Coffee Lover = Coffee Maker?

As a coffee enthusiast, coffee-shop goer, barista be-friender, and coffee blog reader/writer, I would have expected the transition from lover to maker would be a simple one. You're thinking "what? she's never made coffee?" Well, that's not true, but my coffee-making has been pretty limited to The French Press [cue dark movie-trailer voice]. That being said, I don't even have a "perfect recipe" for a drip coffee maker. This is one thing I am working on. My boyfriend just grinds some beans and dumps them into the reusable coffee filter until it is looks like "the right amount of grinds." Hmm. well I don't know what this mysterious "right amount" looks like. Crap.

The other morning I decided to make my own pot of coffee. This little adventure lead to me cross-referencing multiple blogs/forums on "coffee to water ratio," watching a video, and brewing a pot that I felt was far too weak. Blast! Nevertheless, I drank the coffee with a new determination for the next pot... which was two days later. I essentially went through the same process as before. But this time I was armed with a fancy (expensive) "XXX Espresso Roast" from a local roaster, The Coffee Syndicate, in Boulder, and a stronger coffee to water ratio.

I measured the ounces of water that went into my drip maker - please note, that depending on your coffee maker, "4 cups" can be anywhere from 16 to 20 ounces of water. For my coffee maker, it's about 18 ounces. From there I measured out my scoops of freshly ground beans - my scoop is probably a little more than a tablespoon. Now for the ratio: typically you do 1-2 scoops per 6 ounces of water, again this is all relative to your scoop size and your ounces of water. I went full force, and did 2 scoops per 6 ounces, leaving me with 6 scoops of a dark roast, plus a bit extra for good measure. I turned on the machine and waited...

Here is the equipment I used to create a great cup of coffee

This time around, I was quite happy with the brew. Although, if I didn't have such a strong roast, I expect I would want an extra scoop to make up for a milder bean. And this is just for "4 cups." I think I would be quite stressed if I were forced to make 6, 10, or 12 cups! I'm going to have to write down my ratios and have John do some math (he is an engineer after all...) to find out how this ratio would work for larger batches of coffee. Once I nail it down, I'll post the "golden ratio." yea ok..

Stay tuned, part two of "Coffee Lover = Coffee Maker?" will be about my new espresso machine, and my attempts of becoming my own barista!