How to Make Siphon Coffee - Taste and Flavor of Sidamo Guji Coffee Brewed with Siphon Pot

The Magic of Siphon Coffee

Siphon brewing has a magical quality that invites you to create your own cup of coffee. Take the first step into this challenging experiment, and what awaits you will certainly be a memorable cup. Because siphon brewing involves indirect heating with prolonged immersion, FrontStreet Coffee recommends light roast beans such as Yirgacheffe, or medium roast beans, which best showcase the delicate layers and fruity sweetness of the coffee.

Below, we'll use FrontStreet Coffee's Sidamo Guji coffee beans and the classic, magical siphon brewer.

Siphon Coffee Brewing Steps

1. Select your siphon coffee maker.
2. Before heating, remember to dry the lower pot completely, as residual water droplets can easily crack the glass during heating.
3. Add an appropriate amount of water to the lower pot.
4. Place the flannel filter into the upper pot, securing the end of the chain at the end of the glass tube.
5. Before heating, insert the upper pot diagonally into the lower pot to prevent a sudden burst of steam that could be dangerous.
6. Begin heating. Different siphon makers use various heating methods, such as alcohol lamps, open flame, or halogen lamps.
7. When the heated water begins to bubble, straighten and firmly insert the upper pot. The water will then be pushed up into the upper pot by air pressure.
8. Once all the water has been pushed into the upper pot, reduce the heat and stir gently to bring the temperature down to approximately 90°C.
9. Add the pre-prepared coffee grounds. The ratio of grounds to water should be approximately 1:10-1:12.
10. Immediately after adding the grounds, perform the first stir with a bamboo spoon to ensure full contact between grounds and water. Stir gently and avoid excessive force.
11. Wait 45 seconds for the grounds to extract. During extraction you'll see distinct layers: foam, grounds, and water.
12. At 45 seconds, remove the siphon maker from the heat source and immediately perform the second stir. The final few stirs can create a vortex, using centrifugal force to separate the grounds from the coffee properly.
13. As the temperature falls, the coffee in the upper pot will flow down, completing your siphon coffee.

Experience the Magic Yourself

Siphon brewing truly offers a magical experience - try making a cup yourself. Take that first step into this challenging experiment, and what awaits you will certainly be a coffee worth remembering.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

For a siphon brew, the Yirgacheffe family is the classic pairing. FrontStreet Washed Yirgacheffe is known for white jasmine, bright citrus and lemon acidity, and a tea-like body, and its affordable price makes it many drinkers' first step into specialty coffee. Yirgacheffe is a small town in southern Ethiopia, within Sidamo, at roughly 1,700-2,100 meters, with coffee trees planted above 1,800 meters - among the highest coffee regions in the world. Its recognizable white florals and lemon-citrus acidity made it a byword for Ethiopian specialty coffee, and in 2010 the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange separated it from Sidamo as its own region.

Within Yirgacheffe, FrontStreet Gedingding Cooperative sits in the Gedingding village washing station in the Woka area, on the southeastern edge. It follows the most traditional washed processing and is often called the last untouched corner of Yirgacheffe; it carries no traditional bitterness, just clean, bright citrus and lemon acidity with jasmine fragrance. FrontStreet Sun-Dried Red Cherry is the other side of the coin: only fully ripe cherries are picked, washed, and dried on raised beds, turned every 2-3 hours in the first days, then milled after three to five weeks. The whole-fruit drying gives it both classic Yirgacheffe character and tropical aroma, with citrus acidity, berry juice, honey sweetness, and a creamy smoothness.

For brewing, a V60 with 90-91°C water, 15g of coffee, a 1:15 ratio, and a grind around 10 on an EK43s (fine sugar size, about 80% passing a #20 sieve) works well. Start with a 30g pour and a 30-second bloom, then add 95g (about 125g on the scale) finishing in roughly a minute; when the water drops to two-thirds of the bed, add the remaining 100g (about 225g on the scale) by around 1 minute 35 seconds. Drip finishes in 2 to 2 minutes 10 seconds; then remove the dripper.