Brewing
Manual brewing is relatively inexpensive, and the various options produce different results. I’ll start with the most common, one of the easiest to use, and the heaviest cup of the bunch and work towards the lighter end of the spectrum.
Immersion Brewers
French Press / Press Pot
One of the easiest and most common methods of brewing is the French Press. It will also produce the fullest and heaviest cup in terms of body and flavor. The coffee is immersed in the water and allowed to steep for 3-4 minutes before the grinds are strained or pressed through the liquid. Because there isn’t a paper filter involved, the coffee retains all of its natural oils which contribute to the more full bodied and heavy characteristics of this method. This means it can produce a full, smooth, and sweet cup, but you are less likely to achieve some of the more nuanced flavors of lighter roasts and single origin coffees that can sometimes better suit the pour over methods. The common downside of the French Press is that sediment often times ends up in the bottom of the cup, and some do not like that grittiness. The more expensive options will typically do a better job with heat retention and filtering, but this again stresses why achieving the proper grind size is so important.
Bodum 8-cup - $20 – Available at nearly any department store
Cheap and easy coffee making at my Parent's house for the holidays. Simple French Press, Hario Mini Mill, and good coffee!
AeroPress - $30
Both a category and a method, the AeroPress is a very unique product in the coffee world, especially at this price point. It uses a full immersion method of brewing with gentle pressure through a filter to produce very rich but smooth and complex coffee. There are tons and tons of different “recipes” or methods out there for using it – there’s even a World AeroPress Championship! In general, the coffee is more on the concentrated or strong side, not quite espresso, but it is brewed with some pressure and in lower quantities, so it’s not like brewed coffee either. I particularly like how simple and portable this method is. It’s my go-to for camping, traveling, making a fast pick me up at home, and brewing directly over ice, which works well because it is concentrated to being with. Disc shaped paper filters are the standard but metal mesh filters are also available from Able Brewing.
Immersion Drippers/Brewers
This method is also extremely easy to use and makes a great cup. Nearly all of the fool-proof-ness and fuller extraction of the French Press, but without all of the fines and grittiness, leaving you with a slightly cleaner and potentially more nuanced or complex cup. These options still immerse the coffee grounds in water during the extraction but utilize a paper filter. Immersion brewers are extremely simple to use and can even be used with their valves open to create a (slightly slower flowing) pour over cone, two brewers in one! You’ll want to start by pre-rinsing and pre-heating the filter and the brewer before adding coffee, adding water, allow to steep for 2-3 minutes and then filtering. This is my go to method for a simple brewed cup or when a pour over is yielding too light of a cup, this will offer a little more extraction.
Bonavita Immersion Dripper - $35-$40
Bonavita Immersion Dripper and Bonavita PID Goose-neck kettle make great and simple brewed coffee
Pour Over Brewing
Continuing on from heaviest or fullest cup to lightest or must nuanced, pour over brewing will offer a cleaner, lighter bodied cup that can let more subtle flavors come through. Pour over brewing does become slightly more demanding of the user and the grinder, as it’s the grind size or fineness that controls the flow of water, since the brewers are open-bottomed. A goose-neck kettle is also particularly useful in controlling and directing the flow of water.
Chemex - $40+
The Chemex is really your only option for manual batch brewing, and is as beautiful as it is functional. The design and shape of the neck and filters lead to it being a slightly slower flowing and more full extracting cup than the other pour over methods. It’s available in a variety of sizes and styles, with either the classic wood and leather collar or glass handle. Chemex filters are relatively easy to come by, but are going to be a little more expensive than other pour over methods.
Flat Bottomed Drippers
These pour over brewers feature a… wait for it… flat bottom that is designed to create a more level, even bed of coffee to promote a more even extraction. These brewers are typically more forgiving of technique than cone-shaped or V-shaped pour over brewers because of this, since it is easier to wet all of the coffee more evenly. Many say this leads to a slightly sweeter cup as you don’t risk under and over extracting as much. Many pour over bars are now utilizing the flat bottomed styled brewers because of their forgiveness, ease of use, and consistency. The Kalita Wave, which comes in two sizes and three different materials is the go to, but if you’re looking for something a little fancier, the notNeutral Gino dripper is a looker.
Kalita Wave - $35+
notNeutral Gino - $25
Cone and V-Shaped Drippers
These are typically what come to mind when you think of pour over coffee, and for good reason, when done right; they make a great cup of coffee. Of all of the methods listed, these might be the most demanding of technique and equipment, but if you like the process of pursuing perfection, it can be very rewarding. Like the other pour over brewers, grind size and consistency will determine the flow rate or brewing time, and grind consistency is key to make sure you’re not under and over extracting the coffee and producing unwanted flavors. When, how, and how much water is poured will alter the extraction and end result. There are numerous methods and guides available providing lots of opportunity for experimentation. The classic pour over cone is my go to method for filter-roasted and/or single-origin coffees where I want to bring out nuanced and subtle flavors inherent to that particular coffee and region. There are a lot of different brands and materials available as options, and filters are relatively easy to come by.