Do you like Coffee?

Written by Ryota

If you are reading this article, you must be interested in coffee. And you probably have a coffee mug at hand.

Wait, what. Don’t you have one? Now, get it ready.

Hi, I’m a coffee addict. Recently, due to the influence of WFH, a lot of people are enjoying coffee at home. In this article, I will introduce the wonderfulness of coffee and my coffee brewing method.

・How I fell in love with coffee

When I was a sophomore in college, I was addicted to coffee. I am not sure why, but my body was craving this black, bitter liquid. I drank two cups of coffee almost every day. I don’t even want to remember how much money I spent on Starbucks.

One day, I was in a bookstore and found a book – “How to make a good cup of coffee”. Intrigued by it, I decided to try making it myself. I had never thought of making a cup of coffee myself before because I concluded that it is something you can buy. The experience of making coffee was much more fun than I had imagined. The timing, amount, and temperature of the hot water poured into the dripper can make a huge difference in the taste. I was fascinated by the profundity and sensitivity of the process. Now I am fascinated by the whole process of making coffee, and it has become an essential part of my routine every morning.

・Equipment and Coffee brewing method

When most people hear about brewing coffee by themselves, they tend to think that it requires a lot of equipment and is expensive. But you don’t need to worry about that. You only need five things. Coffee beans, a grinder, a scale, a dripper, and a pot. These can be purchased for as little as $50.

Wait, Ryota. Do I really need a grinder?

Yes, it’s a necessity.

Of course, you can make coffee without it. If you buy powdered coffee from the grocery store, you don’t need a grinder. Plus, you don’t have to grind the beans. But the difference is far greater than you can imagine. So make sure you have a grinder.

And these are the coffee equipment I use.

Coffee beans: Bella Donovan from Blue Bottle Coffee is my go-to. It’s a shallow roasted bean with slightly high acidity.

Grinder: I use a TimeMore hand grinder. I recommend it because it can grind beans evenly and has a sleek design.

Scale: This is a Hario coffee scale. Not only does it weigh, but it also has a timer function.

Dripper: I’ve been using Chemex drippers for years. It’s very convenient since it’s all in one. It reminds me of the old days when I used to experiment with a flask.

Pot: In order to pour the water carefully and accurately, I use a pot with a thin tip. This is not only for the plants.

My favorite coffee brewing method is the 4:6 method which was invented by Tetsu Kasuya who is World Brewers Cup 2016 Champion.

・Drinking coffee may help you live longer?

The answer to that question depends on how the coffee is brewed. Unfiltered coffee, like Greek and Turkish coffee, which is boiled, or coffee made in a French press contains higher amounts of cafestol and kahweol. A study’s results showed drinking boiled or pressed unfiltered coffee raised the risk of death in men aged 60 and above, due to elevated cardiovascular mortality.

But drinking filtered coffee – that through a paper filter, for example, was found to be healthier than drinking no coffee at all. Filtered coffee was linked to a 15% reduced risk of death from any cause, a 12% decreased risk of death from cardiovascular disease in men, and a 20% lowered risk of death from heart disease in women when compared to drinking no coffee.

Conclusion

Coffee is not only delicious, but it also has many health benefits. I hope this has inspired you to take an interest in coffee. Finally, I want to share with you two of my favorite TED talks related to coffee. The first one is “What you didn’t know about coffee – Asher Yaron” and the second one is “Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about coffee – Chandler Graf” which makes it easy for anyone to make a good cup of coffee. I hope you’ll enjoy these ted talks. And you won’t need to go to the coffee shop any more than you have to because you already know how to make a delicious cup.