Innovations in coffee equipment has come in leaps and bounds in recent years. You’re no longer limited to an automatic coffee maker or your local Starbucks’ espresso machine. There are so many incredible coffee brewing methods you can use, right from home. Some are simple, some are traditional, and some are oh-so-fancy!
Consider the Delter Press, for instance. It’s the new kid on the block – a brand new coffee maker only released very recently. Yet is already praised by many coffee lovers to be a revolution that improves on the AeroPress. Speaking of which, what exactly is an AeroPress anyway? So many terms, so easy to get them mixed up! Which one do I choose? And why?
Don’t worry. This is the ultimate guide for you to start out in your coffee adventure. We’ll take a look at every coffee brewing method you ever wanted to know about. If you’re new to coffee, this is where you want to start. While things can get pretty complicated, pretty quickly – I’ve designed this guide to be as beginner friendly as possible.
Note to our coffee pros: If you’re more of an advanced brewer, we will have far more detailed guides that take you much more in-depth into your chosen brew style. Click on “The Guide” section of The Hearty Brew.
Welcome to the big, bad world of brewing coffee!
1. Drip Coffee/Filter Coffee/Pourover
Brewing coffee, at its core, is all about using water to extract flavour from your coffee beans. One of the simplest, no-fuss coffee brewing methods is the pourover/filter method. The concept is incredibly simple.
You put freshly ground coffee beans into a filter, then pour hot (never boiling!) water over it. This water will flow into the coffee grounds. With the help of gravity, water will slowly pass through the grounds, and evenly trickle down into your vessel or mug below. The once-plain water is now infused with the delicious bean flavours as the coffee you know and love!
Pourover coffee gives you, the brewer, a great deal of control over the delicate process of brewing. Meaning you have free reign over playing around with recipes, grind sizes, pour speed, etc.. What this gives you is the ability to ramp up your coffee quality as you gradually fine-tune the skills you need. It’s not difficult for beginners to learn really rapidly too.
The taste of pourover coffee is smooth, low in acidity and well-balanced if done right. We’ve several popular methods to do this, and I’ve grouped them into 3 subcategories here:
A) Manual Cone
You’re spoilt for choice when it comes to coffee cones these days. Among the top contenders are the Hario V60, the Origami, and the Kalita Wave Dripper.
They all apply that same gravity-assisted water drip concept we just talked about. The only difference is the shape of each cone, which affects how fast the water goes in, stays in, and drips out. This difference can affect the final taste of coffee quite substantially, which is why there is endless debate among coffee experts as to which manual coffee cone works best.
SPECS:
- TASTE: smooth, balanced
- TIME: several minutes, depending on the shape of each cone
- GRIND SIZE: medium to medium-fine
PROS:
- Portable and lightweight
- Easy to use and clean
- Allows full control over brewing
- Fast brewing (several minutes)
CONS:
- Different filter papers for each type of cone
- Not very environmentally-friendly from use of filter papers
SCORE: 7/10
B) Chemex
A Chemex is a specific type of manual drip coffee maker. Instead of a cone that you place over your mug or pot, the Chemex comes in one, full glass piece. It looks like a vase to a certain extent, with its narrow waist and wide top and bottom. The filter paper is held in place by the narrow waist, the coffee grounds go in, water is poured in, and voila – freshly brewed coffee is collected in the bottom half.
A Chemex also allows you to brew in larger batches, so if you’ve got a large household, this is a surefire advantage for a manual drip maker.
SPECS:
- TASTE: smooth, balanced
- TIME: 3-5 minutes
- GRIND SIZE: medium to medium-coarse
PROS:
- Tastes slightly better than a manual cone method (really depends on the beans and brewer)
- Allows full control over brewing
- Fast brewing (several minutes)
- Slightly larger capacity for brewing more coffee
CONS:
- Single-use filter papers needed
- Made of glass, fragile
- Not easy to clean the bottom half due to the constricted waist
SCORE: 8/10
C) Drip Machine
A drip machine employs the same concept, but automates most of the process. The only thing you have to do is open the lid and fill it with coffee grounds, and top up the water tank from time to time.
Then, with the push of a button, the machine will heat up the water and extract the coffee into your pot waiting below. This is probably the most commonly seen coffee maker across households and offices, thanks to its added benefit of being able to brew huge batches at once.
