Pour-Over Brewing Method and Extraction Steps for Kenyan Coffee Beans - Flavor Characteristics and Coffee Variety Grading Introduction

Kenya, like Ethiopia, is a representative of African coffee beans. Ethiopia's floral and fruity acidity is particularly bright, while Kenya's acidity is rich and full-bodied, with a richer taste. The acidity of both is unforgettable.

Some people are fond of Kenya's strong berry flavor, especially the cherry tomato taste. Some might say that the cherry tomato flavor is a signature characteristic of Kenyan coffee, and without it, it wouldn't be Kenyan coffee. FrontStreet Coffee believes we cannot define Kenyan coffee beans this way. The original flavor characteristic of the Kenyan region is a full-bodied juice sensation. For all plants, the soil and environment affect their growth, and coffee trees are no exception. Changes in the region's climate, soil, etc., will lead to flavor variations in coffee beans from each harvest season. FrontStreet Coffee has cupped many types of coffee beans from Kenya in recent months and found that regardless of which Kenyan region the coffee beans come from, they all have a full juice sensation, though not exactly the same - there are still differences in acidity and flavor.

Kenya is located in eastern Africa, with the equator crossing through the central part. It borders Somalia to the east, Tanzania to the south, Uganda to the west, and Ethiopia and Sudan to the north, with the Indian Ocean to the southeast. The country is mostly plateau, with an average altitude of 1,500 meters. Kenya has diverse climates, all located in the tropical monsoon region. The coastal areas are hot and humid, the plateau climate is mild, and mountains above 3,500 meters sometimes experience snow. The highest temperature throughout the year is 26°C, and the lowest is 12°C. South of the equator mainly has a tropical forest and tropical savanna climate; the coastal area has a tropical climate with high temperatures and abundant rainfall throughout the year; further inland, the climate becomes drier, with northern desert and semi-desert areas accounting for about 56% of the country. Influenced by the monsoon climate, Kenya does not have distinct seasons with significant temperature differences, only differences between rainy and dry seasons.

Kenya's Main Coffee Growing Regions

Kenya's coffee growing regions are mainly distributed in the central and western parts, including Thika, Kirinyaga, Mt. Kenya West, Nyeri, Kiambu, and Muranga. The harvest periods in these six major regions are from October to December (main season) and from June to August (secondary season).

Among these, Thika and Kirinyaga best represent the flavor characteristics of African growing regions.

Thika

Thika is a small town located near Kenya's capital, Nairobi. There are many coffee fields around Nairobi, and although Thika is an industrial town, it is surrounded by agriculture and waterfalls. The Thika region has about 2,000 farmers. The history of coffee cultivation in Kenya's Thika region dates back to the late nineteenth century. Coffee varieties were introduced from the neighboring country of Ethiopia to the north. Through their own variety improvements, common varieties now include Bourbon, Kents (SL34, SL28), Typica, and Riuri 11. Currently, about 90% of coffee cultivation varieties are SL34 and SL28. The new variety Batian, introduced in 2007, has not yet been widely planted. The flavor profile of this region features bright fruit acidity, rich berry juice sensation, and honey-like sweetness. Altitude: 1,550-1,750 meters, Varieties: SL-28, SL-34.

FrontStreet Coffee's Asalia coffee comes from the Asalia processing plant in Kenya's Thika region. The Thika region is in central Kenya, with the highest altitude coffee growing areas in the region. Thika itself is a sub-region within this growing area, located at the foot of the Aberdare mountain ridge, with red volcanic soil rich in organic matter.

Kenyan Coffee Varieties

The high-altitude plateau areas near Mount Kenya provide the optimal growing environment for coffee, including the Aberdare Mountains, Nyanza, Kisii, Bungoma, Kericho, and Nakuru. The Arabica varieties grown in these areas were originally introduced from Ethiopia.

As early as the 1930s, Kenya selected and bred SL28 and SL34 through the Scott Laboratories for nationwide cultivation. Due to these two varieties having excellent berry-like acidity, they were later transplanted by some Central American estates. The champion variety in the Costa Rican Cup of Excellence two years ago was a combination of SL28 and Geisha. Since then, Kenya has been tirelessly developing varieties resistant to leaf rust disease.

