Training Log by Joseph Fisher - What is your favorite brew method?

What is your favorite Brew Method and why? 

Personally I have a preference for brewing with the Hario V60, as I find this brewer allows for great results when brewing with continuous pour techniques as well as pulse pour recipes. As long as the brew time is controlled, the resulting cups often have great clarity and there are less variables to think about when considering the flow rate or contact time. It’s funny, as I initially began brewing all of my coffee at home using a Kalita Wave 185, but it’s a rare occasion when I’ll reach for a flat bottom brewer these days.

I'm anticipating the arrival of the final version of the April Brewer, and I'm ready to experiment with flat bed brews once again.

What do you recommend a Home Brewer should think about if they want to make competition quality coffee at Home? 

I would recommend ensuring that your water source is as stable and consistent as possible. It’s such an important variable and can make understanding the results of changes to your recipes much easier to measure. This can allow you to experiment with different brew ratios or contact times, observing the differences in the final cup quality without worrying out fluctuation in conductivity or composition of your brew water.

What's the best coffee you ever tried?

There are many possible answers to the this question, I don't believe I have ever experienced a particular coffee that I would say was head and shoulders above the rest, but there have been certainly been a small selection of coffees that have distinguished themselves as exceptional. Gesha Village #92 from the previous years harvest was a personal favourite of mine, and I'm always excited to cup new lots from the estate.

I would say that my most memorable coffee experience thus far was a shot of espresso brewed by Nobuaki Matsui, Danish Roasting Champion and head of all things coffee at Democratic Coffee Bar in Copenhagen. Nobuaki roasted and brewed an excellent long shot of a washed heirloom varietal from the Hunkute washing station in Ethiopia, I can still recall the notes of candied orange and the honey-like sweetness to this day.