaining water over the ground with circular movements towards the center starting from the external circumference of the dripper. We will have extracted a cup of coffee that is very clean and full of aromatic notes.
CHEMEX
This carafe has the shape of a glass hourglass and a very particular handle made up of two rings tied by a leather cord which allow you not to get burned while pouring the coffee.
It was invented in 1941 by the German chemist Peter J. Schlumbohm. In 1958 the designers of the Illinois Institute of Technology considered that the Chemex was one of the best design projects of modern times and it was exhibited and included in the permanent collection of the MoMA in New York.
To prepare excellent coffee with the Chemex, as for other drip preparations, in addition to the filter and a kettle, we need a scale and a stopwatch. The time is essential to perform a perfect extraction, which must take place from 3 to 5 minutes depending on the cups we are going to prepare. In this case, if they are exceeded or if we extract our coffee in less time, we will have an over-extracted or under-extracted cup.
The brew ratio (i.e. the proportion between the quantity of ground coffee and the extraction water) is 60 g /1l of water.
Let's see all the steps:
- Once the filter has been inserted, wet it with hot water to make it adhere to the carafe, eliminate paper scents and heat our Chemex
- Let's insert the coffee inside our filter
- We level and pour 2 g of water for each gram of coffee, leaving it to pre-infuse for 30 seconds (this practice is called blooming, the carbon dioxide escapes and we retain the positive aromas of our coffee)
- Pour the remaining water with circular movements to touch all the coffee and extract all the flavours.
- After extraction, remove the filter, decant slightly and serve. This type of extraction gives us aromatic cups for an intense sensory journey.
COLD DRIP
The cold drip is a cold coffee extraction tool, it has a unique appearance that recalls distillation stills and is able to create cups of coffee with low acidity and with a unique sweetness due to the temperature of the water which does not extract the bitter parts of the coffee.
It is often called Kyoto style cold drip, from the Japanese city where it is widespread. Unlike hot extraction, cold extraction requires 8 to 10 hours to obtain the final product.
Let's see its structure. It consists of three parts:
- The tank for the extraction water
- The extraction chamber which contains the ground coffee
- The carafe that will contain the extracted coffee
The brew ratio for this preparation is 80 g/l, the tap placed under the tank must dispense 6 drops every 10 seconds. After the extraction we can serve it on the rock, with vegetable drinks, an excellent ingredient for your summer drinks.
Warning! Cold drip is often confused with Cold brew:
The Cold Drip is a percolation coffee extraction tool. The cold water falls drop by drop on the ground coffee for about 10 hours, and it is already filtered. Also in this case we will obtain a balanced cup, with slightly less body but just as aromatic.
The Cold Brew is a process of extraction of coffee in infusion with water and ice. To obtain it, the mixture must be left to "macerate" for 7/8 hours before it is ready. It is filtered before being served and we will obtain a balanced drink with low acidity.
Extraction tools for infusion and pressure
LA CUCCUMELLA
The Neapolitan coffee maker or Cuccumella is a typically Italian extraction tool, even if it was invented and patented in 1819 by a Frenchman named Morize. His idea was to make an inexpensive coffee maker made from simple materials like tin, ceramic, copper, and other metals. The name "cuccumella" derives precisely from cuccuma, or small copper container.
How to use it?
Fill the tank with about 250 ml of water for a three-cup coffee maker, fill the filter holder container with ground coffee with a coarser grind than the moka, screw the upper part of the filter tightly to the filter holder and place the coffee pot on the fire. Once the temperature has been reached, steam will come out of the small hole, turn off the heat and turn the coffee pot upside down to start extraction.
SYPHON
The siphon is a very scenic, complex and fascinating coffee extraction tool, which immediately attracts anyone's attention. It almost resembles an ancestor of the moka because it extracts our favorite coffee by exploiting the steam pressure created by boiling water.
The siphon called Vacuum coffee pot was invented in Berlin by Mr Leoff. In 1940 James Naper announced the construction of the first Vacuum coffee pot without patenting it because glass did not guarantee heat resistance and could not be safe.
In 1925 the German Otto Schott invented the barosyncate, a glass resistant to pressure and heat, bringing useful modifications to the correct use, patenting this tool that immediately became popular until today.
The siphon is made up of a bottom cruet which will contain the water (better if preheated), a overlying cruet (where we're going to put the coffee) with a tube which plunges into the one below, a filter (usually made of metal and covered with fabric), a gasket and a gas or alcohol oven.
How to use it?
- We pour the preheated water into the underlying cruet
- We fit the filter to the base of the overlying cruet tube
- Assemble the entire instrument
- Turn on the stove
- While we wait for the water to boil, weigh the coffee (brew ratio 60/lt)
- As soon as the water reaches boiling and it will rise in the ampoule above due to the pressure caused by the steam, pour the coffee and mix so that all the coffee comes into contact with the water.
