The dawning...

The Berkey water filter was the catalyst of change. Since the Berkey arrived and I had an epiphany by recalling the original Melitta filter instructions I read back in 1953 or '54, I have changed how I brew using the Melitta.

I now use the Melitta similar to the way others use a pour-over filter. And oh-by-the-way, the same method Melitta recommended in the early 1950s: wet the grounds and let it sit till the water passes thru (they call it a bloom), then add the remaining water in a slow steady pour but only in the center of the filter. No more spreading water around all the grounds to get everything wet again while I finish the pour. And no more stirring with a spoon. Not quite a pour-over, which (depending on the 'expert') dictates a pause every 150 mL or so, but the change in flavor was remarkable to me.

So, 'in for a penny, in for a pound'. I wanted to experiment by trying a proper pour-over. I found there are dozens of detailed procedures on the 'net and I don't really have enough enthusiasm to try them all. So I asked my handy neighborhood expert Will (35 years doing pour-over coffee) what to look for in the way of a filter and he pointed me toward a December Coffee filter. It uses paper filters from Kalita which are readily available. Great.

So I went looking for a December Coffee dripper. It's apparently unique in that it has addjustable flow rate: rotating the upper portion allows 3, 2, 1 or none of the 4 sets of holes to be open. Couldn't find any in the US during this pandemic; every US source is sold out. So I went to the manufacturer's website and ordered 2 for about $10 less per item than the US suppliers (and 3X the shipping cost!). Ah, if only it were that simple.The designers/manufacturers are in Korea. And Korea is currently locked-down during the pandemic.

So I went to plan B: find a Kalita coffee dripper (made in Japan and coincidentally the makers of the Wave 185 filters for the December Coffee dripper) while I wait for the December Coffee dripper to arrive (could be months). And of course I ran into the same thing- US suppliers are out of stock. Well, duh! Japan is locked down just like Korea. Luckily Espresso Parts up in Portland had one left in stock, so I bought it.

Trying it for the first time while making breakfast seemed like a disaster in the making. I opted to try some decaf yesterday afternoon. The dosing standard I most often saw repeated was 20 gm of coffee for 350 mL of water (December Coffee suggests 20 mg coffee to 300 mL water- yikes!). I went for 20 mg/350 mL. A warning light should have popped on at that point: our dosing has been 20 mg coffee to 414 mL water or about 15% more water.

It turns out that 1/4 Cup of unground beans is within a small fraction of 20 gm depending on the coffee variety (some varieties expand more during the roast than others, so there are differences). Easy-peasey for measuring the coffee.

Using the same type scale I use to measure green beans to be roasted, I did the whole thing-

• add a 185 filter to the Kalita and wet it,
  
• set the Kalita on the cup and the cup on the scale;
  
• zero the scale
• add 20 mg ground coffee and zero the scale again
  
• set the kettle to 197°F and when it's ready,
  
• add about 150 gm of water and wait 45 sec
• add 100 gm water and wait for it to drop to the bottom of the Kalita, then
  
• add the remaining 100 gm water

Aaarrrggghh! The coffee was so strong I could barely drink it. All this time I thought we liked really strong coffee but it turns out Mrs. Bowman's little boy is a wimp! The admiral, otoh, thought it reminded her of coffee in Switzerland. Guess you have to be better traveled than this under qualified correspondent.