How to properly grind coffee?

Everybody loves the aromatic smell of freshly brewed coffee, however, it is not a simple process.
For many connoisseurs it is a ritual and collection of strictly followed rules. It is well known that the most suitable moment for grinding is just before brewing. A dilemma about ways of grinding and brewing at some point of our great coffee adventure comes into question… What then?

How to properly grind coffee?

1. The best way is to grind coffee before brewing – this will keep its precious aroma, and the quality of what we make in our cup will be at a much higher level.
2. If you are using a simple home devices such as cafetiere, French press or coffee maker you should get yourself a coffee grinder.
3. If you don’t have a grinder (you can buy it at a local store with household appliances) you can always grind your coffee in our coffee roaster room or better shops. There are manual and electric grinders to choose from.
4. Think about how you want your coffee and adjust the grind level.
5. In order not to overheat the beans, tap repeatedly the button of your grinder.
6. Always grind only as much coffee as you need to brew. The reason is: during grinding, coffee beans unleash elusive aromatic oils that give flavour and aroma to the coffee. These oils rapidly deteriorate. Now, You can imagine how big is the difference between the coffee you buy at the shop (coffee which was open for some time) and freshly ground.

Coffee grind levels

Coarse

This is a good way for those who like to use coffee makers and French press. These devices use different filters (for example, paper filter in coffee maker, plunger in French press) that help to separate coffee grounds from water.

If grinding is proper, our device will make us a coffee without clogging pores of the filter. On the other hand if coffee is too fine it can affect effectiveness and functionality of our device and as a result… our coffee will be badly brewed.

Caution! Not only fine coffee adds bitter taste but also it can clog and break our device.

Medium coarse

This grinding level is good if our device use pressure in the process of making coffee, e.g. in cafetiere, water is thrust through a plunger with coffee under a slight pressure. This way we receive a more aromatic coffee with more intensive flavour.

Fine

Device appropriate for this kind of grinding is coffee machine. To receive a desired amount of coffee and intensity you should pay attention to your grinder if it’s properly adjusted. Coffee machines are very popular these days. In brewing process, everything what is best in a finely ground coffee is extracted with a use of small amount of hot water.

Turkish coffee enthusiasts should remember to grind beans to very fine, like a powder. It turns out that coffee made in a Turkish way is not a popular ‘typical coffee’.

What else do you need to know?

Firstly: It is very important the way you store your coffee. The container must be sealed and kept in a cold place.

Secondly: Use clean, cold water, if you use tap water let it run for a few seconds. Remember not to boil water for too long and more importantly do not pour boiling water directly on coffee beans.

Thirdly: Drink only freshly brewed coffee.