How to Brew Kukuwu Coffee: French Press, Pour-Over and AeroPress

We brew Kukuwu coffee three ways: a French press for body, a pour-over for clarity and an AeroPress for a short, concentrated cup. Here are all three recipes, in grams, milliliters and minutes. In each, the water is heated to just short of boiling, about 96 degrees Celsius (205 degrees Fahrenheit).

Before you start

Weigh the coffee rather than measuring it by the spoon; a small kitchen scale makes each cup repeatable. Grind it just before you brew. Heat a little more water than the recipe asks for, so there is enough to rinse a paper filter or warm the cup.

Method	Grind	Coffee	Water
French press	Coarse	18 g	240 ml
Pour-over	Medium	32 g	400 ml
AeroPress	Medium	22 g	220 ml

French press: for body

1. Put 18 grams of coarsely ground coffee in the press.
2. Pour in 50 milliliters of water and let the grounds bloom for 30 seconds.
3. Stir once, so that all the coffee is wet.
4. Add the remaining 190 milliliters.
5. Wait four minutes, then lower the plunger slowly and pour.

The metal mesh lets the coffee's oils through, so the cup comes out full and round. It suits Tropical Dulce Dream, whose substantial body carries the coconut and caramel, and Caldas Serenity Now.

Pour-over: for clarity

1. Set a paper filter in a Chemex or V60, rinse it with hot water, and pour that water away.
2. Add 32 grams of medium-ground coffee.
3. Pour 64 milliliters, enough to wet every ground, and wait 50 seconds while it blooms.
4. Add the remaining 336 milliliters in slow, even pours.
5. Let it drain; it should finish about two minutes after the last pour.

Paper holds back the oils and the finest particles, so the cup is clean and each note stands on its own. This is the method for Caldas Geisha Harmony, with its chamomile and juicy citrus, and for Nariño Sweet Symphony, whose sweetness and chocolatey depth come through clearly. At about one part coffee to 12.5 of water, our ratio is stronger than many pour-over recipes. For the bloom, the pour and the drawdown in more detail, see our pour-over technique.

AeroPress: short and concentrated

1. Put a paper filter in the cap, rinse it, fit the cap to the chamber, and set the AeroPress on a sturdy cup.
2. Add 22 grams of medium-ground coffee and start a timer.
3. Pour 100 milliliters and let it bloom for 40 seconds.
4. Stir, then pour the remaining 120 milliliters.
5. When the timer reads two minutes, press down slowly and steadily into the cup, for about 30 seconds.

Steeping and gentle pressure together make a concentrated cup, at about one part coffee to ten of water, in under three minutes. On a busy morning, we reach for it with the Chinchiná Harmony Roast, the everyday coffee of the range.

If the cup is not right

Change one thing at a time, so you know which change made the difference. If the coffee tastes bitter or harsh, grind a little coarser or shorten the brew. If it tastes sour or thin, grind a little finer or give it longer.

For where each coffee comes from, see Caldas and Nariño, or read the questions and answers. Whichever method you choose, take the first cup of a new coffee black: it is the clearest way to taste what it is.