Groundhouse: How to homebrew our coffee

Now that you can buy take home packs of our coffee, we thought it only right to give you some great tips on making a great cup in the comfort of your own slippers. Our light roasted coffee, a better fit than the ubiquitous dark roast, is ideally suited to vibrant home-brewing. So how do you do it? Read on!

1. Timing is everything

Our ground coffee and beans are best used within 3 months from the date of roasting, which is displayed on all our packaging. This will ensure that you enjoy it at its best.

Like any quality commodity, correct storage is essential. So once opened, keep air tight in a cool dark place.

My personal recommendation for ensuring you get the best taste experience is to drink plenty of it, as often as you can!

2. K.I.S.S

Coffee making is very much a ritual process, but it’s important not to over complicate things or allow home brewing to become a chore. After a little bit of experimenting with brew time and measurements you’re home and hosed.

Most home kitchens have digital scales, and timers are a mere ‘grab your mobile’ distance away.

There’s no need to spend more than around £15 for a decent cafetiere, and some really good home espresso makers are on the market from £45 upwards – see a certain online shopping website named after a South American river (orinoco.com?).

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3. Golden Ratio

Getting the coffee-to-water ratio is key – whatever your brewing method – and again, a bit of trial and error to get your personal preference is the best way forward (I find this approach also helps to develop your palette and your understanding of what good coffee looks, smells, and tastes like!)

A rough guide is 60g of ground coffee per litre of water – a typical cafetiere holds 500ml, so (hang on, where’s that calculator app on my phone?) it needs around 30g.

For the aficionados (or aspiring aficionados) a final suggestion is to not use unfiltered tap water – and to check that your kettle has been descaled. A traditional espresso machine in a café has a professional filtering system that cannot be replicated by the good old kitchen sink – so bottled or filtered tap water really does make a difference.

4. Timing is everything

You’re looking at around 5 to 10 minutes to get yourself a decent brew, so not a long wait to enjoy a great coffee on a weekend morning – of course if all that fails, just head to a speciality coffee shop (but do remember to get out of your pyjamas and slippers first!).