The downside is that you have little control over the programming of these machines, so you can’t control how the taste comes out. High-end drip machines (like the Moccamaster) perform impressively, but they get quite pricey, quite quickly. With lower end drip machines, the taste tends to come out pretty meh to downright bleh, so if you’re budget conscious, you’re probably better off with a manual Chemex or a Hario V60.
SPECS:
- TASTE: smooth, balanced
- TIME: 1-2 minutes (if already brewed); 5-10 minutes (to brew)
- GRIND SIZE: medium
PROS:
- Fast and convenient
- Brews in large batches
- Some models have timers so it automatically brews whenever you want
CONS:
- No control over brewing
- Below average taste for lower-end models
- Higher-end models taste better, but are expensive
SCORE: 5/10
2. Cold Brew
Imagine pourover, but cold. And slower. Like, a whole day slower.
Instead of pouring hot water over coffee grounds to extract their flavour, cold water is used instead. Now, have you tried dissolving sugar in cold water? It takes forever. A similar concept takes place with cold brew coffee. Because cold water doesn’t absorb coffee’s flavours quite as rapidly as hot water, you let it sit for a much longer time to get that same level of flavour. How long, you ask?
10 hours is the bare minimum, but some people let it sit and brew for up to 24 hours. A whole day! But your patience will be handsomely paid off. Your coffee will taste way better – it’s flavour far more balanced, it goes down smoothly, and has a subtle sweetness to tie it together. There’s barely any acidity or bitterness. You can really get to taste the true flavours of your coffee beans, exactly the way the farmers and roasters intended.
This happens because cold water reacts with the chemicals in coffee differently. Cold water also has so much more time to really get into the coffee and absorb/release the compounds. You will not be able to get the same taste by chucking ice into hot coffee.
SPECS:
- TASTE: smooth, balanced and sweet
- TIME: 10-24 hours
- GRIND SIZE: super coarse
PROS:
- Taste is almost darn near impossible to beat
- Because it’s made cold, it can be bottled and kept for weeks in the fridge
- Great for people with sensitive stomachs – the low acidity means you can drink it even on an empty stomach first thing in the morning
- Super easy to learn and brew
CONS:
- Slooooooow (several hours to days)
SCORE: 10/10
Nitro Cold Brew
You may have seen this new menu addition at coffee bars in your local hip coffee shop. Heck, even Starbucks is doing it now! But what is Nitro Cold Brew?
In simple terms: Cold Brew Coffee + Nitrogen Gas. On tap.
Fancy! Nitrogen is infused into cold brew, typically from a gas canister under the counter. This adds a layer of bubbly foam that rises to the top. Many have compared this to a pint of beer, and the fact that it comes out of a tap does help sell that impression somewhat.
The taste is velvety, smooth, again with no acidity or bitterness. Just that this time you have the added texture of tiny nitrogen bubbles happily floating atop that lovely cold brew. Savour it as you would a beer (you’ve now got a happy excuse to look forward to on Monday mornings)
SPECS:
- TASTE: smooth, balanced and sweet, slightly foamy
- TIME: 10-24 hours
- GRIND SIZE: super coarse
PROS:
- Everything as mentioned in cold brew
- Adds a delicious layer of foamy texture atop the coffee
- Feels fancy to drink
CONS:
- Harder to come by
- Not easily brewed from home
SCORE: 10/10
3. French Press/Plunger
The French Press (or more commonly called the Plunger in Australia and New Zealand) is one of the oldest ways to brew coffee from home. It’s super simple to execute – but does take some learning and experimentation to master. How so?
You start by scooping your freshly ground coffee into the French Press. Then, pour hot water in. Leave the mixture alone for 3-4 minutes to brew. This process is called “steeping”, or in plain English, “soaking”. When time’s up, you push the plunger down. The plunger has a mesh filter built in, which presses the coffee grounds to the bottom of the French Press, effectively filtering it out. This allows you to then pour the coffee out without worrying about loose particles flowing out.
Sounds easy enough. You mix water and coffee, you press down, you pour. What makes it so difficult? There’s more margin for error.
