Brew coffee, they say, and not boil coffee ... although that is only the case in professional circles, because unfortunately coffee is often boiled. The boiling hot water is poured over the coffee powder while it is still bubbling. Many people drink it then and some even like it that way. But what many people don't know is that it is then a little dead. The ideal filter coffee temperature should never be 100 degrees . Boiling water destroys the aromas and essential oils in the coffee. Then it quickly becomes bitter, strong and tasteless. Nevertheless, the filter coffee temperature should be hot. The best thing to use for filter coffee is and other preparation methods Water with a temperature between 88 and 95 degrees . There is little that can go wrong with this, but we can take a closer look at it. And that is what we are doing now.
Different preparation methods and temperatures
Filter coffee
Filter coffee is still the most popular and most commonly used method of preparing coffee in Germany. The filter coffee temperature depends a lot on the beans used. If you have a very fruity or acidic coffee, you should choose a slightly higher temperature. Because - and this is something to remember - the hotter the filter coffee temperature, the less acidity or fruitiness your coffee will have. The colder the temperature, the more the acidity comes through. So you could also say that light roasts can tolerate more temperature and dark roasts need less heat when brewing. But that's just a guideline. You can find out what suits the bean you've chosen best and what tastes best to you in a practical test.
Portafilter
No matter which method of preparation you choose, the same thing always applies. The hotter the water, the less acid in the coffee and the "colder", the more fruity the coffee. This also applies to preparation with the portafilter . And remember: both too hot and too cold can ruin the taste of your espresso . The best thing is to take some time and try everything out. Make the espresso at 89 degrees and sometimes at 95 degrees and then you will probably find the best filter coffee temperature, portafilter temperature and all other preparation temperatures for you.
Stovetop pot
Let's be honest, with the stovetop kettle we can't really influence the temperature that much. We can't turn the stove up to full, but the coffee comes when the coffee comes. It's important to put boiling or preheated water in the bottom part of the kettle so that the coffee grounds aren't in contact with the dry heat in the sieve for too long. And as soon as the stovetop kettle starts bubbling, take it off the stove. All that comes out are bitter substances and acids. What you can remember here, and with other preparation methods: If your coffee comes out of the machine very hot and maybe even tastes burnt, then the preparation temperature was clearly too high. In that case you can find ways to adjust the temperature down a little.
French press
TheFrench press is the same as the filter coffee temperature: if you want less acidity and more chocolate, keep the temperature at the upper end; if you want it fruitier, keep it at the lower end. Here, too, you can experiment to find the perfect heat for you. And remember: the coffee beans have already been heated during roasting; the darker the roast, the more chocolatey it tastes . Therefore, when brewing coffee, the rule is: the lighter the roast, the hotter the filter coffee temperature can be. Here you can brew at a good 93 degrees or a little more. Dark roasts, on the other hand, can be prepared very well at 90 degrees and a little less.
Filter coffee temperature and its effects
Too hot
If the filter coffee temperature is too hot, i.e. over 95 degrees Celsius, then you are ruining the coffee enjoyment . At more than 95 degrees, the essential oils and aromas in the beans burn and your coffee not only tastes less, but also burnt. The aftertaste does not last as long and you miss out on the aromas that you boiled out of the coffee. Unfortunately, this still happens far too often these days, as many people pour their coffee with hot, bubbling water. Additional information: Fully automatic coffee machines, for example, usually work at the highest possible temperature range in order to get as many aromas out of the coffee as possible. If you can adjust the temperature on your fully automatic machine, you should definitely do that.
Too cold
Different direction, almost the same effect: If you choose water that is too cold to make your coffee, it will be bland and unpleasantly sour. The water temperature should not be below 85 degrees, otherwise the coffee will quickly taste weak because too few aromas are released - and it could become so sour that you can no longer taste the aromas that are still there. So this is another basis for experimenting with different temperatures to find the right filter coffee temperature for you.
Tips and tricks for temperature
The easiest way to find the right filter coffee temperature is to use a thermometer . Or a kettle that you can set the target temperature on. If you don't have either of these to hand, there's a little trick: bring water to the boil and as soon as it starts bubbling, take it off the heat. Then wait until it stops bubbling. So between 30 and 60 seconds . Then you should definitely be in the right range, between 89 and 95 degrees Celsius. In the worst case, you'll be a little below that, but that's not as fatal as being over 95 degrees. Too cold just makes the coffee a little more sour, too hot makes it bitter, strong and flavorless.
Water temperature and altitude
A little excursion into physics: the boiling point of water - that is, the moment at which the water for your coffee bubbles and boils, changes with the altitude at which you prepare your coffee. The rule of thumb for this is that for every 100 meters of altitude, the boiling point decreases by 0.5 degrees. So water in Berlin boils at almost exactly 100 degrees at an altitude of 34 meters. Munich is already at an altitude of 500 meters, here water boils at 97.5 degrees ; at an altitude of 1,000 meters, for example on the Pfeiffer Alm in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, it boils at 95 degrees; and at the top of the Zugspitze, at 2,962 meters, it boils at around 85 degrees. You should take this into account when brewing coffee so that you don't let the water cool down for too long after bubbling if you're not using a thermometer.
Water hardness and coffee
Not directly a part of the filter coffee temperature, but since water makes up 98 percent of our coffee, we should also pay attention to its quality. The salts and minerals contained in the water are important flavor carriers for the aroma of the coffee . Water for brewing coffee correctly should therefore not only contain oxygen, but also minerals. To ensure that as little oxygen as possible is lost during heating, it should be heated as quickly as possible. If the water is too acidic, you should use hotter because this reduces the acids. Hard, calcareous and chlorinated water is particularly bad because it has a negative effect on the taste of the coffee. Here in Germany, we can use tap water for our coffee everywhere without hesitation because it is not chlorinated. However, differences in hardness vary from place to place. So it may be worth using a water filter.
But with cold water: The Coldbrew
- And now we're throwing all the previous statements about filter coffee temperature out the window. Because we're talking about cold brew coffee. Yes, that sounds strange, but cold brew is totally trendy. You can either buy it ready-made, like our Coldbrew Brasil , or you can follow this simple recipe:
You need:
- 100 to 150 grams of ground coffee (per liter of water)
- 1 liter of water (or more)
- A suitable vessel
- Cling film
And then it’s very simple:
- Put the coffee in the container and pour the water on
- Cover the container with cling film and place it in the refrigerator
- Allow to extract between 6 and 24 hours, 12 hours is optimal
- Pour the whole thing through a hand filter with filter paper to filter out ground coffee
The advantage of this method is that a good 70 percent less acids and bitter substances are released from the coffee than with the brewing method. Incidentally, this is the only method where the filter coffee temperature can be lower than when brewing coffee .
Conclusion
If the water is boiling, then you are brewing coffee incorrectly. That much is clear. The best thing to do is to wait about half a minute after the water has boiled until the water stops bubbling, then you are pretty sure you are in the right temperature range... maybe a little below that. But that is not as bad as using water that is too hot to brew coffee. Because boiling water burns off the aromas. And then the coffee quickly becomes very bitter, strong and burnt. On the other hand, water that is too "cold", i.e. below 85 degrees, makes the coffee rather bland and unpleasantly sour. Ideally, you should use a thermometer for your filter coffee temperature and then be between 89 and 94 degrees . You can experiment within this temperature range and find the value that is right for you. Because the most important thing is that you like the coffee. #staywild
