Grind Consistency for Different Beans
I was thinking about grinding coffee this morning..
I understand that for drip coffee, the ground coffee should have a consistency similar to that of sand. But how much does this vary with different coffees with different densities and other characteristics?
Should all arabica be ground to the same consistency? Should strictly high grown/hard bean (SHB) be ground finer than high grown/hard bean (HB)?
Is there some rule of thumb?
I understand that for drip coffee, the ground coffee should have a consistency similar to that of sand. But how much does this vary with different coffees with different densities and other characteristics?
Should all arabica be ground to the same consistency? Should strictly high grown/hard bean (SHB) be ground finer than high grown/hard bean (HB)?
Is there some rule of thumb?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Matthew Pitts on
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In my opinion: Each coffee should be ground the same regardless of origin. If you grind it finer or more coarse, it'll effect the extraction, therefore taking away characteristics. This goes for any brew method.
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Permalink Reply by Mike M on
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Thank you for the reply Matthew.
I was thinking that there would be a kind of 'grind profile' as there is a 'roast profile' that is used to extract specific flavors for each individual coffee.
If you overgrind two different SO beans, couldn't the bitter notes in one stand out more in one than the other? That is, the grind changes the flavor of the coffee, and not all coffees are alike, so wouldn't it make sense that the grind would be specific to the coffee?
Matthew Pitts said:In my opinion: Each coffee should be ground the same regardless of origin. If you grind it finer or more coarse, it'll effect the extraction, therefore taking away characteristics. This goes for any brew method.
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Permalink Reply by Brady on
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Remember that grind setting has the same effect for drip process as it does for espresso process. Coarser speeds up the flow of water, fine slows it down. However (as you've noted) coarser slows down the actual extraction process, while finer speeds it up. The key is finding a good balance.
For drip, generally speaking, I usually start at about the same grind setting for every coffee. On a pourover-type, I like a setting that gets my total extraction time to between 4 and 5 minutes when I use my standard starting ratio of 60g/L. I'll usually then play with water temperature and coffee dosage to dial it in. I don't usually play with grind after nailing the time, but I suppose you might try tweaking a little if one of your other adjustments throws off your extraction time.
That's just what I do. Hope that helps.
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Permalink Reply by Phoebe Aceto on
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So I have been making all of the "regular" coffee here pour over style, I dose and grind to order, I have begun to really get the feel for adjusting the grind for different coffees almost as intimately as I adjust the grind for espresso! The largest factor seems to be freshness of coffee, just like with your espresso beans, if they are only 2-3 days out they will still be gassing out, affecting your flow rate. Lighter and darker roasted coffees also show a difference, I tend to get a bigger "bloom" from darker beans, but lighter roasts tend to extract a little slower. Dosing and brew method should be the most consistent, then it is up to you the barista to tweak the grind.
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In other words...what Brady said. :)
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Permalink Reply by Nicholas Robertson on
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This is a great question. By the way, My name's Nick. This is my first post here. These are the sorts of questions that drove me to this site.
I've always used the same grind setting, mainly for simplicity, for any given origin, only changing courseness based on brewing method or amount of coffee/water ratio.
The real question is if the density or hardness of the bean actually effects extraction. I'm no scientist but it should make sense logically that a hard bean like Brazil should be ground finer to allow for easier extraction.
At the shop I work at we have a very consistent system for brewing many different origins and I've definitely noticed Sumatra to taste overextracted when brewed using this system. Everyone knows Sumatra is known for earthy, dirty flavors, so I used to just assume that the unpleasant mustiness was charachteristic of that origin. But I doubt it. When I manually drip Sumatra I find way less earthiness and a lot more dark berries and sweetness. Whew, anyway, what do you guys think?
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Permalink Reply by Creme'cles Greek God o' Coffee on
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Good God this is a good thread! Kudos to everyone. I make drip primarily using pour over methods and french press. Our company standard for a 12oz cup of drip is 24grams of beans ground on a number 3 setting on our malconig as a standard. However playing around with different beans with different roast profiles I've found manipulating the extraction rate for different beans can have interesting effects. Sumatra as a pour over and ground on three has that classic earthy ditry flavor mentioned earlier in this post, but when I grind it on a four it clings a little to the earthy flavor, but has an amazing amount of a sweet malty chocolate floating around. And on a chemex the Sumatra even has more of this goin on. But when I apply this same methodolgy to a Coasta Rica I find that it produces flavors of an oversteeped tea (not my thing, but others may enjoy it), but it being a lighter roast then the sumatra I use, I apply a finer grind 3 or 2 and I find it really brings out the sweet citrus flavor in which I feel is what they really taste like (The Costa Rica is a good bean, but I have no desire to build a cabin after a cup). Ultimately, unless it tastes horrid there is no wrong way, just keep playing around until it feels like it belongs on your tongue.
You all have an awesome day.
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Yeah, I've considered roast profile. The Sumatra is a coffee I take about 5-7 degrees darker than most of the other coffees, but for the sake of this particular question I left that part out. Maybe I should mention that. I think the mustiness, in this case, of this particular Sumatra is due to overextraction. I'm going to experiment with up-dosing and coarser grind settings.
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Great responses! Thank you everyone!
Also, I was wondering if the roast should somehow correlate with the grind consistency? Should lighter roasts be ground coarser or finer compared to dark roasts? Does this matter?
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Honestly, if it were me, I wouldn't be concerned with it that much. Unless you're using a very high quality burr grinder, you can't get anything close to uniform particle size. Especially if you're using a really inconsistent grinder, like a blade grinder. The changes in particle size for different origins that I'm talking about are very, very minor. You don't really have a choice but to be very general with it. Which has worked well for a lot of people for a very long time.
My advice is: Unless you're working under ideal conditions, use the same grind setting for any origin. Change settings based on how long the coffee comes in contact with the water. Longer = Coarser, Shorter = Finer. Keep in mind that usually when brewing large pots you'll have more contact time.
I don't really see it being similar to espresso. Times can range dramatically depending on particle size. Think of the french press. Very course for 4-5 minutes. I've seen different cone baskets for different manual drips too. Some have one small hole for the coffee to drain out, and some have three larger holes. These things also really affect time. With espresso you deal with gravity but mostly with high pressure in a tight closed invironment.
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environment*
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Fair enough! It sounds as though that there are so many different factors in play that setting a grinding rule of thumb for different single origins or even more complex blends would be near impossible and that it really comes down to testing the final product after changing the grind settings a few times.
I would imagine that two SO hard-bean coffees, having different characteristics, may use two different grind settings depending on flavor preference.
I suppose by asking my original question I was looking for the 'correct answer' but I don't suppose there really is one.. Having thought about it a bit since, I've reached the conclusion that it all comes down to how much each individual enjoys the barista's product. Sure, there are tips and tricks to ensure a superior product, but at the end of the day, the coffee lover with the drink in their hands is the judge.
Thank you all for the responses!
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