Brewing the perfect pot of coffee

Brewing the perfect pot of coffee requires a marriage of the right equipment, water, coffee, temperature, time, filtration and cleanliness. Miss any one of these and you will be making substandard coffee that will drive your regular coffee customers across the street.

Equipment

The correct equipment is critical to a great pot of coffee and modern commercial coffee brewing equipment has been designed to produce a consistent pot of coffee over & over again with very little attention.

Water

There is no other way to bring the point across - coffee is 99% water and bad water makes bad coffee. Your brew water can have anything from chlorine, minerals, salts, heavy metals, and even traces of diesel in it. The water you brew with should have no discernible taste, or "character", such as sharp or astringent qualities. Chlorine & Chloramines will also carry through to the coffee. If your brew water has a high chlorine content or has any noticeable flavors, no matter how slight then we suggest that you install an in-line water filter such as a OMNIPURE CL-10ST or a EVERPURE EV9100.69. Either filter will do a great job of removing chlorine & off flavors from your brew water.

If you also have a concern about limescale buildup inside your brewers then choose the OMNIPURE SCL-10 or a EVERPURE EV9100.77 in-line water filter. Both of these filters reduce the formation of limescale while also removing chlorine & off flavors from your brew water.

A note on distilled water. Distilled water makes very poor coffee because the brew water needs to contain some minerals. The mineral content of your brew water helps with the extraction process.

Coffee

Your coffee selection is just as critical as your water. But coffee age is just as important to a perfect pot of coffee as your coffee selection. Once coffee is roasted, it is subject to oxidation, a process where oxygen from the air combines with elements in the coffee destroying both flavor and body. Fortunately, today's commercial coffee foil packs have a long shelf life. The foil packs are nitrogen flushed, completely removing all oxygen from inside the packs. To keep the coffee as fresh as possible, commercial foil packs should only be opened as needed. Also, cases of coffee should be rotated so that the oldest case is always opened first.

Fresh ground coffee brings its own challenges. Many coffee services use fresh ground coffee and they keep their coffee mill full. Although this looks appealing to the customer, your coffee mill should only be filled with enough coffee beans for one day's use and the rest of the bag should be closed tight & stored under the counter to slow down oxidation and aging.

Brew Temperature

The ideal brew temperature for coffee is 195F to 205F, or just below boiling. Coffee brewed below this temperature range suffers from poor extraction which affects flavor and body.

Brew Ratio

If your coffee service uses prepackaged coffee filters, the brew ratio has been taken care of for you. If you are using fresh ground coffee beans then you need to follow the brewers recommendations for a perfect pot of coffee.

Time

The ideal brew time for a perfect pot of coffee is 4 - 6 minutes. Shorten the brew time to less than this range and you will get incomplete extraction. Lengthen the brew time to greater than this range and you will start extracting compounds such as tannins that will add astringency to your coffee. With fresh ground coffee in a commercial drip coffee maker, you can adjust brew time by varying the thickness of the coffee ground bed. A thicker coffee ground bed (more coffee grounds) will slow down the brew time while a thinner coffee ground bed (less coffee grounds) will speed up the brew time.

Filtration

Incorrect or off brand coffee filter media can add off flavors to your coffee. Always use the filter media recommended by your coffee maker or distributor. Off brands recommended by your coffee distributor are a safe buy because your coffee distributor has experience with the coffee filters they are recommending.

Pre-packaged coffee filter packs should always be placed in the brewer basket with the seam side down.

Cleanliness

You've heard it all your life - "cleanliness is next to godliness", and this is particularly true with coffee. Keep your coffee pots spotlessly clean and you go a long way towards a perfect pot of coffee.

Most coffee services will keep their coffee pots spotless but will ignore the cleanliness of their brew baskets and spray heads. It's just as critical that these two items also stay spotlessly clean for a great pot of coffee.

Brewed Coffee

As soon as coffee is brewed, its taste starts to change.  Because of this, brewed coffee needs to be kept for a maximum of 15 minutes but even less time is preferred. If you need to store hot coffee for longer periods then consider investing in air pots. Air pots are essentially commercial coffee thermoses that can extend the life of a pot of freshly brewed coffee for up to up to 30 minutes.