Unlike pourover, water is in direct contact all the time with the coffee grounds. If you leave it for too long, the water will extract too much of the bitter components from the ground coffee. If you don’t press it down evenly, the mesh filter won’t catch all the grounds, and you’ll be drinking coffee that tastes like sand.
But, keep at it, and you’ll be proudly brewing a strong, bold coffee. Because water was in constant contact with coffee, it can absorb much more flavour and strength.
A French Press is a piece of coffee equipment I recommend every coffee lover to have at home. Not only does it brew great coffee, it can also be used to froth milk without having to buy an expensive espresso machine, and it can be used to brew loose leaf teas too!
SPECS:
- TASTE: strong, bold, slightly dense
- TIME: 3-5 minutes
- GRIND SIZE: coarse
PROS:
- It is dirt cheap – you can literally buy one for less than $10
- No paper filters needed – environmentally friendly
- Allows full control over brewing
- Fast brewing (several minutes)
CONS:
- Not the easiest to master, takes time to get used to
- Made of mostly glass, fragile
- A hassle to clean
SCORE: 7/10
4. AeroPress
Invented back in 2005, the AeroPress was invented to improve upon the pourover method. While a pourover takes several minutes, an AeroPress speeds that up rapidly, in a really hands-on way. How does it work?
An AeroPress has a plunger section that you push down on, and a chamber to hold the coffee grounds and water. Instead of waiting for gravity to slowly pull the water down, you apply force on the plunger to push it down. The plunger drops into the chamber, and the pressure forces the coffee out from the bottom and straight into your cup.
This method of applying pressure to brew coffee works extremely well, because now water is forced to absorb the flavours from the ground coffee. And because the filter at the bottom of the chamber stops any stray grinds from falling through and muddying up your coffee, the taste is incredible. You get a clean, clear and smooth body from the coffee, allowing the full flavours of the coffee beans to shine.
An AeroPress is also versatile when it comes to the type of taste you’re after. You are free to experiment with different beans, different grind sizes, brew ratios and pressure to dial-in the perfect taste to suit you and you alone!
Fun fact: this is the gist of the World AeroPress Championships. Competitors from across the globe race to select beans, create recipes, and develop the most delicious tasting coffee that will wow the judges. It really is impressive that such a simple equipment can produce such fine coffee, and make itself a spot on the world stage!
SPECS:
- TASTE: smooth and clean
- TIME: 30 seconds to 1 minute
- GRIND SIZE: medium-coarse, medium, or fine (really up to you)
PROS:
- Portable and lightweight
- Durable and tough as nails
- Easy to use and clean
- Allows full control over brewing, and experimentation with different recipes
- Super fast brewing (under a minute)
- One of the cleanest tasting coffees you can brew from home
CONS:
- Single-use filter papers needed
- A slight hassle to assemble out of the box
SCORE: 9/10
Delter Press
While the AeroPress has indeed been a game-changer in the coffee industry, it does have minor flaws that could be improved upon. One of them is something called “agitation”. Agitation just means the movement of the coffee grounds during brewing. A bit of agitation is good, because you can get the water to mix better with the coffee. But if you’re careless with the AeroPress, it can create excessive, unwanted agitation. This can occasionally lead to bitter tasting coffee.
In comes the Delter Press, which aims to solve this issue. It looks pretty much exactly the same, but it claims to use a revolutionary “injection brewing” method, which gives greater control for the brewer. We won’t get into too much detail here, but basically, you don’t steep the grounds with hot water from the start. The water-coffee interaction only happens when you plunge down. This greatly reduces the chance of over-extracting your coffee, which should give you a more balanced cuppa.
But can the Delter Press really compete against the AeroPress’ reputation and loyal fans? How practical is this new invention? It was released in 2019 and is barely a year old at the time of writing. This is where things get interesting – and we will release a smackdown article between these two champs in the near future.
If you are new to brewing coffee, my honest advice is not to worry about all these new inventions just yet. Stick to the tried and true AeroPress until you have learnt a bit more about the principles to brew well, and you’ll be well on your way!
5. Espresso Machine
Behold, the king of the pressure brewing method. You’ve no doubt heard of this Italian invention that is now a staple across cafes nationwide.