SL28 and SL34: These are genetic mutations. They account for the vast majority of Kenya's high-quality coffee production, though these varieties are susceptible to leaf rust. SL34 has French Mission, Bourbon, and more Typica lineage. With copper-colored leaves and broad bean-shaped beans, it has excellent sweetness, balance, and complex flavor variations, as well as prominent citrus and plum characteristics.

Kenyan Coffee Processing Methods

The Kenyan washing method employs a repeated process of fermentation and washing. On the day of harvest, the highest quality coffee cherries are selected for depulping and fermentation, which lasts for 24 hours. After 24 hours, they are washed with clean river water. Then, they are fermented again in clean river water for another 24 hours, followed by washing. This cycle is repeated 3 times, totaling 72 hours, hence known as the Kenyan 72-hour fermentation washing method, abbreviated as K72. This processing method allows coffee beans to ferment for a long time at low temperatures, resulting in brighter, cleaner, yet fuller flavors!

How to Brew Kenyan Coffee to Extract Its Rich Juice Sensation?

To brew a good cup of coffee, FrontStreet Coffee first needs to understand the basic information about the coffee beans, such as: where the coffee beans come from, what flavor characteristics they have, what variety they are, etc. FrontStreet Coffee first roasts based on this information, then conducts cupping and brewing.

FrontStreet Coffee believes that to brew a good pot of coffee, one should focus on four main aspects: water temperature, grind size, coffee-to-water ratio, and brewing technique.

1. Water Temperature

When brewing pour-over coffee, FrontStreet Coffee selects different water temperatures based on different roast levels. During roasting, the substances contained in coffee beans are lost as the roast level deepens. Therefore, to avoid extracting excessive undesirable flavors from dark-roasted coffee beans, the temperature is reduced. For light to medium roast beans, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using water temperatures of 90-91°C, while for medium-dark roasts, 88°C is recommended.

2. Grind Size

Coffee grind size is also related to the roast level. Grind size refers to the size of coffee particles, as it affects the contact time between coffee and water. If the coffee grind is finer, water can extract more substances in the same amount of time, but finer grinds can easily lead to over-extraction during the brewing process. Conversely, the coarser the coffee grind, the fewer substances water can extract in the same time, but coarser grinds can easily lead to under-extraction. Additionally, because everyone's grinder is different, the parameters are also different. Here, FrontStreet Coffee recommends purchasing a #20 cupping calibration sieve with a mesh aperture of 0.85mm. We take 10g of coffee beans, adjust to an approximate grind size, grind them into coffee powder, then pour them into the sieve for screening. We then weigh the screened coffee powder (be sure to continue screening until no more coffee powder can pass through).

A pass rate of 70%-75% (7-7.5g from 10g of powder) is the most suitable grind size. For pour-over coffee, the grind size is: 80% for light roasts, and 75% for medium-dark roasts. If it exceeds the appropriate pass rate, adjust the grind to be coarser. If it doesn't reach the appropriate pass rate, adjust the grind to be finer.

3. Coffee-to-Water Ratio

This is the extraction parameter for pour-over coffee that FrontStreet Coffee has derived from the SCAA Golden Cup extraction theory. To brew a cup of coffee, FrontStreet Coffee uses 15g of coffee powder. The choice of powder amount is usually based on the design specifications of the filter cup, and FrontStreet Coffee's filter cup is suitable for 1-2 people's servings, between 15-20g of powder. Using too much powder makes it difficult to control, and the extracted coffee flavors can easily become mixed.

Regarding the coffee-to-water ratio, 1:15 is the most commonly used. Ratios between 1:14 and 1:16 are all acceptable. For those who prefer a richer taste, 1:14 can be chosen, while for those who prefer clearer flavors, a 1:16 coffee-to-water ratio can be selected. FrontStreet Coffee believes that everyone's taste is different, so it takes the middle value of 1:15.

Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee suggests using the less error-prone 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio when brewing coffee.

4. Brewing Technique

Finally, the pour-over technique is also very important. Commonly seen techniques include three-stage pouring, single-stream pouring, and drip-by-drip pouring. Here, FrontStreet Coffee recommends that beginners use the three-stage water pouring method to brew, as this technique is suitable for light roast, light to medium, and medium-dark roast coffee beans. The segmented extraction method of three-stage pouring can clearly distinguish the flavors of the front, middle, and back sections of the coffee, better ensuring the flavor presentation of the coffee. Next, FrontStreet Coffee will teach everyone how to perform three-stage pouring for pour-over coffee.

