There are three types of hand-brewed coffee in Japan. How many do you know?

Shakespeare once said: There are a thousand Hamlets in the eyes of a thousand people.

The same is true for hand-brewed coffee. A cup of hand-brewed coffee is affected by factors such as water temperature, grinding fineness, water flow, water cut-off times, and water height. A cup of hand-brewed coffee can have a thousand different flavors in the hands of a thousand people.

Speaking of hand-poured coffee, I have to mention Japanese hand-poured coffee. Putting aside history, I admire the Japanese very much, because no other country's hand-poured coffee can be as systematized, classified, and schooled as Japan's. They give a simple cup of hand-poured coffee a very ritualistic and exquisite coffee culture, give full play to their strong craftsmanship, give the highest respect to a cup of coffee, and present the essence of a cup of coffee to people.

Today I will talk about three types of hand-brewed coffee originating from Japanese coffee: volcano brewing, drip method and Matsuya method .

Japanese hand-washing style: Volcano

The origin of volcanic brewing is very interesting. When brewing, the coffee powder in the filter cup will swell like a volcano, and it will also have a visual effect like a volcanic eruption, which is very magical.

The principle of volcanic coffee is very simple. It uses dark roasted bean powder to draw circles in the center, creating a repeated steaming process. Fresh dark roasted beans can emit sufficient gas, which results in a steaming state, and looks like a volcanic eruption, which is pleasing to the eye. However, volcanic coffee has a weakness. Because the first third of the coffee is over-extracted, the last two thirds of the coffee will be under-extracted due to the increased water flow.

Volcanic brewing is generally suitable for dark roasted coffee beans. It uses the carbon dioxide contained in the beans. The coffee powder suspended on the surface has a heat preservation effect, which is similar to the principle of stewing. The coffee powder at the water injection point swells like a volcanic eruption. Therefore, the reason why dark roasted beans are more suitable is that they release more carbon dioxide and can maintain a swollen state for a long time.

Most volcanic punches use flannel and V60. Because the powder layer in the middle is thick, water is mainly injected in the middle at a position the size of a 1 yuan coin. The key point of the first half of the volcanic punch is to fully extract without destroying the powder layer. The second half is to inject water evenly to prevent over-extraction in the middle and play a dilution role.

Advantages : The coffee has a mellow taste, a rich and solid body, and a distinct aftertaste.

Disadvantages : Since the coffee powder of the volcano brew is over-extracted in the center and under-extracted in the periphery, the coffee liquid is uneven. After brewing, it needs to be fully shaken to mix the two "failed" coffee liquids together to form a perfect coffee. However, during the shaking time, the temperature will drop. If you want to directly maintain the temperature and use high temperature extraction, it will cause the coffee to be dry.

PS: The editor will tell you a way to make volcanic coffee taste better. After brewing, you need to shake it well to allow the front and back coffee to fully blend together. Only then can you drink the delicious Japanese volcanic coffee.

Japanese hand-washing method

The drip method, like the volcano brewing method, originated in Japan. It is a very sophisticated and extremely time-consuming Japanese hand-brewed coffee style, which reflects the Japanese people's extreme emphasis on form.

Those who see drip coffee for the first time will definitely be surprised by its resemblance to an hourglass. Yes, when water drips into the coffee powder drop by drop, it looks like an hourglass, which interprets the slow life brought by coffee and time so gracefully. The Japanese first used water to pre-soak the coffee powder little by little. When about 1/3 of the water has dripped, they can start to add water. When the water level of the coffee powder reaches the top, they can stop for a while, and when the water level drops to half, add water again.

Japanese drip method is suitable for medium roasted or dark roasted coffee beans

The drip injection method is also called essence extraction: the water flow of drip injection is weaker, which damages the coffee powder layer as little as possible, reduces convection, and increases the soaking time. The coffee made by this Japanese method is high in alcohol, sweetness, rich and smooth, and has a distinct texture.

Because the water from the hand-poured kettle needs to be in a drop-by-drop state, it is suitable to use a flattened wide-mouthed kettle or a wide-mouthed crane-bill kettle. The advantage of this type of hand-poured kettle is that the thickness of the water flow is highly controllable and more suitable for the drip water injection method. The ribs of the matching conical filter cup stop at less than half the height of the filter cup. This design allows the filter paper to fully stick to the wall of the cup after absorbing water, and the exhaust space is greatly limited. This method is more suitable for medium-roasted or dark-roasted coffee beans.

When we start to add water, we use dripping to increase the soaking time. Under the condition of low water-powder ratio, the coffee powder can be fully expanded without any foreign taste. Then we use fine and coarse water streams to add water to extract the floral and fruity aroma at the front of the coffee. The whole process takes about 4-5 minutes.

Although the drip method is very time-consuming, it looks very exquisite and has a sense of rhythm. The drip method gives the person making the coffee and the customer time and space to interact, and it also reflects the Japanese concept of attaching importance to every minute and every second and taking every moment seriously.

When I tried drip brewed coffee for the first time, I felt that it was like practicing Chinese calligraphy, which really tests a person's stability and patience. However, the beauty of the drip method is that it can highlight the sweetness of the coffee beans and avoid sour, bitter and mixed tastes.

For those who pursue boutique coffee and boutique life, drip coffee is really a very good try.

Japanese hand-washing flow - Matsuya method

The Matsuya method is also one of the famous Japanese hand-brewed coffee styles. Its original inventor created this brewing method in order to extract only the delicious ingredients in coffee.

Use a spoon to dig a big hole in the coffee powder, about 30cm from the powder surface, start pouring water from the middle until the coffee liquid starts to drip, then pour water outwards in a circle to wet the coffee powder, cover the lid and steam. After 3 minutes, start pouring water evenly and continuously. Stop pouring water when the coffee liquid reaches half of the coffee pot, then add hot water to dilute it.

Many people told me that the Matsuya method takes too long to extract, causing the regional flavor of the coffee to evaporate too quickly, so the taste of the hand-brewed coffee made by the Matsuya method is a bit monotonous, and it loses the wonderful experience of the coffee's own varied and layered taste.

Advantages: Even after a period of time, the flavor of the coffee will not change much.

Disadvantages: Some friends also said that because the extraction time is too long, the flavor will evaporate a lot. So the coffee flavor does not change much. Do you think this is a disadvantage or an advantage?

No matter which technique is used, it can become a topic of conversation between baristas and tasters. Through the topic of coffee, all kinds of exciting content can be unfolded, and people can communicate with each other. From the moment the coffee is brewed, subtle chemical changes occur. This is the interesting part of specialty coffee. Don’t you think so?

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I am Afei, I have been engaged in promoting coffee culture for more than 6 years. I have been to coffee farms in Indonesia, Yunnan, Taiwan, and coffee consuming cities in Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, and France. I love specialty coffee and want to make friends who love coffee as much as I do. Welcome everyone to follow my Toutiao account and my new book "Fall in Love with Coffee in 3 Minutes", where I will share and exchange knowledge about specialty coffee, latte art, and store opening. Love coffee, let's get together. Share a wonderful life with you every day.