An espresso machine brews one specific type of coffee, which is espresso. An espresso is a small, 30ml (1 oz) coffee that is super concentrated, sharp and complex in flavour. Yet, properly brewed espresso tastes well-balanced. The acidity in the first sip is balanced out by its dark, chocolatey, slightly bitter notes. Within it, you get to taste the sweetness of floral or fruity notes. The aroma is strong yet fragrant.
Remember how for the AeroPress, you applied pressure by pushing down to extract the coffee? An espresso machine forces hot, high-pressure water through the coffee grounds. Proper, certified Italian espresso requires a minimum pressure of 9 bars, which is equal to the tremendous water pressure of 300 feet below the sea!
Because the pressure is so high, the flavours and coffee components are extracted super quickly in a grand total of about 30 seconds. Imagine all those wonderful flavours and caffeine compressed into one tiny, but potent cup of coffee that packs a real punch!
There are 3 main groups we can class espresso machines into:
A) Manual Lever Machines
Reminiscent of the old, original designs of espresso machines, these manual machines have a large lever that is attached to springs and pistons inside. Your muscles do the heavy work. By pulling down firmly on the lever, you generate most of the pressure needed to pump water out to create your espresso.
These machines may seem like a dinosaur compared with the fancy bells and whistles in more modern designs, but they are some of the most reliable espresso machines, capable of producing top-notch, golden espresso!
SPECS:
- TASTE: strong, sharp, complex, bold
- TIME: 30 seconds
- GRIND SIZE: fine
PROS:
- Amazing quality espresso
- Allows full control over brewing
- Extremely fast brewing (30 seconds!)
- Durable and reliable, solidly built
CONS:
- Requires quite a bit of physical effort to operate
- Slight learning curve in espresso preparation
- Most home lever machines don’t have a steam wand, or have below-average steam wands
SCORE: 9/10
B) Semi-Automatic Machines
Because not many people could pull a lever with the same, consistent pressure shot after shot, semi-automatic machines were created to make it simpler. You push a button, which engages a pump inside the espresso machine. Water starts to flow, and this internal pump does the heavy work of forcing out the 9 bars of water pressure, meaning you get more consistent espresso every time.
Most specialty coffee cafes use semi-automatic or volumetric espresso machines. This is because of these machines’ reliability and speed in pumping out hundreds of consistent espressos daily.
For home brewing, these are also the most common, because they offer the best balance between ease of use and the quality of coffee produced. However, semi-automatic machines have a lot more mechanical parts and components inside it, so frequent maintenance and care is needed for upkeep (which is not too difficult to learn, so don’t worry).
SPECS:
- TASTE: strong, sharp, complex, bold
- TIME: 30 seconds
- GRIND SIZE: fine
PROS:
- Fairly simple to use
- Good quality espresso
- Allows full control over brewing
- Extremely fast brewing (30 seconds!)
CONS:
- Lower-end machines produce below average espresso
- Slight learning curve in espresso preparation
SCORE: 8/10
C) Fully-Automatic Machines
For those who value convenience above anything else, a fully automatic espresso machine is your choice. You push one button to select whether you want a cappuccino or an americano, or whatever drink options are available, and the machine does everything for you. Perfect for the absolute beginner.
It grinds the beans, packs the grounds needed for one cup, extracts the coffee, heats up the milk and dispenses everything into your waiting cup.
While a fully-automatic espresso machine may be a real lifesaver if you’re in a rush, the coffees that come out of it are usually…well, um, bad. There, I said it (sorry, dear readers who love auto machines). I’ve tried many fully-automatic espresso machines before, and the majority of them either burn the milk, or royally screw up the extraction, leading to very bitter coffee. Since the machine handles everything, there is little you can do to adjust the brew if it’s off. You sacrifice brew quality for convenience in this case.
Sure, some extremely high-end fully-automatic machines are passable, but even then they cannot compete against a mid-range semi-automatic or manual lever machine with a good barista on it.
SPECS:
- TASTE: strong, usually burnt and/or bitter
- TIME: 30 seconds to 1 minute
- GRIND SIZE: fine
PROS:
- Fast and convenient
- Easy to use
- No learning curve
CONS:
- Poor quality espresso
- Minimal control over brewing
- Breaks easily – it’s a highly complicated machinery; even if one little part falls out of place, you’ll likely need a full dismantling to repair it
SCORE: 4/10
6. Moka Pot
What do you do when you want an espresso-style coffee, but can’t afford the hefty price tag that comes with a proper espresso machine? A Moka Pot! It’s been in use for decades, and employs one of the most interesting brew techniques out there. Water flows upwards against gravity!
