How to Drink Freshly Ground Coffee: Equipment Introduction and Recommended Ground Coffee Brands

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Introduction

Today, I'm not going to introduce coffee powder or coffee beans, but rather several methods to enjoy freshly ground coffee without buying a fully automatic coffee machine. After all, not every company is equipped with coffee machines, and not everyone finds it necessary to buy a fully automatic coffee machine for home use.

Coffee Powder vs. Coffee Beans

Before introducing the methods, let me talk about coffee powder and coffee beans. For convenience, I usually buy pre-ground coffee powder directly. The drawback is that the quality of coffee powder is inversely proportional to the time it sits after grinding, so it's best to buy small packages to ensure the flavor of freshly ground coffee powder. Of course, if you're more particular about quality, you can buy coffee beans and just need a grinder - both electric and manual options are available. Some places that sell beans also provide grinding services - like Starbucks, of course. But since I'm so lazy, I'll skip the tedious task of grinding beans.

Drip Coffee Bags

If you want to enjoy freshly ground coffee, the most direct approach is to buy drip coffee bags. It's equivalent to a simple pour-over coffee, and seriously making a cup takes only three minutes. Drip coffee bags are most recommended for office use - after all, holding a pour-over kettle in the break room might seem a bit pretentious.

Many Japanese brands offer drip coffee bags, with prices ranging from a few to over ten yuan. Japanese Starbucks and MUJI both produce them, as do UCC, Blendy, AGF, MONCAFE, Sumida River, and others. Some domestic coffee shops also offer them, and Taobao has many original brands. I suggest buying small quantities to sample first, then repurchasing once you find one you like.

Additionally, there are separate drip bags sold where you can add your own coffee powder. This is the method I use most often myself.

Pour-Over Kettle

Actually, the drip bags mentioned earlier are a simplified version of pour-over coffee. The complete version uses a pour-over kettle, which looks like a funnel placed on top of a cup, requiring only one filter paper each time. Well, this method extracts coffee more thoroughly than drip bags, where coffee drips through quite quickly. But as a coarse person like me, I still find drip bags more convenient, so I use this method very rarely.

By the way, pour-over coffee pairs well with a narrow-spout watering kettle. I personally use a small 320ml one, which is just the right capacity for one person! They're widely available on Taobao, so just choose one that looks good to you (the image above is from the shop I bought from - it's quite famous, and those who've bought from there should recognize it immediately).

French Press

Broadly speaking, coffee preparation methods fall into two categories: (using water) immersion or filtration. Pour-over belongs to the latter, while French press belongs to the former. To put it simply, it's quite similar to brewing tea. Well, the pot I showed above is from IKEA, which describes it as: coffee pot/tea pot. The usage is also similar to brewing tea - add coffee powder first, then pour hot water, fully extract, then press the mesh to the bottom, and finally pour out the coffee to drink.

Doesn't it look even simpler than pour-over? But there's actually quite a lot of knowledge involved. The coarseness of the coffee powder, water temperature, and extraction time - any slight variation results in different flavors. So although many people find French press coffee full-bodied and rich, I still prefer pour-over coffee for its simplicity and directness.

But this method is also very convenient. Whether at home or in the office, just keep a French press handy. IKEA sells them for just 59 yuan, and Taobao has plenty of options for you to choose from. Oh, if you feel you can't control the brewing process well and the coffee doesn't taste good, hehe, it won't go to waste - you can still use it to brew tea!

Wacaco Minipresso

Represented by this device is a series of "portable coffee machines." Similar products include the AeroPress, but since I bought this one, I'll use it as an example. This comes in both coffee powder and capsule versions - I bought the coffee powder version.

Actually, I wouldn't exactly recommend it, but neither pour-over coffee nor French press can make espresso, which we commonly call Italian-style concentrated coffee. Friends who have used drip bags and French presses have surely noticed: why does the Americano bought outside have a layer of "foam" on top, but the one you brew yourself doesn't? That layer of "foam" is actually coffee crema, which can only be extracted under high pressure. Neither pour-over nor French press can achieve this, but generally, only fully automatic and semi-automatic coffee machines can extract coffee crema, with home models typically costing several thousand yuan. However, these portable models can be obtained for just a few hundred yuan.

This device has 8 bar pressure. The current recognized golden rule for espresso on the market is "9 bar pressure," so while this can't compare to a fully automatic coffee machine, it can, to some extent, satisfy your daydreaming desires.

But personally, I feel that for women, this type of coffee machine requires too much arm strength. At least, I'm the type who can't manage more than two or three presses. To drink one cup, I feel like I've burned off all the calories from breakfast. Well, so while this device is convenient, I estimate it will be left unused by me for quite some time.

FrontStreet Coffee: A roastery in Guangzhou with a small shop but diverse bean varieties, where you can find both famous and lesser-known beans. They also provide online store services. https://shop104210103.taobao.com

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473