How to save money on brewing coffee at home - a beginner's guide to choosing equipment and coffee beans

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I have been brewing coffee for about seven or eight years. I dare not say that I am an expert, but I have made many mistakes. Today, I want to describe how a novice can enter the field of coffee brewing from the perspective of a consumer. Use the least amount of money to drink the most suitable coffee for yourself.

Everyone has different reasons for starting to brew coffee. This article only talks about the most economical and labor-saving brewing method and judgment method.

Make iced coffee, hot coffee, latte, or espresso at home?

Many people think that they can only make hot coffee at home, but as long as the method is used correctly, all four types of coffee can be easily made at home. For each brewing method, the common corresponding equipment is as follows:

Hot American coffee: coffee machine, French press, hand brewed coffee, Aeropress, siphon pot... basically all brewing utensils can be used

Iced coffee: drip coffee maker, coffee machine, French press, hand brewed coffee, Aeropress, siphon pot... basically all brewing utensils can be used

Latte: espresso machine, moka pot

espresso: Italian coffee machine, moka pot

How to choose the method and equipment for brewing coffee?

Although there are several common ways to brew coffee, in terms of cost-performance ratio, coffee machines and French presses actually have the highest cost-performance ratio. Hand brewing is fun, but it requires a lot of time, money, and skills. It can indeed make iced or hot coffee, and the taste is also good, but there are a lot of skills and details to learn. To be honest, it is a bit complicated for beginners to learn pre-infusion, water flow, extraction rate, ratio of coffee powder to water, thickness of coffee powder on the wall of the cup, brewing position, etc. Therefore, even though hand brewing is the current trend, the editor does not recommend it to everyone.

Coffee machines are really convenient, you just need to press a button, but the initial investment amount is a bit high and the flexibility is relatively low. There are American and Italian coffee machines. My suggestion is to treat the coffee machine as your second coffee making equipment. First use the French press to find the flavor you prefer, and then use that flavor to choose a suitable coffee machine.

The French press is the first choice that the editor recommends to beginners. A French press that costs about a hundred yuan is very useful. The French press can achieve almost all the effects that hand-brewed coffee can achieve, and even more. It can make iced, hot, latte, milk foam and even cold brew coffee. The metal filter only needs to be boiled in hot water once a week. Although the French press is still not as easy as a coffee machine, one device can be used to brew iced, hot, American, latte and other coffees, as well as tea or milk foam. It has a low initial cost, high flexibility, and many ways to play. It is the most suitable choice of equipment for beginners besides coffee machines.

What's so particular about coffee beans?

For beginners, besides the price, I think the most important thing to know is the roasting degree! Roasting degree can be roughly divided into light roasting, medium roasting, and dark roasting. Remember one principle: the darker the roasted beans, the less likely they are to be sour, but they also lack the characteristics of the coffee beans themselves. The lighter the roasted beans, the more likely they are to be sour, but they are also more likely to preserve the characteristics of the coffee beans themselves.

In addition to the degree of roasting, the choice of coffee beans is also closely related to the brewing method you want. If you want to drink American black coffee, it is not recommended to buy cheap Italian coffee beans/powder, because Italian coffee beans are usually used in high-temperature and high-pressure extraction processes such as Italian coffee machines or moka pots. The beans are usually roasted to a darker color, and the taste is mainly coke, which is just right with milk, but it is relatively difficult to taste the unique flavor of boutique coffee.

Of course, the above is not absolute. It is OK to brew Italian beans into American coffee. But after all, the lowest price of single-origin coffee beans is the same as that of Italian mixed beans. Remember, even a small bag of coffee for 25 yuan per 100 grams can help you learn how to make specialty coffee as long as you use the right method.

Is there a big difference between the coffee beans sold online and those sold in coffee shops?

Coffee beans can be purchased in supermarkets, online stores, and physical coffee roasting stores. The quality of coffee beans varies greatly, so it is best to try a small amount before placing a long-term order. Whether it is a large or small package has nothing to do with the quality. It depends on the individual's consumption rate, but you need to pay attention to the roasting date and the best flavor period of the coffee beans (not the shelf life). In addition, there is also the way consumers store them after buying them. After the coffee package is opened, if it is not stored properly, it may produce ochratoxins, which will affect human health. So no matter where you buy it, the key is to buy it in moderation and drink it in time.

The price and grade of coffee beans?

The business world is all about supply and demand. More expensive beans are not necessarily better than cheaper ones. Often, it is because certain coffee beans have obvious characteristics and demand exceeds supply, causing abnormal price increases (such as some shit coffee). Many times, beans that sell for 200 yuan are usually not five times as delicious as beans that sell for 40 yuan. It is only because the production area that can supply beans worth 200 yuan is limited that there is a significant price difference.

Therefore, I suggest that you mainly buy some basic beans for daily drinking. The daily spending can be controlled between about 7~20 yuan (rich people are welcome to do as you please), and occasionally drink some special coffee to try something new and live a tasteful life. I personally like to buy small packages of coffee beans. I buy three basic beans a month, such as Brazilian beans, Yirgacheffe, Mandheling and other beans from large producing areas. The supply is stable and cost-effective. I also buy a bag of slightly more expensive coffee beans such as estate-level boutique beans. Even if you drink coffee like water like me, and drink two large cups of about 800ml a day, the money spent on buying beans every month is much less than ordering coffee outside, and you can also drink a variety of better-tasting coffees and have a new experience of various types of coffee.

Although I have never been to Brazil, a major coffee producing country, Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee, or Panama, the representative of boutique coffee, I have at least tasted several different flavors of local coffee beans. It’s quite interesting to think about it. Isn’t this the charm of brewing coffee by yourself?

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