Filter Drip Coffee Brewing Method

The choice of coffee brewing equipment available these days is vast  From the humble coffee pot, the French Press, the traditional percolator, filter machine through to commercial bulk brew machines, traditional espresso and fully automatic bean to cup machines and many more.

A simple cafetiere may cost just a few pounds, whilst the latest top of the range fully automatic coffee makers can set you back £10,000.

However, whatever the make or model and whether for domestic or commercial use the method of coffee extraction falls into just three simple categories.

1/ Steep and strain
2/ Filter infusion
3/ Pressure infusion

Filter Drip

Steep and Strain – The simplest method of all. Hot water (just off the boil) is added to coarse to medium ground coffee in a container and the mixture left to ensure extraction (steeping). The coffee liquor is strained off or the steeping halted in some mechanical way prior to serving. This methods is best suited to domestic or light commercial use.
Examples include the coffee jug, percolator, French Press, Ibrik

Filter Infusion – Medium to fine ground coffee are placed in a basket or container which is lined with a filter paper or other material designed to let the hot coffee liquor slowly filter through to a holding pot or container.
Hot water is a added from above it steeps with the coffee grinds in the basket and falls through into the container below.
This method is suitable to both domestic and commercial use. Examples include, drip and filter pots, pour and serve machines and commercial bulk brewers.

Pressure Infusion – Hot water if forced under pressure through a small compacted bed of finely ground coffee held inside a small metal basket. This is known as the espresso process and is generally suited to preparing  individual cups of beverage rather than a jug or container.

If you selected one particular type and grind of coffee and brewed it through these three methods the resulting beverage would taste different in each case.

The choice of brewing method and type of equipment used will depend on the particular situation. At home for example a simple domestic coffee pot, French Press, small filter drip jug or percolator will suffice.

At a wedding function or corporate event a bulk brewer will be needed as large quantities of coffee are required at the same time. In a restaurant where diners are ordering coffees at different times a traditional espresso machine would be ideally suited, but in a cafeteria or other self service catering establishment a fully automatic push button bean to cup machine would be the best solution.