The “stovetop espresso maker” is made of stainless steel which you place over a stove. Water goes in the bottom chamber, and coffee grounds in the middle chamber. When you turn on the heat, the water slowly boils and part of it turns into steam. This causes pressure to build up in the bottom chamber. The high pressure is sealed in, and has nowhere to go, so it pushes down against the water. Fortunately, the water does have somewhere to go – up through a tube into the middle chamber, where the coffee grounds are! Hot water seeps into the coffee grounds and absorbs the flavour, and once the middle chamber is full, the brewed coffee is pushed further up into the final, top chamber.
Tip the Moka pot, pour your “espresso” into a cup, and it is ready. It is really a fascinating invention that showcases physics at its finest. To recap, water is forced up from the bottom chamber, into the middle chamber with coffee grounds, and finally filtered into the top chamber.
Taste-wise, it is concentrated and slightly bitter. Occasionally, it can come out slightly mucky too, so it’s not my favourite brew method. The fact that boiling water is used also causes the taste of the coffee to degrade. All these combined means that it is very easy to over brew coffee in a Moka pot, making it far more bitter and hollow tasting.
SPECS:
- TASTE: strong, bitter, dense
- TIME: 4-6 minutes
- GRIND SIZE: fine
PROS:
- Cheap and easy to use
- Allows moderate control over brewing
- The coffee gushing out like a fountain looks real fancy
CONS:
- Easy to over-extract
- Difficult to get it to taste good
- Boiling water destroys the delicate flavours of coffee
- Old, damaged or cheap Moka pots are dangerous – they can burst open
SCORE: 4/10
7. Siphon/Vacuum Coffee Maker
Speaking of showcasing interesting physics, this next one will blow your socks away. My jaw hit the floor when I first learnt about the Siphon Coffee Maker! If the Moka pot flowed upwards, the Siphon tops it by flowing up, then down again.
It’s a two-part vessel usually made of glass: coffee grounds go in the top vessel, and hot water in the bottom vessel. When you heat the bottom up, steam forces the water to rise into the top vessel (similar to the Moka pot). Water mixes with the coffee grounds and extraction takes place. Then, you remove the heat source. The bottom vessel cools down, and gravity pulls the brewed coffee back into the empty bottom vessel.
It looks like something out of a mad science experiment, but is definitely a tool to impress your visitors. If you’re the type who only brews one cup of coffee at once, it’s quite a pain to set up, and even more troublesome to clean. It’s more for show, really. For coffee lovers, it’s fascinating to watch a siphon at work. Because of the solid glass build, the coffee tastes way better than a Moka pot, having a clear, smooth and flavourful body.
SPECS:
- TASTE: smooth, clear
- TIME: 5-7 minutes
- GRIND SIZE: medium
PROS:
- Delicate and clean tasting coffee
- Looks super cool and fancy
- Allows moderate control over brewing
CONS:
- Complex to set up
- A hassle to clean
- Made of glass – very fragile
- Not portable or light – it’s a giant glass contraption that takes up a lot of kitchen space
SCORE: 7/10
8. Pod Machine
Here we have your Nespresso machines and Keurigs! These single-serve machines are quite an innovation when it comes to coffee preparation. Most don’t taste very good, but the odd top model can give fully-automatic espresso machines a run for their money. Different models all operate differently, of course, but I’ll explain the general concept of pod-based single-serve coffee makers.
Coffee pods (Nespresso pods, K-cups, etc.) are small, individually packaged servings of coffee grounds, exactly enough for one cup of coffee. You open the lid of the pod machine, place the pod in the holder, and shut it. Inside the machine, needles pierce the top and bottom of the pod with holes. Hot, pressurized water flows into the pod, where the coffee grounds are. Then it flows out of the bottom hole, out of the machine and into your mug below.
An interesting thing to note here is that many pod machines claim to have up to 15 bars of pressure – which, as we discussed earlier, well exceeds the minimum threshold to be defined as espresso. But can mere pods be counted as proper espresso? There is quite a debate on this topic, one we will talk about in a future guide.
