Reading time: 3 minutes. This article is a short blog. For the detailed blog article, go here.
The brewing ratio
How much ground coffee goes into the coffee? A frequently asked question! Measuring spoons are not standardized and not much help. So what does the perfect brewing ratio look like?
The coffee recipe
Making coffee is like baking – you should follow a recipe for consistent results. Only if enough ground coffee is used in proportion to the water can the result taste good. Because the flavorful particles need to be extracted from the coffee.
This is complemented by the grind size – grind size and amount = delicious coffee!
Over-extraction
Too much water with too little ground coffee leads to a long brewing time and thus over-extraction. Not everything in coffee tastes good and some things we don't want to extract, otherwise the coffee becomes thin, bitter and puckers the mouth (astringent) – nobody likes that!
Under-extraction
Too little water with too much ground coffee leads to the exact opposite result – we don't extract enough and the coffee becomes sour/salty. The beverage is concentrated, and so are the unpleasant flavors.
Both phenomena result in an unbalanced cup. Only the harmonious interplay of sweetness, acidity and bitterness turns coffee into a symphony for the senses.
But don't worry. Anyone can learn to conduct with just a few simple steps!
Finding the sweet spot
The brewing ratio helps us choose the right parameters in advance. The brewing ratio is the amount of ground coffee used and the water used.
Through many experiments, the ideal brewing ratio is around 60g ground coffee per liter of water or ratio 1:16.66 (18g/300ml) – this is the starting point from which you can experiment in both directions and applies to all filter coffee brewing methods.
Between 1:14 (72g) and 1:20 (50g) is the happy place for filter coffee – about 1.10% - 1.50% dissolved solids in water taste delicious, almost all filter coffee fans agree on this.
Of course there are other recipes like the bypass, more on that elsewhere.
The espresso brewing ratio
Small, concentrated and strong and extracted under pressure – the espresso!
While filter coffee has 1.1-1.5% dissolved solids, espresso boasts 7-11%. Mathematically, this results in a maximum brewing ratio of 1:3.5 or 9g ground coffee to 27g extracted espresso to achieve 7% dissolved solids.
Since we can't precisely meter the water from the machine, we need to weigh the extracted result and program the machine's volumetrics if possible.
The classic espresso brewing ratio is in the range 1:2 or 1:2.5 – 9g ground coffee to 18g espresso or 9g ground coffee to 22.5g espresso.
The capsule craze has literally watered down espresso and shaped consumer taste. Often you hear that the espresso is "too strong."
The foundation for successful brewing
In this video we explain the relationship between strength and extraction (we've also dedicated a separate blog post to this topic - to the article).
In short:
Strength, the concentration of dissolved solids (measured in TDS %) in relation to extraction, is the prerequisite for delicious coffee.
Each brewing method has its typical strength. As mentioned, we don't want to extract everything, but just enough for it to taste good – this is about 18-22% of the coffee.
Under-extractions tend toward acidity and over-extractions toward bitterness – in the middle the coffee is sweet and balanced!
Extraction is the same for all brewing methods, unlike strength.
The unnecessary measuring spoon
Since there is no standard coffee spoon, the volume of coffee varies depending on the grind size, dark roasts are lighter than light roasts and it's quite difficult to use exactly the same amount each time, coffee spoons are about as useful as a freezer in the Arctic.
Just 1-2g deviation per 100ml and the coffee is over- or under-extracted.
How much fits in the cup?
About 150-200ml – the required amount should be calculated based on this. If the coffee tastes good, people will happily drink 2-3 cups per guest.
If we use 6g/100ml we need 48g/800ml for 4 cups minus 2x48ml (tribute to the coffee grounds) this gives us 725ml or 175ml per cup.
With espresso and Aeropress, different amounts of water remain in the grounds.
The French Press
For multiple guests, the French press (plunger pot) has proven itself – a so-called "full immersion" brewing method where water and coffee extract together.
In a ratio of 7g to 100ml water, a delicious beverage extracts in 3-5 minutes here!
Conclusion
Here you have the guidelines, deviations and special recipes will certainly come your way on your coffee journey and experience will show you how to classify everything. This article serves as your starting point, because what matters is in the cup!
With us you'll find the right scales and measuring cups for your preferred brewing method.
