Get to Know Your Cup: 5 Ways To Brew Coffee

Get to Know Your Cup: 5 Ways To Brew Coffee

Yes, coffee is energizing and delicious. But it also connects the community, helps us generate new ideas, and makes our mornings better.

It’s way more than a beverage. It’s a tradition, a ritual, and… sometimes, it's a life saver!

In this blog, we explore 5 Ways to Brew Coffee so you can add variety to your daily caffeine fix. From upgrading your morning drip to a French press or Pour Over, there's something new for every coffee lover.

So, grab your favourite beans and let's get brewing! 

In Photo: Kalita Glass Server, Kenya AA Medium Roast

Drip Brewing

Electric drip coffee makers are affordable, programmable, and so easy to use - making them the most popular method to brew coffee at home. 

Simply fill the reservoir, use a filter, add your favourite coffee grounds and push a button to begin brewing.

Here's how it works: 

  • First, the water travels down tubing from the reservoir into the heating element. 
  • The heating element heats the water and the plate on which the coffee pot sits on. 
  • The water boils, creating air bubbles which push up drops of water. 
  • The water droplets fall into the basket with the coffee grounds, traveling through the grounds, filtering and dripping into the pot. 

With the traditional coffee machine, we don't have control over how long the coffee brews nor the temperature of the water. We have to control what we can - which means being picky about the type of coffee beans you use, the grind, and coffee-to-water ratio. 

Pro Tips For the Best Brewed Pot:


In photo: Colombian Supremo 17/18: 

A no-nonsense roast perfect as a daily sipper.
Aromatic vanilla flavors add a subtle sweetness to your cup.
Tastes like: vanilla, smooth, bright

  • Choose high quality, fresh beans in your preferred roast whenever possible. For more information about the different types of roasts, read our blog Get to Know Your Coffee: Every Roast Explained.
  • Use coarse to medium grinds in your coffee maker. If you grind at home (and we encourage it) this means pulsing beans in 3-5 second intervals for 10-15 seconds. Grind until your grounds resemble the texture of kosher salt.  

Cheat Sheet:

  • For 12 coffee cups: 15 tablespoons coffee, medium grind and 60 ounces cold water
  • For 10 coffee cups: 12 ½ tablespoons coffee, medium grind and 50 ounces cold water
  • For 8 coffee cups: 10 tablespoons coffee, medium grind and 40 ounces cold water

The Bean Around The World Coffee Subscription ensures you never run out of fresh beans! (And we’re serious - each bag is only packed after you order.)


In Photo: Hario French Press
Traditional french press, made out of quality heatproof glass. Comes with an optional secondary fine mesh stainless steel filter to filter out excess coffee grinds or for brewing loose leaf tea.

French Press

A French Press, also known as a cafetière or coffee press, is a cylindrical glass or stainless steel pot with a plunger and a metal or nylon mesh filter. 

To use a French press, simply:

  • Add coarsely ground coffee to the pot, pour hot water over it, and let it steep for a few minutes.
  • Then you press the plunger down to separate the coffee grounds from the liquid.
  • Always make sure to preheat your press by rinsing it in hot water, and steep the coffee for at least 4 minutes.

In photo: Hario French Press, Rainforest Organic Flat Bottom Ground: 

Ignite your palate with this rich, earthy dark roast.
A cult classic guaranteed to warm you up on a rainy day.

Tastes like: chocolate, spicy, earthy

Dark roast coffee beans (like these) are a great option for a French press coffee. That’s because the longer brewing time and metal mesh filter can help extract more of the beans' rich, full-bodied flavours and oils. 



In Photo: Hario V60 Drip Scale, Bonavita Electric Kettle
See your weight and brew time all on one screen. 

Pro Tips For the Best French Pressed Coffee:

  • Use a scale.
    Different coffee grounds can have a huge difference between size and density, so a tablespoon of one type may weigh significantly less than a tablespoon of another, resulting in a weak coffee! Use a scale so you can measure by weight (instead of volume) so you  always know how much coffee goes into your cup. 


In Photo: Hario Skerton Grinder
This compact and lightweight handheld grinder is perfect for adventurers or home enthusiasts on a budget. Easy to use & easy to clean.