- Close the overlying ampoule and leave it to infuse for 1 minute.
- Once the infusion has finished, turn off the stove. In this way the pressure will no longer be maintained and our coffee will fall back into the cruet below passing through the filter.
With this preparation we can obtain well-defined, clean cups of coffee, with an intense aroma and good body.
For this preparation we recommend washed specialty coffees which give body and softness in the cup.
AEROPRESS
The Aeropress is one of the most popular coffee makers in the world due to its ease of use and its ability to produce high quality coffee.
The idea of creating the Aeropress was born when Alan Adler, an American inventor and engineer, known for his passion for coffee, but disappointed by the coffees he could prepare with other filter coffee makers, decided to experimenting with a new extraction method that could offer a cleaner and more intense flavour. After many trials and experiments, in 2005, he introduced the Aeropress to the world.
Unlike other extraction methods, Aeropress infusion/pressure extraction has a little more of body than Pour Over extractions .
It is made up of three essential elements that work in synergy:
- a cylindrical infusion chamber that houses the ground coffee and hot water, creating the ideal environment for extraction,
- a plunger with a rubber seal that slides inside the chamber, allowing you to control the pressure during the extraction process,
- a cap equipped with a filter that screws onto the opposite side of the plunger, creating an airtight seal and ensuring that the extracted coffee passes through the filter while retaining the ground coffee residues.
The preparation of the Aeropress is relatively simple:
- Heats the water to a temperature of around 90-95°C (195-205°F), which is the ideal temperature for extraction some coffee.
- Insert the paper filter into the filter holder of the Aeropress and fix it firmly.
- Place the Aeropress on the cup or serving jug.
- Pour the hot water to eliminate the smell of paper and remove it from the jug.
- Add medium ground coffee to the main cylinder funnel. The brew ratio is 60 g per 1 l of water. The amount of coffee can vary according to personal preference, but it is usually recommended to use around 15-18g of coffee per 250-280ml of water.
- Gradually pour the hot water over the ground coffee. You can start with a small amount of water and make circular motions to wet the coffee evenly. This process is called "blooming".
- Gently mix the coffee and water for a few seconds using the plunger.
- After about 30-40 seconds of blooming, continue pouring the rest of the water into the Aeropress funnel.
- Place the plunger on the funnel and leave the coffee to infuse for 1 minute and 30 seconds.
- Start exerting a slight downward pressure. The pressure should be steady but not too strong. The coffee-water mixture will pass through the paper filter in the bottom of the Aeropress and into the serving cup or pitcher.
- Keep pushing the plunger until all the coffee has been extracted.
- Remove the Aeropress from the cup and enjoy your freshly brewed coffee.
The Aeropress is a coffee preparation tool, very fast that allows us to extract in less than 2 minutes. It has surprising durability, is light, easy to handle and very practical, allowing us to obtain cups of coffee with a good body.
In the brewers world championships, we were able to see the aeropress being used in an "inverted" way: proceed by turning the aeropress upside down, the plunger is already inserted into the brewing chamber and leave the filter and cap aside. Insert the water and the coffee, screw the cap with the filter, turn the aeropress upside down again and proceed with the extraction.
Extraction tools for infusion
FRENCH PRESS
The French Press is a coffee filtering system born in France in 1852 by a goldsmith and a merchant, Meyer and Delforge.
Although it is an invention born in the transalpine territory, it was the Italians who modified it and proposed new modifications.
Attilio Calimani made changes by inventing a more advanced version, a version which was in turn modified by Bruno Cassol who added a metal mesh filter to retain the ground coffee.
In 1958 Faliero Bonandini (producer of clarinets) reached the final version which is the one we know today. It began large-scale production in its French factory and was spread throughout Europe.
The French Press is nothing more than a glass container with a cylindrical metal piston that slides inside. It has a plunger on the lid with a filter to retain coffee residue.
Preparing coffee is very simple, it is the simplest extraction method ever, all you need is a coffee pot, hot water and our favorite coffee.
The brew ratio is 60 gr/lt and the water temperature must be 95 degrees, the grind must be medium-coarse (600-800 microns).
Let's see the steps for extraction with the French Press:
- Heat the water up to 95 degrees (You can try in the range of 92-94 degrees as you like).
- Pour our coffee and level it with side taps.
- Pour the water with constant turbulence in a circular fashion for 30 seconds.
- Mix with a spoon to eliminate lumps and to bring all the water into contact with the coffee.
- Place the filter on the surface.
- Leave to infuse for 4 minutes
- Press the plunger without insisting too much on the ground and serve.
The cup of coffee extracted with French Press will be very similar to a mocha, full-bodied, cloudy and enveloping. Unlike mocha, it is a more delicate extraction, it has a reduced bitterness and more aromatic notes.
