Filter and immersion brewing
Pour-over, AeroPress and French press with the ratios, the timings and the one-variable-at-a-time rule for fixing a cup that came out sour or bitter.
Cold brew concentrate
1:8 for 16 hours, then dilute to taste
Never heated, so almost none of the bitter compounds are extracted. Keeps a week and turns into six other drinks.
Japanese iced coffee
Brewed hot directly onto ice — the aromas survive
Cold brew is smooth but flat. Flash brew is bright and floral because you capture the volatile aromatics before they escape.
Pour-over (V60)
15 g coffee, 250 g water, five pours
The clearest cup you can make at home and the fastest way to taste what a coffee actually is.
AeroPress
Two minutes, forgiving, travels anywhere
Immersion plus pressure. Almost impossible to make undrinkable, which is why it is the best gift for someone starting out.
French press
Full immersion, full body, no paper
The trick nobody does: skim the crust instead of stirring it in, and let it settle before you plunge.