I believe we misunderstood each other here. I was under the impression that a homogeneous particle size distribution was desirable, as this allows for the most even extraction, where a heterogeneous distribution would mean that the finer particles are extracted too much (hence make for unwanted bitterness), while the bigger pieces are extracted too little (so that sour notes creep into the coffee). Am I getting this wrong?
That sounds really good. I‘ve got a french press already and at the moment, the nights are so cold here that I just might just let it steep outside over night.
Microwaving isn’t anything I‘d frown upon, apart from my bias at least that I almost exclusively associate that with old, stale and overall horrible taste when it comes to coffee. But I might just try that as well. Thanks for the suggestions!
My questions whether you do this with every method stems from that especially with espresso - or what I can do with an Aeropress to mimic it -, slow feeding takes significantly more time due to the fine grind size, and to my taste, the improvement is really insignificant compared to a more coarsely ground pour over. On the other hand, my espresso is little more than a concentrated regular Aeropress coffee, and the beans I have at hand for this particular variant are supermarket material, hence also less than ideal. Would be interesting to test what difference this makes with a portafilter.
To my understanding of the accompanying theory, the particle size distribution shouldn’t be as widespread on finer grind settings anyway, so that would also explain my experience.
I don‘t mean to put you off a wonderful vintage grinder, but isn‘t grind variance considered bad? If with that you mean, using the a more technical terminology, heterogeneous particle size distribution. Because that would result in both over- and underextraction happening in your brew at the same time.
Again, if everything works fine for you, don’t let me try fix a problem you don’t have.
I do grind fresh usually. It’s only that we got this stuff at home already and I hate wasting coffee when it’s going stale just because no one uses up an open bag, even if it’s bad coffee.
As a bonus, knowing how to get anything remotely decent from these raw materials, it would enable me to do so when I don’t have my nice things with me, be it at work, at my friends & family’s homes or on vacation.
Yeah, I‘m aware. That‘s the reason why I’m reluctant to use my good consumables in aimless experiments.
What I‘m looking for really is some way to deal with overly bitter grounds, and I know the basics of extraction. Maybe someone just happens to have gone down that path already and can say something like „Put them in a french press, 50 grams per Liter, water not hotter than 85°C, steep for two minutes max“ or so. 🙂
I believe we misunderstood each other here. I was under the impression that a homogeneous particle size distribution was desirable, as this allows for the most even extraction, where a heterogeneous distribution would mean that the finer particles are extracted too much (hence make for unwanted bitterness), while the bigger pieces are extracted too little (so that sour notes creep into the coffee). Am I getting this wrong?
Sorry for derailing btw 😄