  • Use a Burr Grinder 
    Blade grinders do not grind your beans in a uniform size, creating inconsistent brews. Burr grinders, like the Hario Skerton Grinder, do. These types of grinders grind beans between two burred plates, resulting in an even grind.

    For more details about different coffee grinds, read our blog Understanding Coffee Grinds: A Complete Guide.
  • Use hot, but not boiling water.
    Use water that's between boiling and hot - around 200 Degrees Farenheit. Do this by bringing water to a boil, remove from heat and leave for about a minute.
  • Let the coffee grinds bloom.
    Pre-wet the coffee with a small amount of hot water to jumpstart your brew. Let it bloom for up to 3 minutes, then add the rest of the water and press.


In Photo: Chemex, Bonavita Electric Kettle, Chemex Filters, Organic Peru Norte Medium Roast Beans

The Eight Cup Chemex Coffeemaker will guarantee that the pour over brewing process will deliver the perfect cup of coffee, without any sediments or bitter elements. Pour-over allows coffee to be covered and refrigerated for reheating without losing flavour

Pour-Over

Pour-over coffee is a manual brewing method that involves pouring hot water over ground coffee beans contained in a filter. The brewed coffee then drips into a mug placed underneath.

While similar to drip brewing, this method allows more control over the process since you control how much and how fast the water is poured in, as well as its temperature. This gives you a cleaner and more well-balanced cup of coffee.

Want to try a BATW Medium Roast? Try our Best Selling roasts: Pete's Blend, Guatemala Santa Clara or the Colombian Supremo 17/18.

This method can also be a particularly good choice for medium-roasted beans. That’s because the extra control you have with pour-over brewing, like the water temperature and the pour rate, can help bring out the best flavour in your beans.

Tips to Make A Pour Over Like A Barista:

  • Make sure your filter is wrinkle free. 
  • Grind your coffee beans right before the pour. 
  • Pour in several small pulses to control your flow rate. 
  • Pour slowly with newer coffee, and more aggressively with older coffees. 
  • If you use a Chemex, create a whirlpool as you pour. The whirlpool creates agitation, increasing extraction. 

Moka Pot

A Moka pot is a small stovetop coffee maker that produces a strong, espresso-like coffee. It has a bottom chamber for water, a filter basket for coffee grounds, and a top chamber for brewed coffee. As the water boils, it produces steam pressure that forces the water up through the ground coffee and into the top chamber.


In photo: Espresso Organic Blend: 

From farm to roast to cup a lot goes into extracting the perfect espresso.
Well balanced and multi-faceted.
Tastes like: caramel, toasty, sweet

Espresso beans are a great option for this type of brewing. Especially if you don't have an espresso machine but love the taste. While the resulting coffee is similar, it may not have the same level of crema (the creamy foam that forms on top of an espresso shot) or the same intensity of flavour. 


In Photo: Nitro Cold Brew Case of 4

Cold Brew

Cold brew coffee is made by steeping coarsely ground coffee in cold water for an extended period of time. The resulting coffee is less acidic and has a smoother, more mellow flavour than coffee brewed with hot water. After steeping, you filter it to remove the grounds, and the resulting coffee concentrate can be diluted with water or milk.

To get the best out of your cold brew make sure you’re using a coarse grind size to prevent the coffee from becoming over-extracted. Also make sure you steep the coffee for at least 12 hours, but no more than 24 hours.

Next time you need an energy boost, try our Bean Around The World Nitro Cold Brew. Its portable, in a can so you can take it on your adventures.

Ahhh, that tastes great!

With all the brewing methods out there, figuring out your favourite one can get complicated. Especially with all the equipment you’d need. Instead, try one of our high-quality brewing kits. 



In Photo: Beginners Brew Kit with Kalita Sandstone Dripper, Filters & Coffee Server

With options for beginner brewers and intermediate brewers, you’re sure to discover what the perfect cup of coffee tastes like to you. 

Already have a collection of brewing equipment at home? Try a coffee bean subscription instead. Pick your favourite roast and we’ll deliver fresh beans right to your door so you never have to run out again.