What you need to make homemade coffee at home and how much it costs

2023 Author: Cody Thornton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-26 19:13

You are the type of drinker who drowns 2 lumps of sugar in the recklessly called concoction coffee just to sweeten the fetid taste? You don't know what you are missing.

Out there is a world of specialty coffees (Italianization of specialty coffee), single origin, the result of artisanal processing, grown in microclimates that give a unique aromatic profile, with a full, rich, flawless taste in the cup.

Together with a new generation of baristas who are regenerating the sector with a rich offer, which combines espresso with several extraction methods.

Generally: mocha, cold brew (obtained from a cold infusion that maintains the purity of the aroma), Neapolitan coffee maker, filter coffee, syphon (coffee maker among the oldest in Europe made up of glass globes; the water vapor rises to the coffee which, once humidified, descends in the form of a drink) and aeropress (coffee infusion with hot water which, combined with the ground coffee, produces a drink similar to American long coffee, but good).

The specialty coffee fever has so infected the fans that some avant-gardists are gearing up at home.

And saw that the equipment of the do-it-yourself bartender it's not exactly gifted, we turned to Francesco Sanapo, which with Ditta Artigianale di Firenze is in first place in the Dissapore ranking of the 20 best artisan cafes in Italy.

Thanks to your shopping tips, those of you who cultivate the insane passion of special homemade coffees it is in an iron barrel.

DIY bartender level 1

THE MOKA

Do not be offended by the reader if, having pitted some prices, we explain how to prepare the Moka pot. We understand that for the do-it-yourself bartender it is a small step, but believe us, if ours is a caffeine lover who makes the valve whistle at least three times a day, the advice will be very welcome.

Therefore, a professional cold brew costs about 25 euros, the cuccumella, a 3-cup Neapolitan coffee maker, about twenty euros, a sufficiently cool aeropress set 27 euros, an aeropress kit 60 euros. Then there are kettles, cups and paper filters.

But Sanapo first of all recommends buying a grinder (a serious coffee grinder) with an excellent quality-price ratio (around 50 euros), because when we talk about aromas, ground coffee at the moment is something else entirely.

Put very hot water in the mocha so that the contact of the fresh ground coffee with the flame decreases, and by distributing the coffee on the surface of the filter you avoid the mound, because the water risks passing where the coffee level is lowest, with the curses of who cleans the stove.

Calculate that the complete brewing time (yes they say that, do you want to get nerdy or not?) Shouldn't exceed one and a half minutes.

And clean the machine, even with a degreasing detergent: it's the best thing to get a good extraction at the next bout of fatigue.

FILTER COFFEE

Nothing better than the French press (the futurist coffee maker made of concentric hollow cylinders, if you don't know it, go to the letter P of the alphabet of artisan coffee shops in Dissapore) to start with filter coffee.

Hot water and a good coffee ground coarser than that used in the Moka pot are enough.

The freshly ground coffee is combined with the water brought to a boil and transferred to another steel container, to make it lose heat and be able to pour it at a temperature between 92 and 93 degrees.

The French Press makes separating the drink from the powder a breeze.

Mix the top part with a teaspoon.

It's time to let the coffee rest: three and a half minutes will be perfect.

I push the plunger down slowly and gently (both for best results and to keep the liquid from splashing out).

Then pour the coffee over a paper filter that you line a glass container. Most of the liquid will filter without help, you can remove the sediments with a rubber brush, if necessary, to allow the last drops to filter.

At the end, the coffee is diluted with cold water: the rule applies that if you want it more intense, you can add less water. Then pour the coffee into a glass filled with ice.

Artist's touch: replace the sugar with a pinch of salt. Trust me, it's good.

DIY bartender, level 2

DRIP COFFEE

The self-respecting coffe lover cannot ignore the specific equipment.

You understand how much a good grind affects the flavor of the coffee in the cup: if this is the case for a simple mocha, let alone for Aeropress, Siphon and V60 (among the various extraction methods it is the one that allows you to obtain more complex gustatory notes).

You can settle for a Brewista grinder (40 euros and take the whim off, then it's compact and carry it around without problems if you want to let your friends know how good you are) or treat yourself to Il Comandante, a refined grinder that represents the state of the art.

And to weigh the coffee? Keep in mind that saying scales in the world of special coffees is a bit generic: it could be the most common dish as well as the most abstruse of recipes. Our bartender makes second level dates can be useful to measure the doses of water and powder using a Hario scale with built-in timer (about 50 euros).

DIY bartender, level 3

ESPRESSO NERD

The true coffee nerd attends SCAE (Specialty Coffee Association of Europe, an association of professionals and lovers of specialty coffees) training courses and sips the foam from the cup using the special teaspoon.

But no matter how much equipment he has gathered at home (to his wife's desperation, if he has one), the object of desire of the level 3 DIY bartender remains the Mini line de La Marzocco, a Florentine company that is an international leader in machines for artisan coffee shops).

A coffee machine beautiful, it is not just an aesthetic quirk. With its double boiler technology it allows to obtain the same performances as a professional machine.

With this at home you will do memory exercises: friends will start asking you "the usual", and the options here are several.

FILTER COFFEE (extreme)

At these levels, let's forget about manual grinding: the first electric grinders of the Vario brand appear, which speaks directly to the heart of roasting hipsters. Vario home (around 1000 euros) provides multiple programs, capable of returning the beans in portions ready for Moka or filter coffee.

Then there is the novelty of the Venetian company Mazzer, ZM Filter (2,800 euros).

And if the grinders get expensive and bulky, the scales become more precise, with flow control, as well as time control. The Brewista Scale (about fifty euros) falls into this category and it will not be a feast for the eyes, does what it has to do with self-denial.

If you have come this far, however, nothing will be enough for you.

You will demand the scales Achaia, the Apple of caffeine: Pearl (195 euros, it looks like the Apple TV) suitable for filter coffee, and Lunar (395 euros) for espresso.