Coffee Brewing 101: Why Your Grind Size is Crucial

Coffee Brewing 101: Why Your Grind Size is Crucial

There is a mountain of things you need to consider when brewing coffee. While you may want to have the fanciest equipment and the best beans in town, many people make the mistake of skimping on a grinder.

When making coffee, perhaps one of the most important elements to consider is your coffee grind size. This is because this variable determines the way your coffee is extracted, providing you with a rich, balanced cup.

For this reason, if you're looking for a pop-up café, their baristas must be aware of the importance of the right grind size so you can serve delicious cups to your guests.

How Does My Coffee Grind Size Affect My Final Cup?

Coffee is brewed depending on how quickly water passes through it and extracts its flavours. Basically, if you have a larger grind size or much coarser grounds, you'll have a harder time extracting flavours from the coffee. 

Not only that, but it will also allow water to flow much faster throughout, affecting the way your coffee tastes. Usually, coarser grounds are best for immersion brewing methods and pour-over methods to help bring out your coffee's flavours during a long brew time.

On the other hand, finer grounds give you a slow water flow, but it extracts so much coffee. For this reason, it's much better to use faster brewing methods, such as espresso, if you want to use finer grounds.

It's also important to note that if you brew fine coffee for too long, you may be drinking an over-extracted cup wherein undesirable flavours arise.

Different Grind Types and Their Brewing Methods

  • Extra-Coarse Grind: Working with an extra coarse grind size is best if you require a longer brewing period, like cold brew. This is because you're letting your coffee grounds and water sit through long periods before you harvest the drink.
  • Coarse Grind: Slightly finer than a cold brew grind, a coarse grind is best for some brewing methods, such as french press or clever dripper.
  • Medium-Coarse Grind: For pour-over methods, the medium-coarse grind is best. This allows you to agitate and brew your coffee with control without over extracting your cup.
  • Fine Grind: If you want to try to brew with an Aeropress and Mokapot, using a medium-fine grind is best.
  • Extra-Fine Grind: For espresso machines, use an extra-fine grind size if you want to pull a balanced and rich espresso.

What Happens When You Use the Wrong Grind Size?

A plethora of things happens when you brew coffee with the wrong grind size. You can either over-extract or under extract your coffee with the wrong grind size and create an unpleasant cup experience.

For this reason, it's worth working with a pop-up café that understands the importance of these elements to ensure a pleasurable cup of joe.

The Bottom Line: Don't Skimp on Your Coffee's Grind Size

While the grind size may be too complex for you to deal with, the important thing to consider here is that your baristas know how to work with different grind sizes with various brewing methods.

With the right equipment and grind size, not to mention a trained barista, you can serve your guests a delicious cup of coffee that will leave them coming back for more.

How Can We Help You?

Lygon Coffee is well-loved by the residents in Adelaide, thanks to its top-notch services and fantastic coffees. With us, you can trust that your event and office space will have the best cup of coffee.

Learn more about our mobile coffee van today!

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