FrontStreet Coffee's three-stage brewing parameters and technique for Kenyan coffee: (When FrontStreet Coffee roasted this Kenyan coffee bean, considering the need to highlight its rich fruit acidity and full berry juice sensation, a light to medium roast was used.)

Using a V60 dripper can result in richer coffee flavors. Water temperature: 91°C, coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15, coffee amount: 15g, grind size (China #20 standard sieve pass rate: 80%).

First Pour: Bloom (to help release gas)

First, wet the V60 dripper to make the filter paper fit better with the coffee dripper. Pour out the water from the sharing pot while adding 15g of coffee powder, then bloom with 30g of water for 30s. Many coffee enthusiasts don't know why pour-over coffee needs blooming. In fact, blooming is because coffee beans undergo a series of chemical reactions and physical changes during the roasting process from raw beans to cooked beans. After reaching a certain level of roasting, coffee beans will accumulate a large amount of gas (mostly carbon dioxide).

Generally, the fresher the coffee and the closer to roasting, the more bubbles during blooming. Dark-roasted beans also release more gas during the blooming process than light-roasted beans. FrontStreet Coffee's coffee beans are all freshly roasted, so it's generally recommended that customers let the beans rest for three days first, allowing the coffee beans to release carbon dioxide first, which can avoid instability and under-extraction issues during brewing.

After the bloom releases the gas, the coffee particles can absorb water evenly, allowing for more even extraction later. A good bloom can help the coffee powder quickly, fully, and evenly release gas while also allowing the coffee powder to fully and quickly contact with water, helping the coffee powder to be extracted evenly. These are precisely the purpose and significance of blooming in pour-over coffee.

Second Pour

After blooming for 30s, perform the second pour. Start pouring water in small circles from the center until reaching 125g. To concentrate the penetrating power of the water stream, the range of circular movement should be small, about the size of a one-yuan coin, and then expand outward. From the beginning of the second pour, pay attention to the water amount, trying not to exceed the height of the powder layer. That is, when the water stream circles close to the filter paper, you can stop pouring.

Third Pour

When the coffee powder layer drops to half the height of the dripper, start pouring the second stage with the same technique until reaching 225g. Wait for all the dripping to complete, then remove the dripper.

From the third pour, observe the extent of water level drop, also starting from the center and pouring in circles. The water amount should not exceed the height of the powder layer. At this time, you will also observe that the foam ratio has filled the surface. The third pour should increase the tumbling of coffee particles, allowing all settled particles to tumble and dissolve soluble substances.

The tumbling particles will begin to settle when water addition stops. At this point, the flow rate caused by the dropping water level will create friction between the coffee particles. Once water addition stops, coffee powder particles sink down, causing blockage, so special attention must be paid to the rhythm of water addition. If there are too many water interruptions, it's equivalent to letting the coffee powder particles continuously soak in water. This will lead to astringency and undesirable flavors in the tail section of the coffee extraction.

Start timing from the beginning of pouring; the extraction time is 2'00". Next, pick up the entire cup of coffee and shake it evenly, then pour it into a cup for tasting.

Flavor Characteristics of Kenyan Asalia Coffee

The wet aroma has ripe tomato and floral notes. When hot, the entry taste is caramel and brown sugar sweetness. As the temperature slightly decreases, cherry tomato and plum acidity emerge. The acidity is bright, the taste is clean, with prominent mid-palate sweetness and a juice sensation.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Suggestions:

To brew a delicious cup of coffee, it's still important to pay attention to the freshness of the coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee has always believed that the freshness of coffee beans is greatly related to the flavor of coffee. Therefore, the coffee beans shipped by FrontStreet Coffee are all within 5 days of roasting. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "freshly roasted good coffee," ensuring that every customer who places an order receives the freshest coffee when it arrives. The resting period for coffee beans is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive them, it's precisely when the flavor is at its best.

For friends who need ground coffee, FrontStreet Coffee kindly reminds: once coffee beans are ground in advance, there's no need for a resting period, because during transportation, the pressure created by carbon dioxide in the packaging can also help the coffee flavor become mellow. So you can brew a cup right away when you receive the ground coffee. However, ground coffee needs to be brewed promptly, as it oxidizes relatively quickly after contact with air, meaning the coffee flavor will dissipate more quickly, and the coffee won't taste as good. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee recommends buying whole beans and grinding them fresh before brewing to better taste the coffee's flavor.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style).

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat account: qjcoffeex

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473