14
Coffee Brewing Suggestions: Advice for Great Taste
Fresh Coffee Beans
Truly great coffee can only come from
fresh coffee beans. To preserve the
freshness of your coffee beans, keep
the beans in an opaque, air-tight
container and store them in a cool,
dry place. Refrigeration is not
recommended, as condensation tends
to form on the beans whenever the
container is opened. Freezing can
help preserve beans stored for an
extended period, but it will also
impair the flavor.
The Right Grind
Freshly ground coffee loses flavor and
aroma quickly – within minutes. The
best cup of coffee will always come
from coffee beans that are ground
just before brewing.
A proper grind is critical for good
coffee, and that means using a
quality grinder like the KitchenAid®
Blade Coffee Grinder, PRO LINE™
Series Burr Coffee Mill, or the
KitchenAid®Model A-9™ Coffee Mill.
Be sure to grind your coffee to the
correct size – use a medium grind
level appropriate for automatic drip
coffee makers.
The Proper Amount
of Ground Coffee
For standard drip-process coffee, a
good starting point is to use one
rounded scoop of coffee for every
cup of brew water as measured with
the carafe. This results in about one
ounce of coffee being used for every
16 ounces of brew water – the
accepted brewing standard. Finer
grinds usually require less coffee, but
using too fine a grind will produce
bitterness. Very fine grinds may also
clog the coffee filter and cause water
to overflow the brew basket.
If you prefer substantially weaker-
than-average coffee, it’s best to brew
using a normal amount of ground
coffee and then dilute the result with
hot water. Doing this will maximize
flavor and minimize bitterness.
Brew Water Purity
The ion-exchange water filter that
comes with your Coffee Maker
reduces off-tastes and contaminants
in your brew water. It also softens the
water, which enhances coffee flavor.
For great tasting coffee, be sure to
use the filter – and replace it
promptly every three months.
Where local water quality is
extremely poor, you may wish to use
bottled, purified water with your
Coffee Maker. Do not use distilled
water or mineral water – they can
damage the Coffee Maker.
Coffee Maker Cleanliness
Coffee oils build up quickly within the
brew basket and carafe. Over time,
these oils will go stale and impair the
flavor of freshly brewed coffee. Daily
cleaning of the brew basket and
carafe is strongly recommended for
the best-tasting coffee.