You can get pods in many flavours, whether that be coffee flavours or artificially sweetened flavours (or a combination of both).
SPECS:
- TASTE: flat, thin; really dependant on type of pods used
- TIME: 1-2 minutes
- GRIND SIZE: not needed
PROS:
- Fast and convenient (about a minute)
- Perfect for single-servings
- Easy to use
- No learning curve
CONS:
- Minimal control over brewing
- Most pods lack depth of flavour in the coffee
- Most pods are artificially flavoured
- Pods are not environmentally friendly
SCORE: 4/10
9. Turkish Coffee Pot
A traditional coffee that has a long standing cultural history behind it. It’s the only coffee that is brewed with sugar, to the drinker’s preference. Sweet treats tend to be served on the side too, which adds to the overall fanciness of this coffee experience.
Turkish coffee is brewed in a “cezve”, a special type of small coffee pot. You place a tiny amount of super fine, ground coffee in it, add sugar right from the get-go, and pour water in. Slowly, the mixture is brought to the boil, and a thick luscious foam will rise to the top. This is the hallmark of a good Turkish coffee. It is poured into beautiful, tiny tea cups, and the foam is spooned onto the top.
Turkish coffee is dense, bold, and sweet from the sugar. The thick foam ties it together nicely. It’s really strong, much more concentrated than pourover, almost close to an espresso’s strength. A barista friend of mine described it as being “similar to an espresso, really creamy but murkier” (due to the coffee grounds not being filtered out).
If you have the opportunity to visit an authentic Turkish cafe, I would highly recommend you try it and decide for yourself if this could be your new favourite cup of joe.
SPECS:
- TASTE: strong, bittersweet, creamy
- TIME: 3-4 minutes
- GRIND SIZE: super fine
PROS:
- Rich taste and cultural experience
- Strong yet sweet coffee
- Easy to use and clean
CONS:
- Easy to over-extract
- Taste may be overpowering for some
- A very fine grind is needed, hence most home grinders will not make the cut
SCORE: 7/10
10. Instant Coffee
The first rule about instant coffee is you don’t talk about instant coffee.
Jokes aside, despite many coffee snobs frowning at instant coffee (and trust me, they have good reason to – fake flavouring, heaps of calories, hardly any real caffeine, etc.), it’s not the end of the world if this is the only method readily available to you. Instant coffee will unfortunately, never be comparable to freshly ground and brewed coffee.
However, some instant coffees out there do have a glimmer of hope, such as Death Wish’s Instant Coffee Sachets. If other brew methods were in front of me, I would not pick the instant sachets. But when the need arises, the incredulous 300mg of caffeine in one cup gives me that powerful kick of caffeine to get the job done. That’s double the amount in a regular mug of pourover coffee!
Coffee Bags
Think tea bags, but with coffee. That’s the only way I can describe them. Dunk ‘em into a mug of hot water, leave it a couple of minutes, and away you go.
They’re marketed as an alternative to instant coffee sachets, and the concept behind it is sort of slightly better, but only marginally. You’ve still no control over the grind size or extraction process. What you get is what you drink. If you’re lucky enough to find a brand that your taste buds deem passable, wonderful. If not, blergh.
SPECS:
- TASTE: yuck
- TIME: as fast as you can boil your water
- GRIND SIZE: not needed
PROS:
- Extremely easy to brew
- Fast process (pretty much as fast as you can boil your water)
- Convenient for a quick craving or caffeine hit (only very few brands)
CONS:
- Taste is usually far below average or downright terrible
- Zero control over brew process
- Stale aroma and flavour due to the pre-ground/powder nature
- Tiny amount of caffeine for most brands
- High in sugars, sweeteners and preservatives
SCORE: 2/10
Coffee Brewing Methods: Conclusion!
If I could describe how it feels to brew coffee in one word, that word would be: “fun”. You have so much room to experiment and just play around with coffee. It’s like a little laboratory where you weigh and mix potions. Brewing coffee is like taking potions classes at Hogwarts!
So, what’s your favourite amongst the various coffee brewing methods? Which one do you reckon tastes best? Whatever method you opt for, my advice to you is to be open. Open to learning about other brew methods. Other ways to make coffee. If you stick rigidly to one method, you’ll miss out on so much coffee has to offer.
